Eurovision song contest

[Hair Bear]

I think I read somewhere for next year Australia are out, and Canada are in.
Sweden next year... Yay, more Petra Mede!

[George 1978]

Only five weeks to go, but people are talking about it already!

Listened to Olly Alexander's song Dizzy on YouTube for the first time this week (I nearly wrote put Olly Murs on here!) Hearing the first few seconds, it felt very "Pet Shop Boys in 1987" to me, especially during their "It's a Sin" era. Quite a few people online have said the same thing as well.

I am not really fond of the name of the Irish entrant: Bambie Thug - the name sounds like someone from the University Challenge episode of The Young Ones, and even his birth name of Bambie Ray Robinson makes him sound like a boxer or a relative of Sugar Ray. The song title, Doomsday Blue sounds a little too negative for my liking, even if blue is my favourite colour (not to mention the UK's entrant in 2011 where I got the autographs of every member a few years later!) I have relatives living in the Irish Republic so I have got to think of them if they are watching them on their RTE screens!

I always like to stick up for countries that have never won the contest, and thus give them the benefit of the doubt; it would be nice is Luna who represents Poland, gets beyond the semi-finals, and also Silvester Belt from Lithuania - two countries that I haven't won or hosted it yet. I will probably adopt a neutral stance if neither of them go through on 11th May.

It's gonna be a cracker in Sweden.

[Hair Bear]

And... Petra's back!

[Star Attraction]

At long last, my Eurovision Song Contest 2023 Grand Final review is now available on my blog. I know it's just over 11 months have passed since the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 Grand Final took place in Liverpool on Saturday 13 May 2023, but anyway, my review will still be a memory of last year's Grand Final.

Eurovision Song Contest 2023 Grand Final review

[Flash Gordon]

"My Lovely Horse" is the best song

[George 1978]

"My Lovely Horse" is the best song

Now that is a song title that Graham Norton would easily relate to!

[George 1978]

First semi-finals on Tuesday, in a nutshell:

Australia - out
Lithuania - in

I think that this is the first year since their first year in 2015 (?) that Australia has not made it to the finals. Had they done so, and won, one assumes that the show the following year would be fromr country would host (a la UK on befalf of Ukraine last year?)

[Cartimand]

The Dutch singer Joost Klein (who looks like a young Jimmy Savile) has been disqualified from tonight's final following a "backstage incident involving a female member of the production crew".

[George 1978]

Gives a different meaning to Going Dutch, methinks? We are not going to get a "50 years of Teach-In" tribute next year. At least the UK was no longer 13th to play since the incident, but we were unlucky to be the only country to get nothing from the televote. Again, I feel sorry about Olly Alexander's result - 18th position with 46 points. One was surprised aboiut Israel considering what has happened recemtly, and I believe that had Ukraine had won, the situation would have been identical to two years ago.

Voted for Lithuania during the "09015 - 15p a call" interval part, and putting "07" at the end of it because I thought that Silvester Belt (which on at least three occassions I accidently referred to him as Suspender Belt) needed a bit of TLC from the punters. He seems like a nice lad (not in the Larry Grayson-sort of way, may I add), and I almost felt sorry for him, especially with that silver butterfly clip thing perched on his nose - what was that, I wonder? Silver - Silvester, perhaps?

Watched it as always (a Doctor Who lovely warm-up with dancers alike throwing themselves down just a few minutes before); while I was almost getting comfortable on a black "Mastermind" swivel chair in the front room and feasting on Pizza Hut takeaway sides as I did so becaue no food was in the fridge. Congratulations to Nemo with his song The Code. As Switzerland was the very first country to win the contest back in 1956, it means that the country has the longest run between first and most recent wins. Croatia and Baby Lasagna were the favourites to win and got a worthy runner-up spot. Also, as a country, Croatia had never won the contest before.

