How about a flavour of the Flying The Flag book itself...
SIR CLIFF RICHARD on the present-day Eurovision Song Contest...
"As a genuine musical competition, the Eurovision Song Contest has become a joke – but quite a good joke!
I had hoped that the Eurovision would become a presentation of the very best of pop rock in Europe but sadly that hasn't been the case in recent years.
I don't think the United Kingdom's credibility has been damaged by not putting forward a big name.
That is definitely not the case. In the old days, the UK did put up major names – Lulu, The Shadows and Sandie Shaw for example – in the hope, and assumption, that the competition would become musically important.
Sadly it hasn't, and today no major artist in the United Kingdom would want to be identified with it."
LEE SHERIDEN OF BROTHERHOOD OF MAN on the secret of Kisses...
"We began having our own hits around 1972 and 1973 and went on the road before our big Eurovision break came along.
We were expected to do well in Eurovision and the whole thing went like a dream. Everyone remembers the dance routine and Martin sung absolutely brilliantly.
The pizzicato and the glockenspiel smoothed everything along and there was a real chemistry about the whole performance.
We were also lucky in that we'd had a big hit in Europe with the Barry Blue composition Kiss Me, Kiss Your Baby. It sold a million copies but didn’t chart in the UK.
So we were pretty well known in Europe before we even got up on the stage and that definitely worked in our favour."
BOBBY G OF BUCKS FIZZ on the UK no longer being flavour of the month...
"I like to keep up with Eurovision and know what's going on. I have a tremendous affection for it.
It's just wonderful being associated with the event and of course it's fashionable for critics to knock it.
Who cares what they say, it doesn't have to be credible. When was Eurovision ever credible?!
I do feel sorry for anyone who has represented the United Kingdom during the last five years or so. They are truly on a hiding to nothing and the contest has always been a little political over the years.
But since Europe has expanded its borders, and Eurovision has done likewise, we have been squeezed out of the picture. We're not flavour of the month anymore and haven't been for the last decade."
KATRINA LESKANICH on the aftermath of victory with Love Shine A Light...
"The requirement to reprise the song at the end of the show so this came as something of a surprise!
The walk back to the stage was wonderfully chaotic. I can remember Ronan Keating pulling me forcefully by the arm and shouting into the camera ‘daddy, don't get too excited’ as my father had recently been in poor health.
The chaos continued after the presentations.
I missed the click of the backing track and all of a sudden there was the sound of a 24-piece orchestra and tambourines being rattled in my ear!
But we got through it and I came off the stage with goosebumps, knowing we had a delivered a song and performance that had been no disgrace to the competition."
RUSS SPENCER OF SCOOCH about approaching Eurovision in a positive manner...
"Throughout the rehearsals we were so ‘on it’. We were delighted to represent United Kingdom at Eurovision and we remain grateful to everyone who voted for us to give us the opportunity.
Helsinki was a lovely city, really clean and spacious and you could really taste the fresh air!
The people were really welcoming and they really embraced the Eurovision and that was quite an eye-opener for all of us.
The United Kingdom would not have embraced the contest the way that the Finns did. It was a big thing for Finland, as they had won the Eurovision for the first time the previous year.
We tend to take a rather negative view of what is after all a fun competition and that wasn’t the case in Helsinki."
