Eurovision Song Contest 2005
From Kiev on Saturday 21 May
Interview with Javine
There aren't many people who can claim they've managed to upstage glamour model Jordan, but this year's Eurovision entry for the UK managed to do just that... twice in one night!
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Javine - perhaps best known for being the singer who didn't make it into Popstars: The Rivals group Girls Aloud - pipped Jordan (performing under her real name, Katie Price) at the post in the battle to represent the UK at the 50th Eurovision Song Contest in the Ukraine capital, Kiev, on Saturday 21 May.
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And no-one would have guessed that it would be Javine who would reveal a little more than she should on live television.
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When she reprised her winning song, Touch My Fire, at the end of the competition, she had a slight 'wardrobe malfunction' - although Justin Timberlake was nowhere to be seen.
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The 23-year-old admits that, on the day of the Making Your Mind Up competition, even she thought that Katie had it in the bag, but, this time, the public didn't let Javine down.
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"I thought the song had a good chance but the whole media attention surrounding Jordan was just immense. I think maybe people thought, 'We've let Javine down before, let's give her a second bite at it'."
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Javine also had to compete against Andy Scott-Lee, Gina G and Tricolore in the show that saw more than a million votes – three times the amount on last year's Eurovision selection programme.
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Javine has already carved out a successful solo career, with four hit singles to her name, including Real Things, Surrender (the title track from her album) and Best Of My Love, but she admits that, at the beginning of the year, things were quite quiet for her.
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"Nothing was really going on for me at the time and, although Eurovision isn't something that people would normally see me do, I thought I could turn it around and make it a bit cooler this year. I think I'm slowly doing that and the interest is great."
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She co-wrote Touch My Fire with John Themis, whom she was introduced to a year ago, and says that the song is "really in your face. It's got a kind of Turkish vibe, it has Eastern influences, so we're trying to reach out to as many people as possible by having that international feel."
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The UK's success – or lack of it – at the Eurovision Song Contest has been the subject of much debate over the last few years.
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No-one will ever forget – or remember, come to think of it – Jemini's performance of Cry Baby in 2003, in which the hapless duo sang out of tune and didn't get a single point.
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And last year, ex-Fame Academy student James Fox didn't do much better, finishing in 16th place with Hold Onto Your Love.
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We last won the competition back in 1997, with Katrina & The Waves and the song Love Shine A Light.
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"We haven't won for so long; it'd just be great to win. I just see it as an amazing night though. You can't think about it too much, you just have to do a great performance, and it's a bonus if you win."
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Javine is second in the running order for the contest which, this year, will see 24 acts in total - ten of which will come from a semi-final competition of 25 countries.
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She says that she'll just be happy to get the performance out of the way: "I'm not going to think about it – people are like, 'Oh, that's a really bad position' but I'm just glad to get it over with. I'll be able to relax and enjoy it.
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"I think a lot of people will be tuning in at that time so they'll definitely see my performance, which is the main thing."
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She admits she still suffers from nerves, despite having performed in the West End musical The Lion King for two years and, of course, Popstars: The Rivals.
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But she says she will just take it all in her stride: "I'm not nervous just yet. I'm saving all the nerves for when I get there because I'm sure they'll come," she laughs.
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"I think everyone gets nervous. It's not life threatening though – it's a singing competition. I just need to have an amazing night and not get upset if I come tenth or whatever. I probably will now!
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"I'm just going to do my best to enjoy it and do the best performance I can."
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And she won't be alone in Kiev. Her mum and sister – her biggest fans – are flying out with her for support.
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"They're coming with me for the whole week. It's going to be one of the biggest nights of my life, so far. I'm never going to do such a big performance again, with millions of people watching, so I need the support."
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Javine's mum and sister were also on hand for the Making Your Mind Up competition, during which you would have been forgiven for thinking that she had brought her entire fan club along, as the support was so overwhelming.
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"I had about eight of my family there and they just got the whole audience behind me. They were screaming and it was amazing.
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"I was sitting in the dressing room thinking, 'Oh my gosh, they're calling out my name!' It was brilliant."
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In Kiev, she'll also have the UK's masters of Eurovision, Terry Wogan and Ken Bruce, cheering her on.
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The dynamic duo, as usual, add their inimitable commentary to the proceedings on ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ ONE and ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Radio 2 respectively.
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Javine met Terry at Making Your Mind Up and again at a Eurovision photo shoot and loves the fact that he sees the contest for what it is.
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"He seems very funny and up for it – I think he does enjoy it all on the sly though! People take it very seriously in other countries but I just see it as an amazing night."
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She's already been sussing out some of the competition: "I went to Greece and saw their entry [bookies' favourite Helena] and I thought she was great, really good.
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"There's some really good competition but there's some really bad stuff as well!"
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The question, however, on everybody's lips is how will Javine avoid another 'wardrobe malfunction' with the energetic performance she gives on Touch My Fire.
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"I'm having a dress made," she says. "It's got to be outstanding and revealing but in a safe way!"
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Javine trivia
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Javine was born in 1981 – the year Bucks Fizz won Eurovision with Making Your Mind Up (now the name of the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ's Eurovision selection programme).
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• She has appeared as an extra in pop videos for acts including The Honeyz, Tom Jones, Damage and The Cardigans.
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At the age of 18 she won a starring role in the West End production of The Lion King. She played Nala for two years in the hit show.
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Soon after that she found fame on Popstars: The Rivals, in which she was considered a dead cert for landing a place in Girls Aloud. She was pipped at the post in the final vote.
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Touch My Fire, which is released on 16 May, is Javine's fifth single. Her first, Real Things, was released in 2003 and reached the top five.
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Her most recent brush with chart success was last August when she released a cover of the R&B classic Don't Walk Away (a hit for Jade in 1993).
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Another track on the single was Javine's version of You've Got A Friend, which featured on the soundtrack for last year's hit children's film, Garfield: The Movie.
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Despite her love of dancing, Javine admits that she's a ballad girl at heart, citing the likes of Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston as her inspirations.
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