Musicians, language campaigners and pro-independence politicians have backed a campaign to win a place for the land of song in Eurovision.
There is an increasingly loud chorus of music fans who believe that Wales, a country of heavenly choirs, anthem-belting sports crowds and rousing rock bands, should be given its own place in the song contest.
On Friday the campaign was given a focus with the release of a song called Anfonaf Angel (I Send An Angel) with a glitzy Eurovision-style video by the singer Sara Davies, who won this year’s Cân i Gymru (Song for Wales) competition, to draw attention to the fact that many Welsh people would like their homeland to have a chance to take part.
Davies said winning Cân i Gymru made her wonder afresh why her country did not have a place in Eurovision. “It really doesn’t make much sense to me that we’re not. This will hopefully drive the idea forward and get people talking about it.”
A leading voice backing the idea is the folk singer Dafydd Iwan, who has been celebrated for his song Yma o Hyd (Still Here), taken up by the Welsh national football team and its supporters. Iwan admitted he was not a big Eurovision fan, but said Wales should have a place. He added: “We have all the national attributes that other nations have, including a national TV channel dedicated to the Welsh language, S4C, which should organise an annual competition to find the Welsh song. The song representing Wales would, of course, be in Welsh.”
The pop singer Tara Bandito said she wanted Wales to “shine as a nation” in its own right rather than as part of the UK. “We have our own public broadcaster and with our music scene booming with Welsh language hip-hop, grime, art rock and alt-pop I’m excited to see what is possible.”
Angharad Mair, the chair of Bafta Cymru, said: “Wales should certainly be represented as a country in its own right. We pride ourselves on having one of the oldest spoken languages in Europe. We compete on the world stage in rugby and football and there’s no shortage of superb singers and composers to set the Eurovision stage alight.”
In its last Senedd election campaign manifesto, Plaid Cymru said it would prepare a bid for Wales to enter Eurovision as a nation in its own right.
Heledd Fychan, the party’s spokesperson on culture, said: “Eurovision is an opportunity for countries to showcase their culture, language and talent to a worldwide audience and Wales has a lot to offer on all three fronts.”
Fychan said a precedent had been set by Wales taking part in the 2018 and 2019 junior Eurovision contests. “We would like to see the UK government, the Welsh government and broadcasters work together to make this happen.”
The issue of Eurovision has also exercised the mind of the Scottish National party. In a paper published in February it wrote that independence would “enhance Scotland’s voice on the world stage through global forums like Eurovision”.
However, Phil Jackson, the associate head of creative arts at Edge Hill University in Lancashire and a Eurovision expert, said there was little prospect of devolved nations getting a place.
Apologising for providing the “procedural” details, he said: “In order to participate, a country needs to be a member of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), represented by their domestic public service media (PSM). The BBC is the PSM member for the UK, and the only broadcaster that can operationally host it. There can only be one per territory. S4C does have a PSM remit and is an EBU member but it cannot enter as the BBC is the sole member broadcaster for the UK in Eurovision.”
A spokesperson for Eurovision gave a terse statement: “As the British EBU member that takes part in the Eurovision song contest, the BBC represents the whole of the United Kingdom in the competition. There are no plans to change this.”
Glen Bartlett, an independent TV producer who has worked at several Eurovision contests with the BBC, said: “We’ve proven in the past that Welsh artists are more than capable. Pontardawe’s Mary Hopkin came 2nd in 1970, Carmarthen’s Nicky Stevens from the Brotherhood of Man won in 1976. Jessica Garlick from Kidwelly came 3rd in 2002.”
Robat Arwyn, who wrote Anfonaf Angel, said he remembered being mesmerised in 1970 by Dana’s performance of All Kinds of Everything, which gave Ireland its first Eurovision win.
He said: “I could not then, as I cannot now, understand why Wales, my own country, was barred from the Eurovision. I still can’t understand why the land of song is not allowed to sing.”
