Author: Phil

It’s 3.00pm local time, 2.00pm back in the UK, and I’m in the press centre to watch the first semi-final on one of the huge screens in the press centre. It’s my chance to see how it looks on the telly, and it’s the last chance for the artists to rehearse before the live semi-final tonight.

There is a nice opening sequence, followed by a reinterpretation of Loreen’s winning song from last year, “Euphoria” (no spoilers!).  You will then be welcomed by our host for the week, Petra Mede. She has presented the Swedish Melodifestivalen in the past, and clearly as a talented presenter she bagged this gig.  Whilst she is wearing a fab frock you might be slightly distracted by her diction – she sounds a bit like Mary Poppins.  It’s a bit odd, but you will like her light-heatred presentation style. You will quickly get a sense of the glossy presentation from Swedish bradcaster, SVT – the arena looks fabulous, and with the magic of telly it looks (a bit like the Tardis) much bigger than it does in ‘real life’.

Anyway, here are my comments on the songs and performance – see if you feel the same tonight (although you are not seeing the footage of the actual show tonight!)…

01. Austria

A good opening song. Nice contemporary song.  Well performed.  I hope it goes through.

02. Estonia

This wasn’t on my radar until last night. It gave me my first ‘euro-tingle’ of the night – always a good sign. It’s a strong ballad, very well sung and delivered.  The only problem, as you will see, is that there are loads of ballads this year. This might get lost as there are bigger and bolder ballads to follow.  That said it’s a beautiful song.  And that frock is concealing a pregnant singer, fyi…

03. Slovenia

My colleague Gary Westhead has correctly predicted (hoped!) that there would be a leather-clad chanteuse, and Slovenia’s Hannah is the first of the week. 8/10 for effort, but is the strong memorable enough?

04. Croatia

It’s a pity that the vocal group Klapa Mora haven’t been styled like Il Divo.  They are performing a song in that style, but they are dressed like a convention of dandy highwaymen. One of the lead singers looks a bit like David Schwimmer from friends.  All in all a good performance – not sure it will go through.

05. Denmark

This is the hot, hot favourite. It has been so since it won the Melodi Grand Prix back in February. It’s a really, really good song.  You will hear the influence of Florence + The Machine, amongst others.  It looked great in the arena last night, and it looks even better on the telly.  It throws everything and the kitchen sink in towards the end: there are confetti cannons galore *and* a ‘wall of fireworks’ as the backdrop – always visually stunning.  100 percent going through to the final, and we may very well going to Copenhagen next year…

06.  Russia

After the Russian grannies last year Russia have opted for a big ballad this year.  Vocally very strong – and well choreographed, with the best vision mixing at the climax of the song.  In a ballad heavy semi-final surely it will go through?

07. Ukraine

This is another strong ballad.  There’s something for me which doesn’t connect: it sounds like a song from The Lion King and Defying Gravity from Wicked. So, it’s Broadway does Eurovision.  The singer Zlata Ognevich is stunning, with a frock to die for, ladies.  Should go through…

08. The Netherlands

This is probably one of my top three songs this year.  It’s an unusual song.  The simplicity of the staging is a brave choice.  Then again, coming off the back of the two big ballads it needs to be different.  I hope it gets through.  I have a sneaky feeling that the next one will, because it’s the first up-tempo in a while…

09. Montenegro

Great staging will make you smile. It’s quirky, and actually makes a bit of a mad song quite memorable.  If you like a bit of dub-strp mixed with some rapping from Montenegro, this’ll do it for you!  Going through I hope!

10. Lithuania

Andrius Pojavis, according to Brian Singleton, has very big hands.  Good to see he’s paying attention to the song!  Then again, it’s one of those songs – you may very well be refreshing your drinks and nibbles to this one? Mind you, Andruis has a wee twinkle in his eyes, so that might garner him a few more votes…

11. Belarus

This is a bit of a rip-off of the Turkish song from 2009…

Hadise must be fuming!  Mind you, she did very well, so what’s to say that this will get through?  This is probably the most camp staging of the night so far, by the way, with the introduction of a huge glitter ball…

12. Moldova

Ok, so this is a major frock – no spoilers from me! But it might just be a little more interesting that the song. Another ballad, yawn…

