Will Sarah get Switzerland back on a roll?

Poor Switzerland has been doing very well at Eurovision over the past few years, despite some brilliant songs. In 2008 Era Stupendo was our absolute favourite entry, and it didn't even make it out of the semi final!

This year Switzerland is having a national final for the first time since 2004. We'll be tuning in this Saturday (11 December) to discover the first song selected for Dusseldorf.

The best song, in our opinion, comes from Sarah Burgess. Co-written by John Gordon (one the composers of Lena's Eurovision winning Satellite) Sarah's song, Just Me, sounds like it could be a Katy Perry track.

So it's not actually a great surprise to discover that Sarah is in fact from the US, and actually tried her luck at American Idol!

Enjoy the song below.

Romania - we want U!

The 13 songs competing to represent Romania in Dusseldorf are now available to listen to here.

We loved Ovi and Paula's Playing With Fire, and we reckon Romania is on to another winner if they pick Claudia Pavel and the fantastic ballad I Want U To Want Me. Enjoy the performance below.



The Romanian national final takes place on New Year's Eve - let's hope they pick Claudia's amazing song!

Junior Eurovision, and Georgia's on our mind....

This weekend sees the 8th Junior Eurovision Song Contest take place in Minsk, Belarus.

Eurovision Express has followed JESC all the way since 2003 when we ventured over to Copenhagen to cheer on the UK's Tom Morley. Of course the UK no longer takes part, and we have to watch the show on the internet these days.

14 songs are battling it out. Some of our favourite songs come from Belgium, Sweden, Armenia and Latvia. But we reckon that if there's any justice Mariam from Georgia should triumph with her Lady Gaga-esque Mari Dari. It's well performed and catchy as anything.

Enjoy one of the rehearsals below.

Radio 2's getting Butterflies!

Here at Eurovision Express we were big fans of Butterflies, the song that came 2nd in the 2009 Norwegian MGP.  Sung by Tone Damli Aaberge, it, of course, lost out to the eventual Eurovision winner, Fairytale.

But the good news is that it's getting a UK release, and is BBC Radio 2's record of the week!

Let's enjoy the MGP performance again, and hope Tone goes big in Britain!

Ticket time again for Swedish MF 2011

Tickets for the Swedish Melodifestivalen 2011 go on sale tomorrow (Thursday 21 October). 

More info here.  Best get in quick as they usually get snapped up in seconds!

It's Dusseldorf!

It's official - after months of speculation the 2011 Eurovision Song Contest will take place in the Fortuna/Espirit Arena in Dusseldorf.  Full story here

UK fans gather for Eurobash 2010 in Manchester!

Eurobash 2010, the annual gathering of the British Eurovision fanclub, OGAE UK, takes place next Saturday (16 October).  After 4 successful years in Birmingham, the sold-out extravaganza moves to Manchester!

Over 100 fans will come together to celebrate all things Eurovision - with a quiz, a special 'Firsts' themed Contest, and the eagerly anticipated Stars In Their Eurovision Eyes, where attendees become their Eurovision heroes - for one night only.  This year 11 acts will compete, all hoping to follow in the footsteps of last year's winners, who gave a knock-out performance of Laka's song from 2008.

Eurobash 2010 will also welcome 4 special guests: Kit Rolfe (better known to Eurofans as Belle from Belle and The Devotions, who sang Love Games for the UK in 1984), Hera Bjork (Iceland 2010), Sarah Cawood (UK semi-final commentator) and Craig Lees (who entered the 2005 UK heats of the Junior Eurovision).

Eurobash 2010 promises to be another fun-packed day!

Junior Eurovision details announced!

image copyright EBU

The EBU have confirmed details for this year's Junior ESC to be held in Minsk, Belarus on 20th November. 14 countries will take part with Moldova trying it out for the first time. Sweden return after a year off, as do Lithuania and Latvia, increasing the number of participants by one compared to last year.

You can find out full details here.

Austria comes home!

It might have something to do with the fact that their near neighbour has won this year, but whatever the reason, we're delighted to see that Austria will return to Eurovision in 2011!

The country that gave us Boom Boom Boomerang by Schmetterlinge in 1977 and the unforgettable Alf Poier in 2003 has decided to re-join the Eurovision family after a three-year gap. They may even be one of the first to announce their entry according to this report (in German).

