UK Eurovision entrants now – £21m net worth, BGT affair, career U-turn and health scare

Many acts from the UK have entered the Eurovision Song Contest – but have you ever wondered what happened to some of the contestants after the shows aired?

Some contestants have risen to new levels of fame in soaps including EastEnders, while others have stepped away from music all-together and embarked on completely different careers.

While we may all remember some of the biggest winners on the night, including Bucks Fizz and Katrina And The Waves, many famous faces have also represented the UK in decades gone by.

Ahead of the Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday May 14, 2022, Daily Star takes a look at where some of the previous UK Eurovision contestants are now.

Cliff Richard

Pop icon and British treasure Cliff Richard OBE has entered Eurovision, not once, but twice – narrowly missing out on winning the 1968 Song Contest by just one point.

His classic song Congratulations was pipped to the post by Spain’s La La La by Massiel, but five years later, Cliff returned with Power To All Our Friends – finishing third in the Eurovision Song Contest 1973.

One of Eurovision’s most successful entrants and biggest songwriters of all time, Cliff has released iconic hits including Move It, The Young Ones and Devil Woman, as well as becoming known as the King of Christmas – landing over five Christmas number ones in total including Mistletoe and Wine – so it is no surprise that he has an estimated net worth of over £70million.

Although Cliff has never married or had children, it is reported that he dated Australian dancer Delia Wicks and tennis star Sue Barker in the past.

Now 81 years old, he recently embarked on an 80th birthday tour, and was awarded an Order Of The British Empire (OBE in 1995), with the Cliff Richard News Twitter feed recently reporting that the star will be taking to an open-deck bus for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, as an icon of the era.

Despite being one of the biggest selling artists of all time, he also told The Mirror that he is taking a step back from music, but not retiring, saying: “I don’t know if I ever want to retire. I don’t mind stopping.

“Stopping would mean that I could absolutely change my mind any time I wanted to, or phone my office and say, “Can you get us a couple of nights at the Royal Albert Hall?

“So, retiring is not in my vocabulary, but stopping is good for me – I can work whenever I want to, if I want to.”

Samantha Janus

Before Samantha Womack became a soap icon on Albert Square in EastEnders, Samantha Janus as she was known in 1991, came in tenth place with A Message To Your Heart in the Eurovision Song Contest.

It was the model’s first foray into the limelight at the age of just 18 years old, with Samantha later landing leading roles in comedy Game On and TV series Pie In The Sky, as well as modelling for magazines including FHM.

However her most famous role was as Ronnie Mitchell in EastEnders, who tragically died alongside sister Roxy on her wedding day to Jack Branning in 2017.

It was not the first time that Samantha had met Jack Branning actor Scott Maslen however, as the two stars had been friends since they were teenagers.

She has since starred in the popular Kingsman series of films as the mum of Taron Egerton’s character, as well as TV series including Buffering and Silent Witness.

Away from our screens, Samantha has been married twice – first to Mauro Mantovani from 1997-1998, and then to Emmerdale actor Mark Womack from 2009, with who she has two children called Benjamin and Lily.

However in 2021, the star announced that she and Mark had split, telling OK! Magazine: “Our family home is big enough and we’re co-existing happily. There’s no rush to change things.

“But now feels like the right time to be honest and admit we’re no longer together.”

It is reported that Samantha is now in a relationship with actor Farnworth, who played Andy Carver in Coronation Street from 2014 to 2017.

Michael Ball

Another British entrant to narrowly miss out on winning the competition was musical theatre star and radio host Michael Ball, who finished in second place with One Step Out Of Time in 1992.

He was beaten to the top spot by Ireland’s Eurovision entry, Why Me by Linda Martin, which was composed by the King of Eurovision himself Johnny Logan.

After rising to fame as a musical theatre star in productions such as Phantom Of The Opera and Sweeney Todd, he had a top ten chart smash with Love Changes Everything from the musical Aspects of Love in 1992.