13. Ireland

The best thing Ireland have sent since, erm, Jedward in 2011 (seriously I *loved* Lipstick!). This is sailing through.  One of the best of the Contest in fact. And for leather lovers out there,  and in the interests of gender balance, we have men wearing the leather. Well, Ryan the singer is covered in it, the backing dancers – as you will see – less so.  In fact, you might say they are playing to a certain target audience, quite a few of whom are here in Malmö… 😀

Oh, and Ryan has more than a passing resemblance to Fatboy in EastEnders…

14. Cyprus

Despina Olympiou belts it out like the rent is due tomorrow. And as if to highlight this she has slipped into a négligée to delight the eye, as well as the ear. She has also hired Celine Dion’s ‘armographer’ – marvel as she reaches for the clouds! It’s a nice song but in the cluttered field of ballads is it too subtle?

15. Belgium

There was an issue with this performance last night at the Jury Final.  By the time I had got the press centre (I didn’t stay to the end as I’ll see the whole show again tonight) Roberto Bellarosa was reprising his song.  Why? Apparently there was a loss of audio for the international juries, and so he performed again.  Perhaps because of this the second performance sounded rather ropey. You might not take to his rather shifty gaze (he could have been an extra in The Twilight Saga). Going through or going home?  Taxi, perhaps?

16. Serbia

Serbia have a great track record in previous years.  Only in 2009 did they failed to qualify for the final.  I’m not sure about this one. That said – it’s uptempo, so that might just be enough.  Although you might well be distracted by some rather questionable styling.

So, that’s that my thoughts on tonight’s semi-final.  Keep reading – as it’s the return of the ‘Napkin of Death’ – where a panel of (supposed) Eurovision experts (including me) test our metal and predict which ten songs will survive to sing another day.

More later, friends…

Life inside the Eurovision bubble began last night. I arrived at the Malmö arena about 30 minutes before the first Jury final. Here’s the venue for the Eurovision Song Contest 2013…

Compared to previous years the venue is quite small, but as always the atmosphere is great.  Last night I was there for the first Jury Final. In essence this is the run-through of the first semi-final which is recorded just in case the live satellite feed goes down tonight (you can watch it on BBC3 tonight at 8.00pm!). It is also the night that the international juries cast their votes. Once again this year the voting comprises 50% jury vote and 50% televoting. Over the years the juries (music professionals) have changed the fortunes of some songs quite dramatically. In 2011 our own entry, reformed boyband Blue, finished in fifth place on the public vote.  By the time the juries has had their say we finished in 11th.  So, the jury finals are quite important – and I guess they are the first real test for all the performers.

The show was great – and I’ll be giving you my thoughts on it this afternoon. Once again, it’s a slick production.  Here’s the arena, and me, after the show – you know, to prove that I am really here…

Before leaving the venue a quick trip to the press centre and to pick up our pack of freebies (all very good quality this year!). The press centre, as some have commented, looks bigger than the arena! They might be right, but it’s fab.  A really interesting space in which to work, write, report, observe and get giddy.  Here’s a few pics of it (apols for my usual dodgy camera work)…

Hello there.  How have you all been?

Yes, it’s that time of the year again. Can you believe that it’s been twelve months since the Eurovision circus came to town?!

As I type I’m sitting in the first class lounge at Heathrow Terminal 5, thanks to my friend Professor Brian Singleton’s gold card, not university expenses!  In 30 minutes we catch a flight to Copenhagen, and then a 20 minute train journey to Lund (our location for the week), located just outside the host city for the Contest this year, Malmö.

This is the sixth year that I have been blogging on the Eurovision, and I hope, once again to add a little bit more to your Eurovision experience.

To get us started, here’s Bonnie Tyler – our entry for this year – doing her thing…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p7b1w_xuT8

Let’s believe in Bonnie!  😀

 

This is the firth year that I have done the Eurovision blog – and I hope that once again I’ve added something to your Eurovision journey (and party!).

