It’s that time of year again – Eurovision is here. Competitors representing 37 countries are in the Swiss city of Basel for disco diplomacy and one of the world’s biggest spectacles.
Organisers say last year’s final was watched by more than 160 million people — a guilty pleasure for some, an unabashed joy for others . . . a nightmare in spandex for several. This year’s contest is in Switzerland because Swiss singer Nemo won the contest last year with the operatic anthem “The Code”. Basel, which borders Germany and France, was chosen as the host city.
Countries from across Europe – and a few beyond, like Israel and Australia – have sent an act to Eurovision.
The performers will take the stage at St. Jakobshalle Arena, following on from the semi-finals tonight and Thursday that will whittle the list down to 20 acts to go through to the final . . . with UK entry Remember Monday hoping for a decent placement.
The “Big Five” of France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK, along with host Switzerland, automatically qualify for the final – although they’ve all taken to the stage this week for rehearsals, with Brits able to watch the semi-finals live on BBC iPlayer.
During and immediately after the semifinals and final, viewers in participating countries can vote by phone, text message or the Eurovision app – but not for their own country.
For the final, the winner is decided by a complex mix of public voting and points from juries of music industry professionals in all the participating countries. The juries allocate between one and 12 points to their favorite songs, with an announcer from each country popping up to declare which has been granted the coveted “douze points” (12 points).
Public and jury votes are combined to give each country a single score.
For British fans, the chaos kicks off at 8pm on BBC One – following on from the FA Cup Final between Crystal Palace and Manchester City, and Doctor Who’s own version called the Interstellar Song Contest . . . featuring actual UK Eurovision host Rylan.
A night of drama for everyone – if you’re into that sort of thing – and we’ve put a gallery together of some of the best images from this week.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
