Eurovision - Day Seven

It was day seven in Belgrade and the night of the Final of the 53rd Eurovision Song Contest, my sadness at the contest being over for a year was equally matched with excitement to see who would be the outright winner.

The atmosphere at the arena was amazing when I arrived - there was such a hive of activity. There were seas of flags being waved, and people from all nations talking to eachother about their favourites from the contest. I couldn't help but think how wonderful it was to be part of this unifying experience. I made sure I was armed with my Iceland and Norway flags as I headed into the arena ready to support my two favourites.

The show itself was fantastic in the arena - it was one big party. Andy Abraham for the UK did well despite being the second act but it was clear he wasn't going to do well in the votes as his performance was not memorable enough to standout. No Angels gave a better vocal performance but it still wasn't up to the standard of some of the other acts. By the time Euroband came on stage my phone went crazy with all my friends back home that were watching on T.V to say how great they were. One of my friends even said that Fridrik looked like me on stage!! (I wish!!). I didn't think it would be possible for Euroband to raise their game in their performance as they were already so good but they did - giving without doubt the strongest vocal performance in the contest. Their efforts were rewarded in the arena with one of the best reactions of the night. Charlotte Perrelli's performance underwhelmed me slightly in the final and she was totally upstaged by Ani Lorak. It was obvious that out of the two divas in silver, that Ani would come out on top as her performance was much more memorable than Charlotte's. Booing in the arena was directed at Spain with people that obviously didn't think that the "song" was good for Eurovision. Dima Bilan also received a fair amount of boos when he took to the stage. My other favourite, Maria from Norway closed the show with a beautiful performance of "Hold On, Be Strong".

With all the 25 countries performed, it was now the moment of truth - the scores. My personal top 5 were Iceland, Norway, Ukraine, Sweden and Greece, so I was hoping for any of those countries to do well. As the scores started coming in I noticed that suprisingly Sweden were not getting any points. Norway and Greece in particular, were doing well, Iceland had a few points and Ukraine wasn't doing as well as I expected. At the top of the leader board was Greece and Russia and I secretly hoped it would be Greece that would take the prize over Russia. As more countries voted, my dreams for Eurovision in Iceland started to fade and I resigned myself to the fact that I would be going to Russia next year. With only one country left to vote, Demark, the game was over and it was to be Dima Bilans night. The moment that I was most annoyed about was Iceland's Euroband not having their moment of glory on the screen from the green room when they got their 12 points from Denmark - trust Dima Bilan to steal their thunder!! With the voting over, my top 5 finished like this: Iceland (14th), Norway (5th), Ukraine (2nd), Sweden (18th) and Greece (3rd). I was most disappointed for Euroband as I so desperately wanted them to do well.

In my opinion, I think the top 5 (though not all my favourites) were deserving though I would have prefered Ani Lorak's Shady Lady as the overall winner as opposed to Dima "I think I am God" Bilan. I was particularly pleased with Maria's 5th place with "Hold On, Be Strong" for Norway. I'm not sure where it went wrong for Sweden and my favourites Iceland - I guess the whole East v's West is still very much a part of the final despite it balancing out the qualifiers from the Semi Finals. The UK found themselves at the bottom of the table again which wasn't deserved (neither was Poland to be fair). With talk of Terry Wogan resigning and countries pulling out, I wonder if rules for the final will be changed for next year??

The aftershow party was a little sad as it was time to say goodbye to all the friends I had made over the week. I was able to catch up with a few of the artists at the party but the one act that I wanted to see Euroband, wasn't there. I really wanted to tell them how well they did and that it was a great triumph that they qualified to the final. As quick as the week had begun, it had ended and until next year, Eurovision was over.

Eurovision - Day Six

Day 6 arrived and it suddenly dawned on me that the Eurovision bubble I have been living in for the past week was about to burst. There was no time for me to feel sad about it as I had the dress rehearsals of the Final to attend.


I was generally really happy with the songs that did qualify from the two Semi Finals - the new system had really worked as no-one can complain that the final is dominated by the East this year. It was a real victory for both Iceland and Portugal in particular, who have both qualified to the final for the first time since the semi finals were introduced. In fairness, both countries deserved to qualify as they had great songs and both acts gave amazing vocal performances.



By this point, there were 5 acts in the final that really were in my opinion streets ahead of the other 21 acts - my ultimate favourites Euroband, were absolutely amazing to watch they sound and look great on stage - they give 100 percent every time they take to the stage with an infectious high energy that electrifies the arena; Maria from Norway with her classy performance and one of the best songs in the contest; Portugal’s dramatic, theatrical performance delivered by Vania; Charlotte Perrelli's schlagertastic "Hero" and lastly, Ani Lorak with her performance that had all the right elements of a Eurovision winner: Fierce female vocalist, Great song, Amazing stage performance with a fantastic dance routine.