Whilst on my overseas busman’s holiday in Belgrade, Moscow, Oslo and Düsseldorf I have signed off in advance of the Grand Final by sending Euro-love to my best-est Eurovision buddy, Rachel Rolfe, with whom I have spent 12 consecutive years at my place, or at the Rose Theatre on two occasions, watching the Contest.  In 1999 my best mate Adam got married on the day of the Contest – how very dare he! – and on that occasion Rachel and I initiated a media blackout, and watched if the following day, with our friend Coral Black (former colleague at EHU). Funny story is that in 2000 Rachel attended my Eurovision party with her new boyfriend (now husband) Richard, and Coral get him completed rat-faced!  She can do that, some of you might remember!

Anyway, this year I don’t have to sign-off with greetings to Rachel, as she has travelled to sunny Southport with her family to oversee the proceedings with me.  And that’s it – just me and them… low key and intimate, you might say.  I wanted a year at home, and that’s what I’m getting! We’ll have a ball, and it’s great to have the Swiss Family Rolfe here for the weekend.

I am, in a reverse of fortune, missing my euro-buddies with whom I have enjoyed the last four years in the host country.  Most of all I miss gin and fanta (no really, it’s gorg!) and paprika crisps with Karen, Paul being simultaneously giddy and a bit strung-out (remember he’s there for the whole fortnight so anyone can be forgiven for being “tired and emotional” in the euro-bubble) and perhaps (Professor) Brian (Singleton) most of all. Brian has been my wing-man with whom I’ve cheered and jeered the parade of songs.  He introduced me how to register one’s lack of interest in a performance when the rest of the arena might we wigging-out: the world’s smallest applause… with your little fingers! Great fun!

So, as you know, they are in Baku, and we have shared out final “Napkin  of Death”.  Remember – the napkin is our strategic predictions, not necessarily our favourites.  So this time around we predict the top ten and the winner. Here we go, not just mine, but a collective kiss of death…

BRIAN	PAUL	PHIL	KAREN	MILIJA
Russia	Russia	Russia	Russia	Russia
Italy	Italy	Italy	Iceland	Iceland
Azerbaijan	Estonia	Germany	Italy	Italy
Greece	Azerbaijan	Serbia	Norway	Estonia
Sweden	Romania	Ireland	Azerbaijan	Norway
Turkey	Greece	Malta	Romania	Azerbaijan
Ireland	Turkey	Sweden	Greece	Sweden
Serbia	Serbia	Norway	Sweden	Spain
Ukraine	Ukraine	Romania	Turkey	Serbia
Moldova	Moldova	United Kingdom!	Serbia	Ukraine
			Ukraine
			Moldova

 

(Karen seems to be a bit giddy – she’s got 12 in the top ten!)

TO WIN !!!

Italy

Italy

Sweden

Serbia

Sweden

 

A quick look at the betting odds…

No change at the top – and if this is how it stays then Sweden will have led the bookies since March.  What a result it will be!

Soon it will be time to find out – BBC ONE/BBC HD at 8pm (or via www.eurovision.tv).

See you on the other side, and go and get your Eurovision party started!  (stay hydrated – an extra ice cube in your drinks!)

😉

xx

 

 

 

You’ve got to love the fact that the host theme for Eurovision this year is “Light Your Fire” – how bloomin’ hot is it in the UK today!

So here we are – the final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2012! The weather is as hot as it is in Baku, and I think that tonight is one of the best finals I have ever seen.  It must be the heat, but even Albania is growing on me!

It’s going to be fascinating to see what wins – and I think it might be a close run Contest this year.  I am hoping that Russia don’t win, and I would burst if it was Sweden.  It could also very easily be Romania, Italy, Norway – and with a strong finish – Ireland, Serbia, Ukraine and Moldova will all get a bounce from coming at the end of the draw.

So here goes – my kiss of death that’s not on a napkin goes to (te dum te dum…) SWEDEN!  Go Loreen!  And as the Eurovision god’s have determined I drew Sweden in my own sweepstake (in front of witnesses!) so even more reasons to get excited later tonight if we are off to Stockholm next year.

Here then is the fantastic line-up of entries for the Grand Final.  I’ll pop back later before the Contest with the latest news on the betting odds and the final buzz from Baku.

