Lisa Andreas will represent Cyprus in Istanbul in May.

Lisa Andreas, from Gillingham, hopes to be crowned the Eurovision queen at the Istanbul contest in May.

The schoolgirl, who is studying for her GCSEs, was picked by the people of Cyprus last week to be their contender in the glitzy singing contest.

Half-Greek Lisa hopes the contest will lead to worldwide singing fame.

She sings it with such emotion even if you didn't understand the language the song comes across Bob Large, Lisa's father

Lisa, who will sing Stronger Every Minute, took up singing when she was 11 after she sang karaoke in a pub and wowed the drinkers to silence.

Her mother, who is originally from Greece, said: "She sang My Heart Will Go On and the whole place went silent.

"They all wondered where this big voice had come from in such a young person and that's where it all started."

Lisa is looking forward to representing Cyprus in front of a worldwide audience.

She said: "Greek people are very emotional, very passionate about what they say and how they express their feelings so I am very privileged to be a part of it."

'Hugs and kisses'

Her father Bob Large said even though she is singing in English, the Cypriots will be able to understand her.

Mr Large said: "She sings it with such emotion even if you didn't understand the language the song comes across.

"I am so proud my daughter is doing this."

Mrs Large says people in Cyprus love her daughter and are overjoyed she is representing them in the 49th Eurovision Song Contest.

She said: "People came up to us in the street and said to her 'you're the girl who won the Eurovision'.

"They all wanted to hug and kiss her on the cheek."