I think, post contest, and three hours after the contest had ended, it makes me think "shall I give it another go next year, or shall I not bother?" By the time it comes around next year, we are rearing to go, or should I say in true Argos Catalogue slogan style: "you're good to go"? just like Martin Österdahl - (the ESC's answer to Rob Walker) would say.

[Cartimand]

"One was surprised aboiut Israel considering what has happened recemtly"

Given the appalling rise in antisemitism, the huge public support for Israel was really heartening!
Goes to show how out of touch the hate mob are with genuine public opinion.

"a Doctor Who lovely warm-up "

Oh good grief no! Now that Doctor Who has been totally Disneyfied and with Bollywood style song and dance routines thrown in, it is officially dead to me!

[Flash Gordon]

Total Disney. Dr Who was sold out.

[George 1978]

Just had a look on the Eurovision 2025 page on Wikipedia - two entries stand out to me at the moment (mostly because of how they looked in their respective YouTube videos) - Luxembourg who only returned last year after over 30 years away, and also making me wonder whether it still existed as a country because of its three-decade sabbatical. Laura Thorn might not sound like a very Luxembourgish name, and Wikipedia doesn't even know which millennium Thorn was born in (she's 25 or 26 meaning that she could have been born in 1999 or 2000), but I have to admit that if she doesn't get to the final in May, dressed like she does on the official YouTube video, I will be very disappointed. She's a teacher as well, apparently... (What dressed like that? - not exactly a grey pencil skirt, is it?) It's sung in French just like a lot of the Luxembourgish entries were during the halcyon days of the contest, and I don't usually go for French language entries, but I am certain that an English language version will be available at the same time, more or less. Considering how many wins they had back in the day, it makes one think why they did opt out in the 1990s?

The second one was Ireland's entrant, Emmy, who is actually from Norway, and she was definitely born in 2000 and not 1999. She's performing Laika Party; looking as if she is dressed in gear training for ten rounds with Mike Tyson in a Bacofoil factory; supported on stage with very similar early-1980s "Space Age" mirror suits and things. Unlike the Eire-ism of the mid 1990s, I would put this as being 50/50 on making it to the final on the night; she's not Johnny Logan, Dana or Brian Kennedy. Remember The Duskeys? No, I don't either.

First choice: Luxembourg; Second choice: Ireland.

[80sChav]

"One was surprised aboiut Israel considering what has happened recemtly"

Given the appalling rise in antisemitism, the huge public support for Israel was really heartening!
Goes to show how out of touch the hate mob are with genuine public opinion.

"a Doctor Who lovely warm-up "

Oh good grief no! Now that Doctor Who has been totally Disneyfied and with Bollywood style song and dance routines thrown in, it is officially dead to me!

I don't begrude Israel being in the Eurovision at any point as they seem more European than Middle Eastern I think, and of course like with Football they can not enter a Song Contest in Asia/Middle East because Iran and Iraq would heavily object but half the the European Counties now in it imho are not European - take Russia, they are only part European as is Turkey on a very small scale and again like Football - Countries like Khazakstan and Uzbeckistan take part in these and are very only bodering on being in Europe. As far as Australia are concerned, it is awesome they are in it and I hope they'll be here for ever - as yes ok they might not be in Europe but like when Africa was founded by Europeans in certain parts of it, so was Australia by many people from many European Countries and to me they are like Ireland - always connected to the MoNarchy, with very good morals just likie the UK

[George 1978]

Oh good grief no! Now that Doctor Who has been totally Disneyfied and with Bollywood style song and dance routines thrown in, it is officially dead to me!

Talk about taking the Mickey. I am not fond of Doctor Who either.

The UK entry has now been chosen - Remember Monday, they are called, and as I am writing this on a Monday, it should be a case of Remember Saturday for the contest.

What The Hell Just Happened seems like an apt title for a song - I bet it will be second from bottom again. Just three countries who have not declared their song yet, and only one of them will definitely be in the final: Cyprus (who indeed will Greece give their 12 points to, I wonder?); Georgia; and of course, France.