01 United Kingdom

02 Hungary

03 Albania


http://youtu.be/7i5qS8WPhwQ

 04 Lithuania

http://youtu.be/RPdD707wo60

05 Bosnia and Herzegovina

06 Russia

o7 Iceland

08 Cyprus

09 France

10 Italy

11 Estonia

12 Norway

13 Azerbaijan

14 Romania

15 Denmark

16 Greece

http://youtu.be/9A5QU1tWBkE

17 Sweden

18 Turkey

http://youtu.be/fmCEYeRxcnw

19 Spain

20 Germany

http://youtu.be/VZ6wazGG6Dk

21 Malta

22 FYROM

23 Ireland

24 Serbia

25 Ukraine

26 Moldova

🙂

 

Last night Europe (including the UK) voted the final 10 songs through to the final of the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest. I was quite surprised that I got 8 out of 10 once again – more than I would have expected!  Gutted that Slovenia didn’t get through but relieved that Sweden did.

The only songs that have not yet had special mention on the blog this year are the songs from the “Big 5” (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom) and the host country, Azerbaijan. The Big 5 are the main contributors to the European Broadcasting Union, and as such they get direct passage to the final – media imperialism lives!

Many fans and commentators see the efforts of the Big 5 this year as a collective raising of their game – occasionally they are accused of not investing much effort in terms of quality control in the songs that they send to compete. I guess if we reflect on the merits of the UK entries over recent years they might have a point!

Here then are the entries from the Big 5 and host country Azerbaijan:

Azerbaijan

This was a grower for me, but I really like it now.  Since they entered for the first time in 2008 Azerbaijan has had an excellent success rate, sending well-crafted songs that connect well with the pan-European television audience.  Part of their success is collaborating with international songwriters.  Last year it was really the Swedes that won it for Azerbaijan – the song was written by Swedish guys, and the backing singer were Swedish too!

The song looks like it’s struggling in the betting odds, but with the home town advantage tomorrow night I’m sure it’ll do well – perhaps more so with the juries (comprising five music industry professionals) than the televoters (that’s you and me).

France

This was one of the first songs that I heard this year – and it was an immediate hit for me.  I should advise you to listen to the song again without watching the video – it’s as mad as a box of frogs, isn’t it!  Apparently when we see Angun perform on Saturday night she will be surrounded by bare-chested men.  Talk about knowing your audience!

Germany

Germany have really got their groove back it terms of song quality and success in the last few years. Lena’s “Satellite” was a great winner in 2010, and last year she returned to defend her crown with what I still think was one of the most brilliant songs in recent years (“Taken By A Stranger”).  This year a change of tempo to a more relaxed song from pretty boy Roman.  This should give Germany another top ten finish – that’s if I’m not to be the kiss of death to at least one song this year…

Italy

After a surprise second place last year Italy return with any Amy Winehouse-esque track.  I can see why it’s third favourite – and another song that will do well with both the international juries and the televoters.  Top 10 for sure, probably Top 5, and it wouldn’t surprise me if it did win.

Spain

Lots of fans were giddy with excitement about this song when it was first selected.  I just couldn’t get it.  However, a couple of months on, and after a fair few listens I kinda see what the fuss is about. Great vocal, and it builds to a suitable crescendo towards the end.  Coming late in the draw might also be useful for this song.  Something that the next song need not worry about…

United Kingdom

… starting from first position in the draw is a bit of a blow. It is not the most coveted of positions, although second position is seen as the kiss of death – no song has ever won from there.  That said, the UK have actually won from first position!  Yes, fact fans and history buffs (remember this as a potential pub quiz question) Brotherhood of Man won for the UK back in 1976 with this classic…

Other first place winners include “Ding Dinge Dong” for The Netherlands in 1975 and “Diggi-Loo Diggie-Lay “for Sweden in 1984.  Perhaps we should have called our entry “Love Will Set You Diggi-Loo”?

Anyway, I really like the song.  From the first listen in the office with Deb and Jules, when we all had a “euro-tingle”, to today I think it’s a beautiful song – well composed and arranged – simplicity in a sea of Eurovision giddiness can’t be a bad thing. Let’s hope that the juries love it and that the televoters don’t forget it in the mix by the end of the night.  It will be a good result for us to finish on the left side of the scoreboard, a great result to finish Top 10. If Engelbert is as “big in Eastern Europe” as the press junkets say then we’ll be in with a shout of the Hump finishing well.