Welcome back Österreich!

It's the 3 "J"'s for the Netherlands!

Netherlands are quick off the mark for ESC 2011 - they have chosen their singers already! The group that will represent Les Pays-Bas next year will be the 3 "J"'s! After Sieneke's disappointing showing in Oslo, the Netherlands are going back to the formula of choosing an artist and then a song.
The 3 "J"'s will perform 5 songs and the public will choose one to represent them in Germany. Unfortunately this process didn't work for The Toppers in 2009, but we are hoping that the Netherlands pick a great song and get to the final where they belong in 2011!

Read more here.

Lena goes for the double.....and ESC 2011 moves forward one week!

The dates of next year's semi-finals and final have moved forward one week to 10th May for Semi-Final 1, 12th May for Semi-Final 2 and the final on Saturday 14th May. NDR, the German broadcaster announced the new dates today and also announced that Lena will represent Germany again in 2011!

You can read the full details here

Germany wins televote and jury!

The jury votes of ESC 2010 have been released by the EBU and show that Germany won both televote and jury convincingly. Turkey didn't do so well with the Juries but Belgium did!

You can see the results here.

Glückwünsche, Deutschland!

Well done Lena and Well done Germany. We are delighted that a modern song with no gimmicks has won the 2010 Eurovision Song Contest. Lena Meer-Landrut has won with the song Satellite. Still can't quite believe it. We were fearing a win from either Armenia or Azerbaijan (one of the most promoted songs this year!) but in the end, the voters - and juries - of Europe decided to reward vocal ability and pick a very good song.

We are also delighted that Belgium and Romania did so well but feel sorry for Ireland.
So it's Germany 2011 - bring it on!......after a long rest!

Thank you to all our site visitors (more than ever before), we hope you enjoyed Oslo 2010 as much as we did. Stay with Eurovision Express throughout the year for all the latest on the best music competition in the world!

Algo Stupido!

The most surreal moment of last night.....scroll to just after 1 minute! Bravo Daniel for continuing!

Thank You Oslo! Takk Oslo!

What a great Eurovision we have just had. The staging, the facilities, the organisation and of course, the parties have been tremendous. Olso 2010 was everything we could have hoped for and more. We thoroughly enjoyed reporting on the rehearsals and parties and hoped you enjoyed reading them. We also had a great time catching up with old friends and making new ones.

So we say goodbye from Oslo 2010 but we will be back here next February for the Melodi Grand Prix final!

....and the winner is......

no idea!

We just cannot decide who we think will win this year.

Our ideal winners would be BELGIUM, CYPRUS or SPAIN, but we think it will probably be ARMENIA, AZERBAIJAN or even GREECE.

At the other end of the scoreboard we think it will be FRANCE or UNITED KINGDOM. Despite being great singers (especially Josh from the UK) we just don't think the songs from either country are strong enough to gain a lot of votes.

So we say VOTE FOR BELGIUM. Go TOM DICE....and his guitar!

Make Your Mind Up Time!!!

After the first Dress Rehearsal, time to pick a winner....... this is a tough one and we will have to sleep on it. Predicition tomorrow!

And finally Denmark

Denmark

A great song to end the contest.  What an interesting journey this entry has been on.  It came to Oslo as one of the favourites, and then everyone seemed to go off it, as the initial rehearsals were a little lacklustre.  But now it's back on track.  N'evergreen is popular in Russia, and the song will appeal to the West, so maybe this could actually win!  If it does, Sweden might be kicking itself, as it was a song that was entered into Melodifestival, but was rejected.  Only time will tell.

Portugal and Israel

Portugal

Another surprise qualifier.  That said, this is a good, oldfashioned Eurovision ballad.  Portugal never worries about trends in the Contest, it just does what it wants.  Filipa does well with this song, and connects with the camera very well.  This could do much better than anyone could ever have imagined.  Good.

Israel

We were surprised this qualified last night.  Harel seems to be singing well, but this song bores us.  This is an entry that strives to impress, but leaves us totally cold.  Contrived and overblown.