However, he has spoken candidly about suffering panic attacks while onstage during this time, but told The Guardian that the breakdown “made me a better performer, and a better person.

“I wish it hadn’t happened, but I’m quite glad it did in a way. You get to the other side, and you learn of the vulnerability of all of us.

“I think that’s been very useful over this last year. It’s recognising that you’re on a spiral down, and how to stop that.”

As well as winning two Olivier Awards and being given an OBE for his services to the entertainment industry in 2015, the star also released a cover of You’ll Never Walk Alone with the late Sir Captain Tom Moore in 2020, with all proceeds going to the NHS – and has released a series of albums and toured with close friend Alfie Boe.

It is now estimated that Michael’s net worth is an eye-watering £21m.

It is not only fame he found through his musical theatre work however, as he also met his partner, journalist and presenter Cathy McGowan, when she interviewed him for BBC news about Aspects Of Love in 1989 – with the couple becoming official three years later.

Speaking about Cathy to Daily Mail, Michael said: “There’s something about the security and warmth of knowing that one person who, whatever happens, will always be on your side.

“When you have so much shared history with someone, there’s a lovely comfort to that, although the mad rush of youth is terrific.”

Gina G

One year before Katrina and The Waves took the Eurovision Song Contest Crown, popstar Gina G arrived with her nineties pop anthem Ooh Aah…Just A Little Bit, which finished in eighth place in 1996.

The song was a huge success in the UK, with Gina going on to release chart topping tracks including I Belong To You, Gimme Some Love and Everytime I Fall.

Talking about her experience of Eurovision, the star told Daily Express: “I was kind of pushed into it [Eurovision] by the record label… I went along for the ride and I was encouraged by them all the way, telling me it was a good thing.”

However, it was reported that star became embroiled in a legal battle over her music with a fellow producer, with the star later stepping away from the limelight.

In 2003, she returned to our screens when she took part in reality TV series Reborn in the USA, alongside former Eurovision contestant Sonia and stars including Peter Cox and Tony Hadley.

Along with a new album in 2005 called Get Up and Dance, the star has taken a step behind the scenes and is reported to have since moved to Los Angeles with her husband, the stuntman Tommy Hudson, where she has her own record label called Stunt Girl Music.

Jemini

Jemini entered the Eurovision Song Contest 2003 with their song Cry Baby, but famously became the first act to recieve nil point at the competition – with the trophy going to Turkey’s entry, Everyway That I can by Sertab Erener.

Reflecting on their Eurovision performance, the Jemini said at the time that their performance was off-key, but said they were unable to hear the backing track due to a technical issue.

Although Cry Baby reached number 15 in the UK Charts, the band were later dropped by their record label and the duo went their separate ways.

However, the duo consisting of Chris Cromby and Gemma Abbey, reunited in 2013 for the BBC programme How To Win Eurovision and in 2014, for a Eurovision special of the game show Pointless.

Chris has since made a career u-turn and according to Linked-In, becoming Global Retail Operations Manager for high fashion brand Ted Baker – but he also continues to record music.

Gemma has also launched her own make-up brand, as well as continuing to sing in various dance groups.

However it was reported in 2016 that she also avoided jail after pleading guilty to making false claims for tax credits, totalling over £67,000, according to the Liverpool Echo.

Javine

After missing out on a place in Girls Aloud on the programme Popstars: The Rivals, Javine launched her own successful solo career – which included entering the Eurovision Song Contest 2005 with the catchy track Touch My Fire.

She finished in 22nd place in the competition, but later went on to release hit tracks including Real Things, Don’t Walk Away and a cover of Carole King’s You’ve Got A Friend.

However after being dropped from her record label, she went on to win Channel 4 series The Games in 2006 and took part in Celebrity Masterchef with fellow Eurovision alumni Cheryl Baker of Bucks Fizz.

Away from music, it was also reported in 2006 that the star had an affair with So Solid Crew’s MC Harvey, while the star was married to singer and Walk The Line judge Alesha Dixon.