Go team Hump!

More on the final countdown later…

I’m a bit delayed in posting the “napkin of death” predictions – had a mad day marking (deadline tomorrow) and just about to head for food and drink – well, it is the second semi-final, drink will be needed!

I had a quick skype chat with Dr Eurovision  (he’ll be on at the end of the broadcast on BBC Three, so keep an eye out), Karen and Brian – but there was no time for us to collectively share our predictions for tonight – we’re all chocka.  That said, we’ll get our Eurovision groove on again for our final predications for the, erm, final on Saturday.

In the meantime, and with very little strategic thinking (my mind will probably change after a G&T later) here’s my napkin of death.  I think that the following will go through to the final:

Serbia

The Netherlands

Malta

Ukraine

Slovenia

Sweden (yay – sound of schlager harps!)

Turkey

Norway

Bosnia & Herzegovina

Lithuania

So, I’m not confident with this slection, but let’s see what happens.

And for those of you with your eye on the betting odds, the top 20 is now thus:

 

So, it’s an improving picture for the UK (hooray).

I have everything crossed for Loreen from Sweden – let’s see if she’s still the favorite later tonight.  Enjoy the show!

 

Tonight it’s the second semi-final of ESC2012.  How the time flies!

As I said earlier this is a more eclectic mix of songs, and I’m not sure who will make it to the Grand Final. Here are today’s songs, which you can see at 8.00pm on BBC Three…

01 Serbia

Eurovision loves a returning competitor, and Zeljko Joksimovic represented Serbia in 2004.  Not only that, he composed Serbia’s entry when they hosted the Contest back in 2008 – the same year that he also co-hosted the show.  He’s a very talented musician, and is well loved by eurofans.  This is a certainty to get through – and will probably be top five in the final – indeed, challenging for the title.  Great song.

02 FYROM

I don’t want to suggest that all songs in the Eurovision should be sung in English, but having said that I’ve been listening to the English language version of the Macedonian song since March, and it’s a surprise that they have not chosen to do that version tonight. Pop music can have more impact in an Anglophone form, and I hope that this gets through because I like the track and the vibe.

03 The Netherlands

Great song – catchy vibe.  She looks as mad as a box of frogs, so I hope that people don’t mistake what looks like quite goofy staging for a goofy sounding song.  Hope it goes through.

04 Malta

This is similar in sound to Hungary in the first semi-final – and that got through.  Malta are hit and miss in the Contest and other than their ‘old reliable’ performer, Chiara (who has represented them three times), they struggle to make the cut.  This might be on my napkin of death – it chugs along quite nicely – and he look a bit like Shane Ward (the X-Factor winner), which might help him!

05 Belarus

I will admit that I haven’t seen the rehearsal footage for this entry, so I wonder if they will still be wearing their mighty morphing power rangers consumes tonight…

06 Portugal

Aah, don’t you feel like a glass of sangria or something!? Nice vibe – will get votes from Spain if they are voting tonight. Portugal have upped their game recently in terms of qualifying (apart from the awful song they sent last year – an insult to any music lover, which didn’t qualify!) but I’m not sure how this will do.  It’ll come down to the staging tonight.

07 Ukraine

This is one of my pre-Contest favourites. It’s a bit of a disappointment to have to report that the early rehearsal footage that I saw was a rather sketchy.  Mind you, as eurofans will tell you, Ukraine seem to be able to polish the proverbial and turn it in euro-gold.  For me what’s most disappointing was that the lead singer is surrounded by dancers and she is not being supported by strong backing singer, as she is on the version above.  I thought this was a sure-fire qualifier, but let’s see how much they have tweaked the performance tonight.

08 Bulgaria

Aah yes – Eurovision does retro europop!  This song makes me smile – takes me back to the 1990s and the dance scene then!  The video even has shades of C&C Music Factory’s “Gonna Make You Sweat” – remember that?  Get your thermal t-shirts and day glow gloves out of the drawer! Good old school effort…

09 Slovenia

When I listen to this song I think it’s great – it’s anthemic and actually reminds me of the Serbian winning song “Molitva” from 2007.  What a shame that tonight you will see the first major frock horror of the Contest.  She looks like the bride of Frankenstein!  Hopefully the television viewers will see though the dress (you know what I mean – not like that!) and appreciate this strong song.