Armenia and Germany

Armenia

A little break before the Apricot Stone.  Now third in the betting, Eva also has a decent draw.  This should do well with both the West and the East, not that we want it to win.  We find the performance too busy, but the beat and rhythm is good, and Eva sells the song well.  Impressive, and looks like Top 5 to us.

Germany

One of the best songs in the Contest.  Modern and current, can Germany do it? Perhaps.  It's not a bad performance, but it doesn't seem to really engage the audience in any way. Much better on the dancefloor than on stage.  We applaud Germany for the effort, but this may not bring them success.

Romania and Russia

Romania

One of our favourites now, and a very good draw for Romania.  We think this would be a worthy and well-liked winner.  Some of the best vocals in the Contest, this is a modern, catchy entry.  Paula and Ovi look like they are enjoying themselves, and we just love it when Paula nails every single one of those high notes.  This could win.  Excellent.

Russia

Another song that's going to divide the voting.  We quite like Peter, and feel better about this song now knowing it's meant to be ironic.  But the first time we saw it, we thought it was very poor.  This is likely to do better than it deserves to.

Ukraine and France

Ukraine

One of the shock qualifiers from last night, Alyosha.  We think her voice and performance earned her the ticket for the Final, because the song really is quite despressing.  What a pity Alyosha isn't singing something that matches her obvious abilities.  It will of course get its fair share of votes from the East, but we can't see it appealing to the West.  Midtable.

France

Time for a workout!  For us one of the weakest songs in the Final that doesn't go anywhere.  A rehearsal that's full of energy, and with an element of French laissez-faire about it, which we kind of like.  We did think this would come last, but that seems unlikely as it's a jolly, happy performance.  Will probably do better than it should.

Albania and Iceland

Albania

2 uptempo songs now, the first from Juliana.  A much more typical Eurovision song, Juliana looks totally at ease and delivers a very good performance.  Solid.

Iceland

Another song that embodies people's perceptions of Eurovision.  The West, especially the Nordic countries, are going to vote for this.  But we suspect the East will completely shun it.  A relaxed, vocally assured rehearsal from Hera.  She's having a good time and looks totally at ease.  We love Iceland and all the Icelanders we've met over here, and we'd love them to do well.  Schlagertastic!

Georgia and Turkey

Georgia

There's a commercial break before Georgia.  This came over very well last night.  We'd ditch the routine, but Sofia proves herself an excellent performer.  Another thing is that we did like this song when we first heard it, so we think it's got instant appeal.   This is outclassing Ireland and Belarus by a long chalk.  We prefer Belgium and Cyprus, but, being objective, this is in with a shout.

Turkey

We have to say that we liked this song before we came, but the stage performance does very little for us.  It's all a bit menacing what with the metal 'robot' dancer.  One of the most contemporary songs in the Contest, but an unlikely winner.

Greece and United Kingdom

Greece

A great draw for Greece, coming after 2 ballads.  The stage is full of energy, and this will go big tomorrow night.  To be honest we don't like this song, but it's a professional performance that will stand out.  Probably not a winner, but Top 5 seems likely.

United Kingdom

A good performance.  Josh is finding the cameras more now, and making eyecontact far more often.  He just needs to relax a bit and show that he's enjoying himself, because you can tell he's thinking about everything.  I suppose this where he relative inexperience shows through.  All in all competent, but this will struggle.

Belarus and Ireland

Belarus

After a small little break, time for the Butterflies.  We like the tune of this song, but only really understand about 1 in 3 of the words.  We think they should have been a little more subtle with the presentation.  Yes, the wings moment gives the audience the chance to whoop and cheer, but it just seems too silly. We don't think juries will go for this.  This afternoon, vocally all very good.  But we'd be disappointed if this won.

Ireland

Not a great draw for Ireland, coming after another ballad.  But we're just relieved Niamh made it through.  In contrast to Belarus' over the top performance, this is a simple presentation.  Niamh isn't giving it her all this afternoon, and we're a bit concerned she has got problems with her voice.  It could be that she's deliberately holding back, but she definitely isn't hitting some of the higher notes.

Belgium and Serbia

Belgium

We are delighted that Belgium is in the final, and it's become our personal favourite.  It's perhaps a bit of a shame it's been drawn so early in the contest and so near to Cyprus, but there's something so appealing about both the song and the singer.  Tom makes some really good eye-contact with the cameras.  It's giving us goosebumps!  For us, this is the best so far, and if there's any justice it will win.  Douze points.

