SIMON May, the Devizes-born composer of many TV themes, has urged the BBC to look long and hard at the coverage it gives to the Eurovision song contest in the light of Saturday night's debacle when the British entry received "nul points".

Mr May, who is responsible for TV themes such as as EastEnders, Eldorado, Trainer, Howard's Way and Pet Rescue, hit out at the cynical coverage the corporation now gives the event and called for a much more in-depth procedure for selecting the British entry.

He said: "It is no longer just a song contest and there is undoubtedly a political angle to it, but the BBC will have to approach it at a much earlier stage and in a much more serious frame of mind."

He said that the British selection event, A Song For Europe, was given a "graveyard slot" on a Sunday afternoon.

He added: "They should take a leaf out of the book of the organisers of Pop Idol and be much more careful about choosing the song and the performer. The BBC doesn't really invest in the contest until the final stage and then they spend a lot of money on it."

Mr May says his comments are not "sour grapes" because the song he wrote with John Brant, Ever Since That Night, came third in the A Song for Europe contest in March, sung by teenage songstress MiMi from Westbury.

He commiserated with Jemini, Liverpudlian singing duo Gemma Abbey and Chris Cromby, who failed to attract a single point from the juries in each of the European capitals, the first time it has happened to a UK entry. Mr May said: "I feel really sorry for them."

He said the foldback monitor a device that enables singers to hear themselves was not adjusted correctly and as a result Gemma Abbey sang out of tune for the first verse.

"I'm kind of glad we didn't put MiMi through that ordeal, though I'm sure she wouldn't have scored nul points," he said.

"A Song for Europe has now become a gong for Europe. It is no longer about voting for the best song but for a combination of political and musical assessments, where the cultural closeness of the competing countries is more important than having fun and choosing a good number for everyone to sing along to."

Ever Since That Night was Mr May's third entry for the Eurovision song contest, none of which was selected to represent Britain.

He has now sworn never to enter the competition again.

He said: "The contest compared to the Top Twenty is like an animated cartoon film compared to the main feature.

"It now become a panto rather than a serious contest.''