For many performers, their three/six/nine/twelve minutes on the Eurovision stage is the highlight of their entertainment career. As nowhere else will they be seen by several hundred million people. But for others, Eurovision is a mere footnote.
Today’s birthday girl Céline Marie Claudette Dion CC OQ famously won for some mountainous confederation in Europe in 1988. What do you mean you never knew? Well she had turned up in Switzerland from her native Canada, beating eight other acts in the Swiss national final. She must have a thing for officially multi-lingual nations. As we know, Céline has become a huge global star in the 36 years since she won – singing at major venues across the globe and selling millions and millions of albums. So who says Eurovision can kill a career?
Céline is 56 today.
Bonne anniversaire/Frohe Geburtstag/Buon compleanno/Happy birthday, Céline!