28 May 1992 A Eurovision This or That question for you: an Irish entry that's good but unsuccessful, or one that's bad but wins? In 2021 and 2022 we had the former, with neither Lesley Roy's energetic 'Maps' nor Brooke Scullion's smart 'That's Rich' even making it out of the semi-final. In the '90s we … Continue reading Linda Martin – ‘Why Me?’ →

16 May 1987 Resplendent in an all-white kit, Spurs lost a classic FA Cup Final in 1987 to unfancied Coventry City and Keith Houchen's diving header. Johnny Logan, also top to toe in white, won the Eurovision Song Contest for Ireland a week earlier in equally dramatic circumstances. For years I misremembered both as being … Continue reading Johnny Logan – ‘Hold Me Now’ →

15 May 1982 Later on in the '80s I would hear this song from the folk group that occasionally accompanied whatever mass I was dragged along to as a child. Also in their repertoire was 'The Rose', whose baked-in melodrama always blew 'A Little Peace' out of the water. Even for a folk group at … Continue reading Nicole – ‘A Little Peace’ →

25 April 1981 More '50s throwing-back here, this time bubblegum popcorn something-or-other, which means it may still have been a hit and topped the charts even if it hadn't, of course, won that year's Eurovision. The line-up included a Dublin-born Nolan—though he's not related to The Nolans—and the contest was held in Dublin too, so … Continue reading Bucks Fizz – ‘Making Your Mind Up’ →

22 May 1980 It's 1980, and Charles Haughey, the most divisive Irish public figure of the time, has finally assumed power. The rest of the decade will see his many enemies try repeatedly to bring him down, but without success. Little could anyone in 1980 have imagined that the person eventually responsible for Haughey's downfall … Continue reading Johnny Logan – ‘What’s Another Year’ →