Biography
Birthe Wilke is a Danish singer and actress. She debuted in the 1950s with Bruno Henriksen’s orchestra. When Bruno Henriksen started Philips Gramophone records in Denmark, Birthe Wilke became one of the company’s top singers. She recorded songs like “Håndklaver og Charme” and “Den Gamle Gartner”. Together with Gustav Winckler, she represented Denmark in the 1957 Eurovision Song Contest with the song “Skibet skal sejle i nat”. The song ended somewhat special: with a very long kiss, especially when we are speaking about the 1950s. The cameraman who had to give the sign to quit forgot this. Nevertheless, the duo got the 3rd place. Two years later, Wilke represented Denmark again, now with “Uh – jeg ville ønske jeg var dig”. She took part in the national finals a total of six times.
From the mid-1960s onwards, Birthe Wilke dropped her singing career. She trained as a stenographer and a lawyer, and worked for a number of years in the banking world.
In 2007, she debuted as a writer with the collection of poems “Fluen og andre strøtanker”. In 2010, a double-CD of Birthe Wilke’s favorite songs of the 1950s was released. In 2012 a CD of Danish shows was released.
Birthe Wilke was a married to cyclist Otto Olsen.