Today was the first opportunity I got to see the Big 4 perform alongside the other qualifiers (I had seen their rehearsals separately). Germany’s No Angels haven't improved at all as vocally they are terrible. I hadn't seen a performance where they have been in tune - it was a great shame as I really like the song (well, in its studio version). France was disappointing for me as there isn’t really much to write about the performance except that Sebastian arrived on stage in a golf buggy. Spain had probably the worst song in the competition with a performance to match. Andy Abraham for the UK delivered vocally but his dancing was questionable as was his suit, it was a bit like your dad at a family wedding trying to be cool and failing miserably.

Eurovision - Day Four

With the First Semi Final out the way, day four saw me at the dress rehearsals of the Second Semi Final, which was a big one as it boasts a strong line-up – including my favourite Eurovision entry.

The Second Semi Final got off to an amazing start with my favourites, EUROBAND. Their performance of "This Is My Life" is full of energy, with a tight-but-simple and effective dance routine, and it really is all about them and their fantastic voices - Fridrik and Regina have in my opinion the best vocals in the whole competition and sound perfect every time they perform. Despite being first out they give a performance and get a reaction that you would expect from an act performing in the middle of the show.

Next up was the comeback queen and former Eurovision winner Charlotte Perrelli with her schlagertastic "Hero". Charlotte hadn’t changed anything from her Melodifestivalen performance – and why should she when it worked so well??

Ani Lorak is in a league of her own with her performance of Shady Lady. This performance is SO Eurovision and has everything – dancers encased in mirrored boxes that light up, a full dance routine and just when you think it can’t get any better, Ani climbs on top of the box towards the end of the song!! It really is amazing performance and slightly upstages Charlotte Perrelli.

Lithuania and Albania’s performances didn’t really do anything for me as I didn’t like the songs, so it was the perfect opportunity to get a drink while they’re on. "Era Stupendo", performed by Paolo Meneguzz, was slightly disappointing for me as he seems disinterested on stage – although he did improve in the second dress rehearsal I saw.

"If You Wanna Have Some Fun", performed by Tereza for the Czech Republic, is a bit of a mess and looks like a bunch of schoolgirls playing in their bedroom. Poor Teresa was out of tune the majority of the time and was a complete difference to accapella that I heard her sing the other day.

Ruslan looked petrified as he performed "Hasta La Vista" and is wearing the same outfit that Koldun wore for Belarus last year -maybe they didn’t have the budget to buy a new outfit?? Pirates Of The Sea from Latvia is something you would expect to see at Disneyland, and was this year’s "Vampires Are Alive".

Croatia, meanwhile, was the one song in this semi final that I HATE, as it is RUBBISH. Deepzone, with the amazing Joanna, were just what I needed after Croatia with "DJ Take Me Away", and I was impressed with Joanna’s vocals. It really is all about Joanna in this performance. Simon Matthew gives a rousing performance of the singalong "All Night Long" - this is the one song that instantly has you singing along by the end.

Morena’s “Vodka” was very disappointing for me. Despite the fact that I really like her and think the song is great fun, her performance is a mess. Sadly, she was shouting her way through the song and it’s all a bit frantic and sloppy.

My runaway favourites from the Second Semi Final were the fantastic Euroband, followed by Ani Lorak and Charlotte Perrelli.

Eurovision - Day One

I arrived in Belgrade on the Sunday before the final. By the time I had arrived, the artists and delegations had already been in Belgrade for a week or so. At the Sava Centre (the Press Centre which was to be my home for the week) the buzz of Eurovision was well underway. Press conferences were taking place - Sweden’s Charlotte Perrelli, a former Eurovision winner, described the event as a “circus” at her press conference, and I knew what she meant as there is so much going on. Early favourites at the press centre in Belgrade were Ukraine, Russia, Iceland and Sweden – but it was still very much anyone’s game.

The first night saw me invited to the official opening party at the Royal Palace. Naturally I attended, as I knew it was the perfect opportunity to mingle with the delegations and the artists and hopefully catch up with a few people I had met at the Eurovision Preview Party in London.


My first meeting was with Joanna, the sassy vocalist from Bulgaria’s Deep Zone. When I asked her what she thought the key to Eurovision success was, she replied: “To be yourself”. Joanna was definitely being herself dressed in a very eye catching outfit.


