UK’s Eurovision act Look Mum No Computer finished in last place on Saturday night as they received ‘nul points’ from the voting public, while Bulgaria clinched the victory in Austria.
It marked yet another dismal result for the UK in the contest, and its third last place finish since 2020, with musician Sam Battle’s zany entry Eins, Zwei, Drei, securing just one vote in the jury vote and zero in the public televote.
For the stage performance, he wore a pink boiler suit and danced around in a mock workshop while playing a synthesiser and surrounded by fur-clad robots with computers on their heads.
But the quirky display failed to impress, with viewers at home saying the act ‘deserved nil points’, branding it the ‘worst song I’ve ever heard’, and claiming ‘it’s almost like the UK are trying not to win it’.
They wrote on X: ‘On behalf of everyone watching Eurovision from the UK we don’t claim him and we apologise for this mess’; Believe me if we could give ourselves nil points, we would’;
‘Everyone who has anything to do with Eurovision and the UK and choosing our artist should be fired. It’s just an act of national embarrassment.’; ‘I think the UK really doesn’t want to win Eurovision, it’s almost like they are trying not to win it’;
It marked yet another dismal result for the UK in the contest, with musician Sam Battle’s zany entry Eins, Zwei, Drei, securing just one vote in the jury vote and zero in the public televote
It marked yet another dismal result for the UK in the contest, with musician Sam Battle’s zany entry Eins, Zwei, Drei, securing just one vote in the jury vote and zero in the public televote
‘The UK entry is the worst song I’ve ever heard. Who signed off on that?!’; ‘Spending hundreds of thousands on the event just to get 0 points while putting 0 effort or love into their act. Poor fella though’;
‘Yeah, the UK deserve nul point this year. Which bizarrely probably gives us a better chance. But seriously, that was embarrassing’; ‘I think UK will get last place again this year. That song was well cringe’;
‘Sorry, but this is potentially the worst UK entry we can remember. Bad song, lyrics, tune, melody, dancing, styling, staging’.
‘Does the UK have a humiliation kink or do we genuinely have no one better to send to these things?’; ‘The UK deserves NUL POINTS – awful song!’
Ahead of the contest, Sam admitted that he knew Eins, Zwei, Drei would be divisive, but insisted that taking a risk could pay off.
‘What we’re doing is Marmite,’ he told the BBC. ‘You either love it or hate it – but I think there’s a slot open for our sort of thing.’
However, it seemed that even the delegation from the UK were not in favour of the eccentric track, as Sam was later seen sat all on his own during the jury show.
A video quickly went viral on social media, showing the YouTuber sitting alone in his booth, before the delegation from Denmark take pity on him and invite him to sit with them.
Sharing the clip on X, one user fumed: ‘Sorry but if I was Head of Delegation for the UK I wouldn’t have my act sitting on his own at the top of the Jury show (when points matter) and them having to be adopted by lovely Denmark after the flag parade. Thank you to the Danes. Sam we support you…’
Why does Britain keep getting Eurovision so wrong?
But the quirky display failed to impress, with viewers at home saying the act ‘deserved nil points’, branding it the ‘worst song I’ve ever heard’, and claiming ‘it’s almost like the UK are trying not to win it’
While other fans also declared the footage as ‘so sad’ and ‘shameful’, as they blasted the BBC and UK delegation for ‘disrespecting their own act’.
Others insisted that the UK has long failed to take the contest seriously, repeatedly sending poor acts to compete, despite a long history of producing some of the world’s biggest artists.
