There was a time when the Eurovision Song Contest was a major event that had European households glued to their TV-sets. It was also the time when the Dutch and Israeli judges would give each other the maximum allowable number of points irrespective of the quality of the song in question which usually was quite poor.

No longer, although it can still create some controversy today. Despite its quality problems, there were definite gems and the best Eurovision song in my mind was France's entry in 1977: Marie Myriam with "L'oiseau et l'enfant" or for the non-French speaking contingent, "The Bird and the Child". A vintage French chanson:

Thirty years ago Marie Myriam was the winner, the last time France won.