Serbia

This song has got quite a good draw.  We've grown to like it a lot, but initially we did think it was a bit strange.  One thing last night's 2nd semi proved is you need to remember your first impression when you heard and saw a song.  We're sure this will get 12 points from every ex-Yugoslav country, but will the likes of Iceland, UK and Spain 'get' it?  We're not sure they will.  But a 2nd Serbian win is definitely within reach.

Cyprus and Bosnia-Herzegovina

Cyprus

Hooray.  Cyprus qualified and deservedly so. We've been saying that this is a real dark horse since we saw the first rehearsals over a week ago.  A strong song, excellently performed.  We like the non-pretentious feel to this entry.  And we're also impressed by the backing singers whose vocals blend in perfectly with Jon's.  This afternoon everything is pretty spot-on, and we love the build towards the end of the song.  Excellent.  Believe us, this is a real contender.

Bosnia-Herzegovina

We just don't like this song, and are surprised it's in the final.  Good vocals and assured performance, but we are confident this will be towards the bottom of the scoreboard.

Norway and Moldova

Norway

Could they do the double?  It's a real possibility, although we are sure NRK don't want to!  Didrik's song is highly derivative but there is a certain magnetism to it.  Today he wasn't quite on his game, but it was a perfectly competent performance, and the ending is still a real knockout.  Bergen 2011? The best song so far, and a definite contender.

Moldova

Time for something more uptempo, with Moldova offering something in stark contract to what has been heard before.  This song has really grown on us, and we're very pleased it's made it to the Final.  This could actually do quite well, given that it's the first Eurostomper of the night.  An assured, relaxed performance.  Good.

Azerbaijan and Spain

Azerbaijan

Not the best of positions for the favourite.  A competent performance, vocally good.  Safura actually looks more relaxed now now that she's qualified.  The end bit where she runs back to the mainstage from the catwalk still looks weird.  A strong opener, but a much less likely winner than before.

Spain

For us this is Spain's best entry since 1995.  Daniel sounds brilliant, and we like the circus feel to the presentation.  There seem to be quite a lot of long shots that go on too long, but the camera work gets punchier as the song progresses.  And the ending is very good.  But, however much we would love this to win, it doesn't have that buzz about it at the moment.

The first dress rehearsal of the Eurovision Final....live blogging - the introduction

OK, we're ready to start live blogging.

The introduction of the show looks great.  It's a journey from 1956 to the present day, passing through some of the cities that have hosted the Contest, bringing us up to date with Oslo of course.

There is then a filmed section of what looks like fans wishing their own country luck, starting with a good luck message from the UK.  Then Alexander Rybak reprises his winning song, although this afternoon he seemed to be resting his voice and didn't sing all of it. 

You can tell it's the first dress rehearsal as it's all a bit disjointed, but that's what rehearsals are for.

On to the first song - Azerbaijan!

Live blogging of first dress rehearsal of the Final.....

So here's the running order for the Eurovision Final.  We'll be live blogging the first dress rehearsal at 3pm (Norwegian time) later today.

1. Azerbaijan
2. Spain
3. Norway
4. Moldova
5. Cyprus
6. Bosnia & Herzegovina
7. Belgium
8. Serbia
9. Belarus
10. Ireland
11. Greece
12. United Kingdom
13. Georgia
14. Turkey
15. Albania
16. Iceland
17. Ukraine
18. France
19. Romania
20. Russia
21. Armenia
22. Germany
23. Portugal
24. Israel
25. Denmark

Our prediction for Semi Final 2

We've now reflected on the dress rehearsal we saw yesterday of Semi Final 2, and predict the following countries will qualify for the Final:

Armenia
Denmark
Sweden
Azerbaijan
Netherlands
Romania
Ireland
Cyprus
Georgia
Turkey

but this is the most difficult semi-final to predict ever!

Turkey

Turkey

We weren't sure about this song during its previous two rehearsals.  It's VERY dark on stage, with glimpses of black and white throughout. The lead singer's vocals are good.  It's a decent song, and Turkey always qualify.  This will be in the final.