They questioned: ‘How does UK the country that produced The Beatles and Adele and Elton John had Sam Battle as the best that UK has?’;
‘Why is the UK so unserious about the Eurovision’; ‘from the land of the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Oasis, Adele, Queen, elton john, george michael etc. and the uk sends look mum no computer NUL POINTS’;
‘We have so many incredibly talented artists that put the UK on the map, but yet we struggle to find an artist who can get us more than one point at the Eurovision’;
‘They gave us The Beatles, the Stones, Zeppelin, Oasis, The Smiths, The Cure, Queen…..surely that UK lot have got something up their sleeve….’; ‘You’re telling me. That in all of the UK. There wasn’t ONE song better than this?’;
‘The UK is definitely taking the p**s out of #Eurovisión2026. We are one of the best countries in the world to produce music without a doubt. Politics and music should never mix.’;
‘If Australia can utilise the services of an established recoding artiste like Delta Goodrum, why doesn’t the UK do the same? Why pick some unknown, untested singer and hope they’re better than ‘average?’
However, many pointed out that well-established acts rarely agree to take part in the competition, saying to do so was ‘career suicide’.
Will Young previously ruled himself out from ever competing in Eurovision, branding the opportunity ‘a poisoned chalice’.
However, it seemed that even the delegation from the UK were not in favour of the eccentric track, as Sam was later seen sat all on his own during the jury show
A video quickly went viral on social media, showing the YouTuber sitting alone in his booth, before the delegation from Denmark take pity on him and invite him to sit with them
While other fans also declared the footage as ‘so sad’ and blasted the BBC and UK delegation for ‘disrespecting their own act’
When asked if he would ever consider participating, he told BBC Breakfast: ‘No, I don’t think so because it’s going to be a bit of a poisoned chalice.’
The pop star stressed: ‘I don’t want to do it. Please don’t make me do it.’
While Olly Murs has also declined to take part, despite his name often being suggested by commentators and fans, saying it was ‘not for me’.
He told Digital Spy in 2015: ‘No, I wouldn’t do Eurovision. I think it’s always something I’ve found… new artists normally do it. Not for me, unfortunately.’
And there is some precedent to the argument that appearing in Eurovision as a well-established artist can do more harm than good.
Most notably, Years And Years’ Olly Alexander represented the UK in 2024, with two No. 1 albums and six BRIT nominations under his belt, but his raunchy track Dizzy failed to impress.
Before the competition, the singer said he believed Eurovision did a lot to promote artists around the world and that his motivation for taking part was to introduce himself to a wider audience.
‘I did Eurovision because it was a great opportunity to promote my music. I’m releasing new music for the first time in a few years. I hope that Eurovision will be a brilliant platform for ‘Dizzy’.
‘People love the songs they see at Eurovision. They do really well. They’ve been embraced by a younger audience.’
But, while the jury awarded him 46 points, he received zero votes from the public, finishing in 18th place overall.
Others insisted that the UK has long failed to take the contest seriously, repeatedly sending poor acts to compete, despite a long history of producing some of the world’s biggest artists
Olly went into debt with his label to pay for the staging of the show and while he later said it was ‘kind of iconic to bomb’, when asked what advice he would give to future UK entries, he quipped: ‘Get yourself a really good therapist.’
The It’s A Sin actor found himself facing huge backlash before he even took to the stage in Malmö, after rejecting calls to boycott the event in support of Palestine – facing a tirade of abuse and threats and was given upgraded security.
This is in stark contrast to how countries view taking part in the contest, frequently sending their biggest and most talented stars to compete.
This year saw singer Delta Goodrem, who has had a total of nine number ones and 17 top-ten hits on the ARIA charts Down Under, compete on behalf of Australia – coming in a respectable fourth place.
While this year’s winner Dara has already had a successful career as a pop star in Bulgaria for a decade, ahead of her victory on Saturday night.
She urged established artists in the UK to let go of their prejudices about Eurovision, insisting they shouldn’t look down on the contest.
‘I don’t know what’s stopping them from experiencing this amazing place,’ she told BBC News: ‘You might be from bigger country than Bulgaria, but whatever.
‘Don’t be afraid to jump into a new reality, into risk, and to try new things. That’s what makes life fun, and you will feel alive.’
While Moldova’s entry, Satoshi, also expressed shock that UK artists were reluctant to take part, saying: ‘In the UK there’s a bad perception of representing your country at Eurovision? Well, that’s not good.’