The couple welcomed a daughter called Angel in 2008, but split up one year later, with Javine telling Now Magazine: “I suppose our relationship was never going to last, with the pressures of everything.”

Alesha Dixon has since built bridges with her ex MC Harvey, with Harvey revealing the pair had secretly met up at his step-dad’s funeral and cleared the air in a phone call after, saying on Anything Goes With James English podcast: “Alesha then rang me, six months before I met my wife, and she said:, ‘I just want you to be happy, Harv.’

“I apologised to her about what happened in the past, we had a mature conversation. We talked about our kids, I said to her: ‘Your kids are beautiful.’ She said: ‘Your kids are beautiful.'”

Javine has since stepped away from the limelight after releasing critically acclaimed songs including 2013’s Never, choosing to focus on her family, with the star since having two more children.

However, she has been spotted on the red carpet for events including the 20th anniversary of hit musical The Lion King.

Jade Ewen

Jade Ewen is one of the UK’s most successful entrants of recent years, coming in fifth with the Andrew Lloyd Webber ballad It’s My Time in 2012.

She also broke Eurovision records for the UK, as the UK entrant awarded the most points ever in the competition, totalling 387.

However, she was already a big name in the music industry, after joining the Sugababes in 2009 for over two years, before the group disbanded in 2011.

Since her Eurovision days, Jade has made a move into musical theatre, starring in critically acclaimed productions including Lin Manuel Miranda’s In The Heights, Disney’s Aladdin and Godspell.

Earlier this year though, it was reported that Jade was suing the makers of the West End production of Aladdin, in which she played Princess Jasmine, over claims that her vocal cords were damaged while singing the show’s famous songs.

The Evening Standard reported that Jade claims her complaints to show bosses were ignored, she had to spend complete days in silence to preserve her ‘hoarse’ vocals and eventually she needed surgery to rescue her singing voice.

However, The Walt Disney Company is defending a compensation claim worth more than £200,000 being brought by Ewen at Central London County Court, denying negligence and insisting the singer knew she was signing up to a demanding performing schedule when she joined the show.

Blue

After becoming one of the biggest boybands in the UK with hits including All Rise and duet Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word with Elton John, Blue returned to music after a hiatus to perform in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011.

Another successful UK entry, the group finished in eleventh place with their song I Can, and continued to release music after reforming in 2011 following their hiatus.

Lee Ryan, Duncan James, Antony Costa and Simon Webbe have all pursued their own careers away from the group too, with Duncan appearing as Parson Nathanial in the 2022 UK tour of Jeff Wayne’s War Of the Worlds, in touring productions of The Rocky Horror Show and as Duncan Knight in Channel 4 soap Hollyoaks.

However, Duncan revealed in 2016 to The Mirror that he was almost left in a wheelchair for life, after vital fluid from his brain and spine began pouring out of a surgery wound as he sat on the sofa at his mother’s house.

“Doctors told me I could have spent the rest of my life in a wheelchair – or died,” he said.

He also dated Spice Girl Geri Halliwell in 2004 and went on to have daughter Tianie Finn with ex-girlfriend Claire Grainger, before coming out as gay in 2014 – with the star dating Brazilian hunk Rodrigo Reis since 2019.

Simon Webbe has also released music as a solo artist, including 2017 album Smile, as well as marrying Ayshen Kemal in 2018.

Lee Ryan and Antony Costa have also since welcomed children with their partners, with Lee taking part in Strictly Come Dancing, while Antony was a contestant on I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here!

Blue have also recently announced that they are heading back on the road for a UK tour, alongside nineties pop icons Atomic Kitten.

SuRie

SuRie entered the 2018 Eurovision Song Contest with her song Storm, but her performance was interrupted when a protester ran onstage and grabbed the microphone from her.

After completing her performance, the star said she had “absolutely no reason” to perform again, with the European Broadcasting Union saying they were “extremely proud of her performance.”

She has since continued to work in the music industry, releasing songs including Only You and I in 2019 and Last Christmas in 2020.

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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk