Eurovision winner Linda Martin would represent Ireland again at the song contest – if top crooner Johnny Logan wrote a duet for them both to perform.
Our luck ran out on Thursday night after Derry girl Brooke Scullion failed to qualify in Turin with her song, That’s Rich.
Yesterday, a teary-eyed Brooke told fans “it is not the end” of the road for her as she reveals she is set to launch her first EP soon.
She said: “Look it didn’t go our way tonight. We are so, so happy with what we did, and it maybe isn’t for me right now.
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“But maybe in the future, maybe bigger things are going to come.
“I’ve literally got an EP coming out like who knows. Thank you to everyone who voted.
“I couldn’t have done any more. I’m so happy.”
Ireland – who won the Eurovision Song Contest seven times – hasn’t qualified since 2018 when Ryan O’Shaughnessy represented us with his song, Together.
But now Linda told us she wants another crack at it – but only if Johnny gets involved too.
Linda has twice represented Ireland at the Eurovision. The first time was in 1984 with the Logan-penned Terminal 3 when she finished in second place, just eight points behind winners Sweden.
She returned in 1992 with the track Why Me? also written by Logan, which proved to be a hit in the final of the song contest. Logan is the only performer to have won the Eurovision Song Contest twice, in 1980 and 1987.
Linda told us: “Tell Johnny to write a duet and we’ll do it. But even if we did, there is no guarantee we would do well.
“For sure, but the bottom line is a good song will rise to the top, it always does. No matter what is happening within the contest.
“Of course, there is the rubbish [performers], then there is the looney brigade and then you get the cream of the crop, which is actually some fantastic singers.”
Brooke and her backing dancers Amy Whearity, Amy Ford, Lizzy Benham and Sophie Kavanagh looked incredible as they delivered a polished performance with a spectacular display of fireworks at the end.
The 23-year-old said yesterday: “I am so proud of how far I’ve come and the support from home has been amazing. This Eurovision experience has been one I’ll never forget, and I hope is only a stepping stone to my career.
“Thank you to everyone for your support and love!”
Tonight, 30 years on from her win in Sweden with Why Me? Linda will reveal the results of the Irish jury during the final of Eurovision.
Linda’s success in 1992 started off a streak of three consecutive Eurovision victories for Ireland, with Niamh Kavanagh’s In Your Eyes triumphing in 1993 and Paul Harrington and Charlie McGettigan’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Kids winning in 1994.
But Linda said she was shocked when Brooke didn’t make it through to the final after receiving positive feedback all week from fellow performers in Europe.
She said: “I was disappointed for her but that is the way it goes. It’s a lottery – you never know what is going to happen.”
The Belfast-born singer said Ireland needs to “forget about trying to do up tempo songs”.
She said: “We never won with a pop song or a disco song. We have always won with the big ballads and the beautiful lyrics and beautiful melody and with people who have been around a while – and I include myself in this – and know what they’re doing.
“But Brooke will be able to use this as a platform. Where else in the world are you going to be able to perform in front of 300 million people?
RTE’S Eurovision Head of Delegation Michael Kealy said he thought Brooke deserved to go through.
He told the Pat Kenny Show on Newstalk that a lot of work went into this.
He said: “Absolutely gutted for Brooke and for the people that she brought to this team.
“It’s the culmination of three months’ work, people think we turn up the day before and just throw this act together, we don’t.
“It takes a lot to put an act like this together, and to have it all come down to 10 excruciating minutes in the green room is brutal to be honest.
“It’s a tough competition, and I think anyone who looks at it objectively can see the standard of song, the standard of performer, the standard of singing in this competition.”
The last Irish Eurovision winner, Eimear Quinn, congratulated Brooke on an “amazing job”, but added
on Twitter: “I’m so disappointed for you.”
Niamh Kavanagh, winner of the 1993 Eurovision Song Contest for Ireland, congratulated Brooke on a “fantastic” performance”, adding that “you did us proud”.
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