Engelbert Humperdinck has issued an urgent plea to Eurovision panels across Europe following yet another disappointing result for the UK on the big stage.
The UK finished rock-bottom of the 2026 contest after Look Mum No Computer failed to curry favour with his Europop hit, Eins, Zwei, Drei.
Except for Sam Ryder, Look Mum No Computer followed in the footsteps of other UK acts in recent years who, too, have found themselves in the lower echelons of the Eurovision table.
Humperdinck himself experienced a similar fate back in 2012. Then aged 76, the platinum-selling crooner managed to only bag 12 points in Baku, Azerbaijan, despite having enjoyed a career lighting up the charts.
Engelbert Humperdinck represented the UK at the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest
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PA
The Release Me hitmaker ended up 25th out of 26 entries on the night.
Speaking to GB News ahead of the release of his latest album, Faithfully, Humperdinck looked back on his time as part of the Eurovision set-up – and shared his thoughts on what needs to happen for the UK to perform better.
“I was thrilled that they asked me to do it, and the song was good, and everything was fine,” Humperdinck began.
Turning his attention to his fellow competitors, he went on: “But I was with a whole bunch of people who never had record contracts, never had a hit record, never travelled in show business, never did the things that the professionals have been doing for all their lives.
Engelbert Humperdinck spoke exclusively to GB News from his home in the USA
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GB NEWS
“Then, all of a sudden, they put this guy who’s been traveling or traveled the world several times and got about 70 gold and 23 platinum albums – they put me on first.
“Out of all the (acts), they put this guy on first. And of course, when you’re going in that sort of an order, by the time they finished everybody, they forget the people who started at the top.”
The running order wasn’t the sole reason for Humperdinck’s lowly result, however.
“It’s a little bit of politics involved there; it has been for years and years. The kind of talent that we have shown them, we should have had results there,” he pointed out.
Look Mum No Computer finished bottom of the leaderboard after the jury vote at this year’s Eurovision
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GETTYBut does the singer feel that the United Kingdom continuing to perform at Eurovision is a lost cause?
Humperdinck remains optimistic. “I still think it can be done… if the judges play fair,” he said.
“It’s all politics, you know, it’s all politics. But if the judges play fair, I’m sure we’ll win a lot more.”
Lauding Britain’s music history, Humperdinck continued: “I mean, who started all this stuff? Who started all the big hits and everything like that? Our country!
Engelbert Humperdinck used to perform under the name Gerry Dorsey | PA
“The British invasion in America. Give me a break. We had the almighty Beatles, who created such a stir around the world.
“Then there are a lot of us who came from the UK who scored very heavily in the United States. Older people like the Moody Blues and all the big names – Mick Jagger and Elton John! All of these people have made a great impact in this country.”
Humperdinck didn’t let the Eurovision results keep him down for long. He’s released 11 albums since 2012, and another, titled Faithfully, is on the way at the end of this month.
And it promises to be an album like nothing he’s tackled before, with Humperdinck putting his own unique spin on some of rock ‘n’ roll’s biggest ever hits.
Engelbert Humperdinck finished 25th during his stint at Eurovision
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GETTY
“My whole life was built on love songs and the romantic stories attached to them, but I’m always willing to have a little bit of a challenge,” Humperdinck told GB News.
“I recorded it, and my producer is a guy called Pete Mills, and he’s with a group called Sweet Hill, so he has all the knowledge of these kinds of songs.
“When I went into the studio with him, he was very instrumental in helping me in a lot of ways because it’s so different for me.
“I’ve heard the entire finished product, and I decided to hear it in a very confined area.
Engelbert Humperdinck performed during the final in Baku in 2012
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GETTY
“I had an hour’s drive to go someplace, so I stuck it on my radio and at full blast, I listened to it.
“I couldn’t believe that the person singing those kinds of songs was me. The sound that came out of it was so today!”
Humperdinck thinks that feeling of surprise will be felt among his listener base.
“It surprised me as much as it’s going to surprise my audience who know my music,” he said. “My age singing these songs!”
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