He added: ‘I can understand that the UK has delivered so many powerful acts to the world that you don’t have to rely on Eurovision to get awareness, but I think it’s a wonderful contest to emphasise your musical potential.’
However, many pointed out that well-established acts rarely agree to take part in the competition, saying to do so was ‘career suicide’
Most notably, Years And Years’ Olly Alexander represented the UK in 2024, with two No. 1 albums and six BRIT nominations under his belt, but his raunchy track Dizzy failed to impress
This year saw singer Delta Goodrem, who has had a total of nine number ones and 17 top-ten hits on the ARIA charts Down Under, compete on behalf of Australia – coming in a respectable fourth place
However, some fans have argued that the UK’s lack of popularity in Europe is to blame for their poor results every year, insisting that this year’s entry was ‘worth more than a single point’ and that even a huge star would struggle to gain votes.
They took to X to defend Sam’s song and say that the UK should leave Eurovision as it was not longer a song contest ‘it’s all about politics and a way of proving everyone hates the UK’, and questioning: ‘Why are we paying to be humiliated every year?’
They tweeted: ‘The UK entry was never going to win but it didn’t deserve only 1 point.’; ‘There is just no point in the UK taking part in Eurovision, we’re the most hated country in the competition. Its a waste of our money!’; ‘
‘That was pure Eurovision. If any other country other than the UK entered that song it would do well.’; ‘The uk could have Michael Jackson himself performing and we would still be near the bottom’.
‘we (UK) could have the best song and we still wouldn’t get points to much political voting the sooner we stop putting money in and stop entering Eurovision the better we’re just an embarrassment’;
‘Kind of impressive that UK has once again fetched up bottom of the table with a single point, even after throwing caution to the winds with our ‘f— it I don’t care anymore’ entry. Or it could just be that everyone hates us’;
‘United Kingdom needs to give up entering the Eurovision Song Contest, it’s embarrassing. It’s not a song contest, it’s all about politics and allies. And a way of proving everyone hates the UK’;
‘A guy pretending to be a cat got more points than the UK. The country committing genocide got more points than the UK. Why are we paying to be humiliated every year? Let’s just leave already with some dignity left and invest in our own entertainment’;
‘UK didn’t deserve to win but the song was definitely not the worst song in the competition’.
Some have argued that the UK’s lack of popularity in Europe is to blame for their poor results every year, insisting that this year’s entry was ‘worth more than a single point’ and urging the UK to leave Eurovision, questioning: ‘Why are we paying to be humiliated every year?’
Meanwhile, the entire competition itself has been overshadowed for a third year by calls for Israel to be excluded over its conflicts in Gaza and elsewhere.
The contest – which is now in its 70th year – has seen its largest boycott ever, with five countries, Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, Iceland and Slovenia, all refusing to take part due to Israel’s participation.
During Israeli entry Noam Bettan’s performance, he faced boos from the audience to ‘Free Palestine’ and ‘stop the genocide’ – in reference to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, which has seen over 75,000 people killed.
The 28-year-old is reportedly receiving protection from the security agency Shin Bet, Mossad and elite Austrian units during his time in Vienna.
Across the Austrian capital, pro-Palestine protesters took to the streets waving Palestinian flags and holding signs saying ‘don’t mention Palestine’ and ‘united by genocide’.
One protester, Viktoria Eibensteiner said: ‘I think it’s very important to show a symbol of Austria being against war crimes, about not offering a stage for Israeli crimes in Palestine, in Lebanon, wherever.
‘So… we want to take a stance against genocide, against war crimes, and that’s why we’re here today, it’s a celebration that serves to counteract the Eurovision Song Contest and the normalisation of war crimes.’
Jamil Sawalmeh, the Country Director for ActionAid Palestine, said: ‘Justice cannot be a song Europe sings for some and silences for others.
‘As Eurovision takes centre stage across Europe today, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza continues, with Palestinians facing bombardment, forced displacement and deepening suffering, while the Israeli Government steps up its assault on Palestinian life and rights in the West Bank.’
