1986 in British music cover of the disco song "Don't Leave Me This Way". The band included singer Jimmy Somerville who had previously enjoyed success with Bronski Beat, and later started a solo career. The Christmas number one single was something of a surprise, a re-issue of Jackie Wilson's 1957 single "Reet Petite". Wilson had died in 1984, but the song been re-issued after being used in a television advert for Levi's, with a new video made of a Claymation version of Wilson. Having first been released 29 years earlier, it broke the record for the longest time between a single being released and
United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 1986 United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 1986 The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 1986, held in Bergen, Norway. The British national final to select their entry, "A Song for Europe 1986", was held on 2 April at the BBC Television Centre, London in Studio 1, and was hosted by Terry Wogan. The BBC Concert Orchestra under the direction of Ronnie Hazlehurst as conductor accompanied all but the winning song, but despite performing live, the orchestra were off-screen, behind the set. The show was opened by 1985's Eurovision winners, Bobbysocks, who sang "Let it Swing," the English-language