Broadcaster NDR, which organised the German heat, said Corinna May's song Just Listen To The Children had been released with different words by a different singer on a record in 1997.

Eurovision rules state participating songs cannot have been published previously.

Precious: The UK Eurovision entrants

The singer, who is blind, easily won last week's German heat in her home town of Bremen. She is said to be devastated by the news.

"Corinna dissolved in tears and is not in a position to make a statement. Someone should have told her the song was old. If they had, she would definitely not have sung it," her father, Heinz Mayer said.

Her manager, Dirk Muenchow, admitted he knew the song was old. "I didn't think it would be too dramatic," he said.

Second-placed group Supriz will now take her place in Jerusalem on May 29. They will perform alongside Precious, the quintet chosen by British TV viewers in a closely fought phone poll last week. Last year's Eurovision contest was won in by Israeli transsexual Dana International.