IT WAS one of those iconic moments on TV which everyone still remembers – and it set Bucks Fizz on the road to stardom.

But, as Cheryl Baker recalls, the infamous ‘dress’ incident as the British quartet swept to victory in the 1981 Eurovision Song Contest came about by accident.

“We were all lounging around on the sofa arguing about what to wear for the final,” recalls Cheryl who with fellow original band members Mike Nolan and Jay Aston will be heading to the Thwaites Empire Theatre, Blackburn, later this month.

“Jay who is petite wanted to wear a mini skirt but I was a bit more muscular and wanted to wear something longer.

“Out of nowhere our choreographer just said’ why not have both? We can rip off your skirts’ and that was it.”

Eurovision success with the song Making Your Mind Up saw Bucks Fizz becoming one of the most popular bands of the early Eighties with a string of top 10 hits including Land of Make Believe, My Camera Never Lies and If You Can’t Stand the Heat.

Cheryl went on to forge a high successful career as a TV presenter but now she is back with Mike and Jay and they will be joined by Bobby McVay for the Paradise Regained tour which will feature all the Bucks Fizz hits and more.

“The three of us have done some shows together,” she said, “but to get Bobby in really makes a huge difference.

“Thanks to Eurovision we had this image of being bubblegum pop but a lot of our songs were much more complex than that and our harmonies were at the forefront of that.

“With Bobby on board we can now sing all those songs live as they were meant to be.

“We’ve known Bobby for years – he appeared in Eurovision in 1983 as part of the group Sweet Dreams.

“We invited him to join a few years ago but was unable to due to commitments so we’re delighted now to have him with us.”

The newly-formed quartet are now playing theatres around the UK.

“It’s already turning out to be the best year we have for decades,” said Cheryl.

“We all have our own lives now so it’s been difficult to be able to find the time for a major tour like this.

“But now we keep getting asked for dates and the audiences are fantastic.

“We are never going to be a big album band but it’s amazing how many ardent Fizz fans there are out there.

“Performing in a theatre gives us the chance to produce a show we can be proud of, and we truly hope our audiences enjoy hearing the hits once more, together with a few of our lesser known album tracks.”

  • Cheryl, Mike and Jay, formerly of Bucks Fizz, Thwaites Empire Theatre, Blackburn, Friday, June 19. Details from 01254 685500.