15 Famous Artists You Didn't Know Competed In Eurovision

What Is He Know For? Musical Theater star Michael Ball is best known for originating the role of Marius Pontmercy in Les Miserables on the West End stage.

At Eurovision (Second Place): Michael Ball was branching out into a recording career when he was picked to represent the United Kingdom at the 1992 Eurovision Song Contest in Malmö, Sweden. He actually came into Eurovision as a big favorite to win--he was even greeted with a banner saying "Welcome United Kingdom" when he landed in Malmö. Ball performed sixteenth out of twenty three countries with the song One Step Out of Time. During the voting, Ball earned a total of 139 points, including four twelve-point scores. However, he lost out by fourteen points to Ireland's Linda Martin, who won with Why Me? The United Kingdom would have to wait a few more years before it would earn another Eurovision win.

After Eurovision: Although Michael Ball did not win Eurovision, he included One Step out of Time on his eponymous debut album and it reached the number one slot on the UK Album chart. The album's success helped Ball foster a successful recording and concert career in conjunction with his musical theater career for the past two decades. He later won two Olivier Awards for Best Actor in a Musical for playing Edna Turnblad in Hairspray and the title character of Sweeney Todd.