10 Croatia

Another solid entry from Croatia. It comes in the middle of the draw, which might not help, and coming off the back of Slovenia and ahead of the hot favourite might sink the song?

11 Sweden

You know I have a Swedish flag in my kitchen.  No, really!  My friends and my Media, Music and Sound students know how much I love schlager music (basically Scandinavian/Germanic pop music), and I watch the Swedish Melodifestivalen every year over the six weeks it is on (via t’interweb) to see what Sweden select (the footage above is of Loreen performing at the Melodifestivalen). I love, l-o-v-e, LOVE this song and I’ll burst with giddiness if it wins.  Early rehearsal footage has been a bit sketchy. But hopefully as the snow falls from the arena roof tonight you’ll see why it’s so good.  There is simplicity in the staging (a refreshing change in Eurovision) and the slightly (once again) retro vibe will hopefully be enough to grab the eye and the ear.  Go Loreen!

12 Georgia

It’s sometimes dangerous to name a Eurovision song in a particular way. Back in 2000 the UK entry, performed by Nikki French was called “Don’t Play That Song Again” and in response Europe responded by not voting for it, and it sank without trace (although not the nul points that followed for us in 2003). I think that “I’m A Joker” does exactly what it says on the tin.  Dr Eurovision thinks this is a certainty to go through.  I don’t!  Whose right – you decide!

13 Turkey

A return to the more ethnic flavourings in the Turkish entry this year.  There was surprise last year when they didn’t qualify for the final – but they had begun sending the same song every year, so it’s good that there’s a change of direction this year.  I hope the staging doesn’t sink it, but it should go through with the help of the Turkish diaspora.

14 Estonia

Dr Eurovision did his thesis on nation branding of Estonia and Ukraine at the Eurovision, and his adopted country (like mine is Sweden) is Estonia.  Naturally he loves this song.  I’m starting to get it – but it’s just not immediate enough for me.  That said, Albania got through on Tuesday so I might be inclined to say it’ll get through.  Ott Lepland has many fans, and not just for his song and you might see why tonight… (ask me via e-mail I can’t say it on the blog!)

15 Slovakia

This my guilty pleasure of the Contest.  It’s like a big hair rock-out! Good effort – although what’s all that screeching about.  Will it go through?

16 Norway

Back in March I said to Neill Cockwill that he should put bets on Ukraine, Romania and Norway. At the time they all had long odds (60-1 and over).  They have all since narrowed, and I think that after tonight Tooji will be in the final with small odds. Great song and well performed. Pretty boys have begun to do very well at Eurovision: Eric Saade for Sweden last year cam third, and Alexander Rybak was the winning singer for Norway in 2009.  There’s a female demographic for Eurovision these days, so it’s not only the gay fans who might appreciate Tooji this year.  Surely guaranteed to go through?

17 Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bosnia have a good track record.  On the first few listens this doesn’t seem as strong as last year, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see this in the final.

18 Lithuania

A good position for this song, and with quite a memorable performance.  It’s a good song – and helped by the change of pace.  Perhaps it takes a little too long before the tempo changes, but overall it gets me singing along.

 

So that’s the field for tonight.  Later I will Skye with my chums in Baku to sort the napkin of death.  In the meantime, what will be your final 10?

More in a bit…

🙂

 

So that’s the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 up and running!

Not a bad night for me on the predictions/”napkin of death” front – I got eight out of the ten songs, so not bad.  Mind you I think that the semi-final last night was actually easy to call.  The one on Thursday night will be more challenging, with a more eclectic mix of songs than last night. I was pleasantly surprised that Hungary got through, but Albania bemused me!  That’s what I love about this Contest – the subjectivity of the pan-European music taste will always deliver a few surprises.

Watching the Contest at home for the first time in five years made a nice change – and I was not wishing I was there in Baku, so I‘ve made the right decision to sit this one out.

