Singer Martin Lee, who won the Eurovision Song Contest for the UK with the band Brotherhood of Man, has died at the age of 77.
The musician, who was born Martin Barnes, won the competition with the pop group in 1976 with their song Save Your Kisses For Me, which became a global hit.
The Brotherhood of Man were first formed in 1969, with Lee joining their ranks three years later.
The band announced the news of Lee’s death in a post shared on Facebook, which read: ‘It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our great friend and colleague Brotherhood of Man’s Martin Lee who slipped peacefully away on the evening of Sunday 29th September 2024 from heart failure after a short illness. Martin was 77.
‘Martin sang lead vocals on the1976 Eurovision Winner “Save your kisses for me” which was number 1 in 31 countries and the guinness book biggest selling eurovision single of all time plus the biggest winner by percentage of vote.’
The group shared that Lee was ‘not only a wonderful singer’, but he also co-wrote ‘most of the hits’ released by the group alongside Lee Sheriden.
He was also the recipient of various accolades, including three Ivor Novello awards.
‘He will be sadly missed by his fellow band members Nicky Stevens, Lee Sheriden and especially Sandra Stevens to whom he had been married for 45 happy years,’ Brotherhood of Man stated.
‘Over the past 50 years the four of us have toured the world together in harmony and have so many happy memories but now we are in total shock and cannot imagine a world without Martin Lee. R.I.P.’
Several fans expressed their devastation over the news, including Elaine, who wrote on Facebook: ‘Oh no, such sad news… very upset to see this.’
Ashley shared that some of the ‘best days of her life’ were spent going up and down the country to see Brotherhood of Man perform.
Sally-Ann commented: ‘So desperately sorry. My love for Eurovision was ignited by my very first glimpse at a Eurovision Song Contest, and that moment was when I heard Kisses For Me for the first time.
‘You were such an important part of my childhood and remain so to this day. Huge condolences to you all.’
Lee and fellow Brotherhood of Man bandmember Sandra Stevens started dating soon after she joined the group in 1973. The couple were married six years later.
The singer’s daughter from his first marriage was born in 1973.
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Brotherhood of Man has continued to tour over the years, eventually retiring from the road in 2020.
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