My old friend from Malta, Morena, told me that she was going to “have fun on stage and have a party” and with an infectious song like "Vodka" I was sure she would. Morena also talked about her Euro competition. When I asked her if she had any tips for me, she said: “The competition is always really tough and there are often many good songs”.


Simon Matthew from Denmark told me that a good Eurovision song needed to be an “anthem”, much like his entry this year, "All Night Long". He added that a good Eurovision song needed to be “memorable and sing-a-long”.

Kalomira, the entry for Greece, told me that she couldn’t give away her Secret Combination but that she felt that each Eurovision entry needed its own "gimmick to make it unique".

Later on I was reunited with the lovely Maria, with whom I danced on stage with at the Eurovision Party. Maria was one of the people I was most looking forward to see as along with Iceland's Euroband, as I was supporting both her and them as my two favourites in the competition. I asked Maria if she felt there was any other standout entries in her opinion, she told me that she didn’t feel that there was an “outright winner” this year. I was then introduced to the writer of "Hold On, Be Strong", Mira Craig.

The other artists I was most looking forward to see were my Eurovision favourites, Euroband. Whenever I see Fridrik and Regina they make me smile as there is just something about them that is just so likeable. They are without doubt two of the nicest, friendliest people I have met. In my opinion, Euroband are everything that Eurovision is about - two amazing singers and performers that are doing something that they really enjoy. I know it sounds a bit corny, but whenever Euroband are around they light up the room.

I was lucky enough to steal a moment with last years Eurovision winner, Marija Šerifović who agreed to pose for a photo which I was very happy about as I knew it would be the envy of my friends!!

The biggest acts at the party were Verka and Charlotte Perrelli, who were very much in demand. Unfortunately I was unable to seize my chance to ask them what they thought it takes to win Eurovision and pose for a photo!! I didn't notice Russia’s Dima Bilan, Ukraine’s Ani Lorak and the UK’s Andy Abraham at the party - maybe I was too busy at the bar??

Just as I was leaving the party I caught up with another of the entrants I had met at the Eurovision Preview Party, Isis Gee. The first thing I noticed was how much tanning she had been doing!! With the end of the party at the Palace, I headed off to the Eurocafe with my friends to continue the party elsewhere!! What a fantastic first day it was!!

Squeezy x

Hero - Charlotte's glittering comeback

March saw me return to Sweden for the Melodifestivalen final with Alex. We were guarenteed a good show with six of my favourites from the competition in the running for the chance of representing Sweden at Eurovision. For me, there could only be one winner and that was the "comeback queen" Charlotte Perrelli.

During the day of the final I was able to catch a PA from Ola and meet him. Upon meeting him he seemed surprised that I had come from the UK to catch the final of Melodifestivalen and even more so when I told him that I had seen him perform at his semi-final a few weeks previously.

At the final Charlotte Perrelli was first up with her schlager-by numbers "Hero", wearing a fantastic silver dress she gave a flawless performance that was amazing to watch - Charlotte really set the standard for the rest of the finalists.

Next out was the cute Sibel with "That is Where I'll Go" for a tiny girl she could really belt out this power ballad. Following Sibel was Rongedal with their Scissor Sisters sounding "Just A Minute" with kitch dance routine - it was a good performance and certainly got the audience dancing. Linda Bengtzing's "Hur svårt kan det va?" was a great song but sadly was a bit of a car crash performance onstage as it was just too frantic and messy with Linda running around the stage. Christer Sjogren followed Linda with the extremely dated "I Love Europe". The youngest performer in the final Amy Diamond gave an energetic performance of her Rachel Stevens sounding "Thank-You" which was one of my favourite songs of the competition - sadly Amy got a bit out of breath during the performance and her vocals occasionally went screachy.

The emotional ballad "Empty Room" changed the mood of the final when Sanna Nielsen performed next, it was a beautiful and flawless vocal delivered by Sanna. Carola and Andreas Johnsson's nemesis, Nordman (who beat them in the second chance round the week before) was next and was popular in the arena. Frida & Headline the act that in my opinion didn't really deserve to be in the final came next with "Upp o Hoppa" as they performed I couldn't help but think it should have been Caracola with "Smiling In Love" there instead.

The last song of the final came from the mighty BWO with the discotastic "Lay Your Love On Me", it was a great stage performance with a big production using a metal cage that elevated lead singer Martin above the stage. With the ten songs performed I thought it had to be either Charlotte, Sanna or BWO that would be going to represent Sweden in Belgrade. As the results came in I was prooved right as Charlotte took first place with Sanna taking the runner-up position and BWO coming third.

Squeezy x