I thought that the staging was great and it was well directed. The presenters need some work – no chemistry and rather stilted delivery.  The BBC presenters (Scott and Sara) were dreadful – talking drivel throughout.  The audience seemed strangely subdued – although let’s not forget that it starts at midnight local time. I think that the EBU need to mobilise the flag police (like they had in Moscow in 2009) to stop overzealous fans blocking the cameras with their flags (this wasn’t a problem the last couple of years at the stage was raised higher, and the camera run was set about the flags).

I think the nicest touch of the event so far was how the lighting on the outside of the crystal arena changed to the colours of each nations flag as they were about to perform – very effective.

Did you see my good friend Paul Jordan – aka “Dr Eurovision” – being interviewed on BBC 3 during the voting and at the end of the show?  He’ll be doing the same thing on Thursday night, and you can continue to get his lowdown on his blog I have previously listed on my blog. Here’s his last post:

http://www.dreurovision.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/eurovision-semi-final-one.html

One last thought for now – how the betting odds have changed overnight.  Here’s the top 20 as of Wednesday morning…

Sweden have been the favourite since February (but that’s no guarantee!) and we’ll see them perform tomorrow night. The UK were fourth favourite last weekend, but have now plunged to 10^th.  Oh dear!  Mind you, the Hump’s rehearsals have been rather sketchy so I can see why people aren’t betting on it.  I’ve said for months that it wouldn’t surprise me to see Romania finish in the top three, and after making it to the final last night their odds have narrowed and they are now at a new high in the betting – 5^th favourite. I thought Iceland was great last night (although male singer Jonsi did look slightly possessed – like some Hammer House of Horror vampire!), so I’m surprised that they have drifted from 5^th  favourite to 14^th. It’ll be interesting to see the impact of the second semi-final dress rehearsals today on the odds.

If you joined me last night hope you enjoyed it – and share your thoughts on the blog. More from me later, as our Eurovision marathon continues…

😉

 

 

 

As we look towards events in a few hours (20:00hrs GMT) I have been in touch with my euro-chums in Baku, and having deliberated I can now reveal what we think will make it to the Grand Final at the weekend. I must point out that they are four hours ahead of UK time and so a drink had already been taken, as they warmed-up for the evening ahead (lucky them!). Longtime readers of the blog will join me in welcoming back regular contributors Karen and Brian, joined as they are by Milija and Dave.

As a group of fans and academics, ergo supposed “experts”, here’s what we think…

	PHIL	BRIAN	KAREN	MILIJA	DAVE
01 Montenegro
02 Iceland	YES	YES	YES
03 Greece	YES	YES	YES	YES	YES
04 Latvia					YES
05 Albania		YES	YES	YES	YES
06 Romania	YES	YES	YES	YES	YES
07 Switzerland	YES	YES	YES	YES	YES
08 Belgium	YES				YES
09 Finland
10 Israel
11 San Marino
12 Cyprus	YES	YES	YES	YES	YES
13 Denmark	YES	YES
14 Russia	YES	YES	YES	YES	YES
15 Hungary
16 Austria			YES	YES
17 Moldova	YES	YES	YES	YES	YES
18 Ireland	YES	YES	YES	YES	YES

 

So as you can see we all agree on seven countries: Greece, Romania, Switzerland, Cyprus, Russia, Moldova and Ireland.  It will be interesting to see if the guys in Baku have the hometown advantage of having seen all the rehearsals and the dress rehearsals – they might know better than you are I what is working on stage.  We’ll all see tonight when we see it on television how they all come across to the viewers at home.

So as you can see we all agree on seven countries: Greece, Romania, Switzerland, Cyprus, Russia, Moldova and Ireland.  It will be interesting to see if they guys in Baku have the hometown advantage of having seen all the rehearsals and the dress rehearsals – they might know better than you are I what is working on stage.  We’ll all see tonight when we see it on television how they all come across to the viewers at home.  I’ll go on to say that my reserve list is Finland and Israel (if that doesn’t sound like I’m edging my bets!).

So, see you on the other side – enjoy the show and play along.  How successful will your napkin of death be…

And Brian Singleton – enjoy the show from your OGAE fan seats. I hope the view is good, and don’t miss me too much this year – I’m with you in spirit! Hopefully I’ll be back as your wing-man next year!

🙂