Croatia and Georgia

Croatia

After quite a long break, it's time for Feminnem.  Good vocals from the girls, and quite a classy performance, but we think this takes a little too long to get going.  For us it only kicks in with the strings bit, which is fab.  A few shaky camera angles this afternoon, but it's the first dress, and generally things are going quite well.  We see this as a qualifier but not a winner.

Georgia

We think Sofia should have stood still for this song.  The mini ballet with blokes in white naval uniforms, although well executed, is just distracting.  Excellent vocals though.  We kind of like this song, and now see it as a definite qualifier.

Bulgaria and Cyprus

Bulgaria

Two angels floating around, two barechested chaps and Miro in the middle.  It's all very Eurovision.  Problem with this song is it doesn't go anywhere.  Just lots lots of "oooh, oooh-ing".  It's a song that works much better on record and one the dancefloor, not on stage.  You just lose interest.  We don't see this qualifying.

Cyprus

We knew this would win the Cypriot final, and we hope the rest of Europe takes this song to its heart.  An anthemic song with a slightly gospel feel to it.  It's well sold by Jon and the rest of his group.  We think juries will like this.  It feels like a real song.  Excellent.  If this doesn't qualify, it's a disgrace.

Slovenia and Ireland

Slovenia

We think there are 16 songs in this semi that really could qualify.  This is the one that has no chance.  The mix of folk and rock just feels weird, although it's pretty well sung.  But after 90 seconds you just want it to end.  Please end.  Last place beckons we think.

Ireland

Dressed in mauve Niamh looks good. And she's in fine voice too.  This is Ireland doing what it does best, and coming after Slovenia it is going to seem even better.  Simple presentation of a very strong song, we would be very sad if it doesn't qualify, and we're sure RTE and many a Eurofan would be crying into their Guinness if it didn't.  Very good.

Netherlands and Romania

Netherlands

This could have been the Dutch entry in the 1970s, and is completely kitsch and tacky. Sieneke isn't the most magnetic of performers, but we reckon this could definitely pick up its fair share of votes, from the public rather than the juries.  We reckon Norway, Denmark and the UK will like this.  This could qualify!

Romania

There's a break here, and we cut to the Green Room. It sounds like they are using last night's script, referring to the Oval Office, and then saying that the next song is Belgium!!!  Anyway on to Paula and Ovi.  A great starting shot looking down at the double piano.  We love this song.  Both performers are strong, especially Paula, who hits all the high notes without fault.  Some have this as a borderline qualifier. We reckon it's definintely going through.  It's catchy, pretty modern.  Excellent.

Azerbaijan and Ukraine

Azerbaijan

Ok, here's the favourite.  Dressed in a beautiful blue outfit, Safura looks a little scared standing at the top of her stairs, but the male dancer now holds her hand as she descends them.  This is a strong contemporary effort, but seems to have lost a bit of backing since the second rehearsal.  Safura is in pretty good voice, although some people think she's not quite hitting the notes, and you either love or hate the 'drip drop' lyric.  We're not convinced that the bit where Safura has to run back to the main stage after being on the catwalk really works.  To us, Sweden was better, but Azerbaijan is surely qualifying.

Ukraine

We don't like this song, but Alyosha is a great singer and is full of passion.  This could be a surprise qualifier, and a lot of people are now tipping that it will make it through.  A strong performance - we just wish she was singing something else.

Switzerland and Sweden

Switzerland

We really like this song and Michael is a very good singer and performer, but today the backing singers feel a bit too loud, drowning out Michael's vocals.  Also we think the whole performance doesn't really work.  The 3 female backing singers are dressed in long flowing gowns.  It just doesn't fit in with any style of presentation - it's not contemporary, it's not retro and it's not kitsch. It just doesn't leave any particular impression.  Alas, a definite non-qualifier.

Sweden

After a little break in which Lys Assia will be introduced, we're back with Sweden.  Anna's guitar looks massive!  Sweden goes for a midtempo ballad, and we reckon it's going to succeed.  The song sounds fresh after the relatively contrived entries from both Denmark and Switzerland. We believe the glow stick lights are going to be used just in the same way they were in the Melodifestivalen, which would certainly help.  This sounds like a definite qualifier to us.