Meanwhile, in the other great European vote, Greece are first past the post

The Greek singer Helena Paparizou won the 50th Eurovision Song Contest last night, securing the title after taking an early lead in the competition. The singer, known simply as Helena, was an early favourite to win the event in the Ukrainian capital, Kiev, beating off challenges from 23 other countries.

The Greek singer Helena Paparizou won the 50th Eurovision Song Contest last night, securing the title after taking an early lead in the competition. The singer, known simply as Helena, was an early favourite to win the event in the Ukrainian capital, Kiev, beating off challenges from 23 other countries.

The UK's hopes of securing a rare victory in the competition, last won by a British act in 1997 when Katrina and the Waves topped the voting, failed to materialise. Javine had a dismal night with her song "Touch My Fire". After the live telephone-based poll of 38 European countries, and Israel, was over, she languished third from last with only 18 points. Malta secured second place.

Javine began her pop career in 2003 after narrowly missing out on a place in the band Girls Aloud, founded by a reality television show and competition in 2002. On Friday, there had been fears that she might not be fit to compete after she cancelled her promotional duties complaining of a sore throat.

The contest was hosted by Ukraine after it won the event last year with a performance of "Wild Dances" by the leather-clad singer Ruslana, who also sang last night. Hundreds of people watched the competition on outdoor screens.

Ukraine's entry, "Greenjolly", performed by Razom Nas Bahato, was the song that became the unofficial anthem of last year's democracy protests. Their enthusiastically performed song involved dancers wearing hooded tops and handcuffs. During the song, they broke free from their shackles and performed cartwheels, to ecstatic applause from the audience.