Russia: Was Conchita Wurst censored from screen?

The Russians were so close to winning the contest last night which would've caused controversy. And now it appears the Russian broadcast censored Conchita from screen. This is according to Finnish media. More here. Let's see if this turns out to be true and if so, will the EBU do anything about it? I supported Russia's entry last night - this does disappoint me although it doesn't surprise me. Polina didn't censor Conchita and that's why I supported HER. Let's remember this. More to follow in due course I'm sure.... Sigh..

SWEDEN WINS EUROVISION 2015!

Måns Zelmerlöw won the 60th Eurovision Song Contest last night with a very impressive 365 points. Russia and Italy came 2nd and 3rd respectively. Throughout the majority of the voting, Russia's Polina was leading. This blogger would've loved to have seen Polina win. Yeah, it would've caused problems but I just adored her and the song... Her performance was one that touched me. She did a beautiful job. I wouldn't say I disliked the Italian song but I didn't want them to win. However Il Volo did win the televote it seems but the juries only placed them 6th. Hmm.. No doubt this will raise the question - do we need juries?

The Makemakes and Ann Sophie both got the dreaded nil points. Underserved in both cases but especially for Germany.. That song deserved so much better! Don't even get me started on Edurne's placing! Jaja!! Her performance was flawless both visually and vocally but it could've been worse. Electro Velvet only managed 24th. The irony is that I'm rather chuffed with this. We did better than France, Germany and Austria.. even though we didn't really deserve to. What else can one say about last night's results? I'm delighted for Belgium and Latvia. Both countries who rarely do well in the contest but did last night as they sent daring and interesting entries. I think Serbia were a bit overrated. France and Romania a bit underrated. Georgia managed 11th place, which is more than respectable, however Nina has said that she's disappointed. Azerbaijan came 12th. Shocked. Maybe the dancers were too much? Maybe. And Elhaida was 17th. Could've been worse.. I'm proud of her. The Aussies did very well though, didn't they? Now let's wait to see if the EBU invites them back.. I wouldn't complain if they did. The full results can be found here:

As expected, Russia and Sweden won their semi finals. Latvia came 2nd in their semi final. Awesome stuff! Love Injected was brilliant!  Azerbaijan was 10th in the semi final and Malta was 11th. Poor Amber. Switzerland came last - how? Not the greatest song but Melanie deserved more than 4 points.. San Marino was 2nd to last. Czech Republic came 13th. And they would've qualified if it was 100% televote. Oh well. Maybe next year? In the first semi final, Albania just scrapped though and Moldova - yes, Moldova - came 11th. Eeeeek! I would've been so mad if Elhaida lost out to Moldova. Finland came last, but would've made the final with 100% televoting. Macedonia was last with the televote but did manage 15th overall. Sigh. How did Estonia come 10th with the juries in the semi? San Marino's jury even ranked them last. The juries from Montenegro and Macedonia "have been excluded after consultation of PwC, the contest's independent voting observer, and upon the decision of the Executive Supervisor and the Chairman of the Reference Group." Aka something dodgy is going on there....

Overall, it was a fantastic contest once again. Many awesome songs. There were some technical problems during the voting though.. Also correct me if I'm wrong, but is Russia's entry the only one to exceed 300 points and not win? Conchita's performances were excellent and my favourite moment of the contest was this... words cannot describe how beautiful it is! And people boo her?

See y'all in Sweden next year if my bank balance allows. What's another year....

Photos from Eurovision.tv

EUROVISION 2015 FINAL TONIGHT!

Andres Putting (EBU)

It's tonight! It's that time of year we've all been waiting for. The grand final of Eurovision 2015 will take place tonight live from Vienna, Austria. 27 participants are in the running to take the trophy. It's going to be a marathon of a show. 3 hours 45 minutes apparently although we're promised an epic show as it's the 60th contest.. The bookies are backing Sweden and Russia the most. I would rather see a Russian win but Sweden winning tonight wouldn't disappoint me. I hope Spain and Albania, my two favourties, manage to achieve top ten. The draw can be found below:

1. SLOVENIA

2. FRANCE

3. ISRAEL

4. ESTONIA

5. UNITED KINGDOM

6. ARMENIA

7. LITHUANIA

8. SERBIA

9. NORWAY

10. SWEDEN

11. CYPRUS

12.AUSTRALIA

13. BELGIUM

14. AUSTRIA

15. GREECE 

16. MONTENEGRO

17. GERMANY

18. POLAND

19. LATVIA

20. ROMANIA

21. SPAIN

22. HUNGARY

23. GEORGIA

24. AZERBAIJAN

25. RUSSIA

26. ALBANIA

27. ITALY

France's Lisa Angell has the dreaded #2 slot. Paris 2016 was never likely but now it's almost impossible. Will she be overlooked? Slovenia opening the show will be great. The UK performs 5th. Sigh. Electro Velvet apparently gave a very impressive performance last night during the jury final though so let's hope we won't be last. ESDM performed 5th in 2013 for Spain and look what happened... Even a result like 20th would be great. Is this really the best us Brits can hope for? I think Estonia's chances of winning are gone. They're performing 4th but let's hope they'll make the top five. I'd be more than happy to be proved wrong though.. Australia, who may or may not be back next year, perform 12th and in between Cyprus and Belgium. This should help Guy. Maybe. Although Belgium is now seen a dark horse.. However Georgia is my dark horse . Nina has an fantastic draw, an amazing stage presence, a great song.. and the president of Georgia has said the country are ready to host Eurovision! Tbilisi 2016? She's already won the battle of the Warriors. ;-)

Germany, UK and Poland are the favourties to come last. Or at least that's what I'm hearing. It's 2008 all over again! I personally think it'll be Poland who come last.. I already feel sorry for whoever ends up in 27th place. Other predictions are saying Hungary will be last although I think that's unlikely. Edurne performs 21st.. this is a brilliant draw! I'm really hyped to see her performance. The bookies and polls are saying Spain are unlikely to reach top ten. Wouldn't it be lovely to prove them all wrong? Azerbaijan and Russia, both big favourites, perform next to each towards the end of the show. I think we're going to Sochi or St Petersberg next year. Albania performs rather late too inbetween two major favourites.. is Elhaida going to flop? Jeez, I hope not! She's getting my vote for sure anyway. Italy's Il Volo will close. Would I be shocked to see them win from this position? Not really but I don't think they'll win. I think top five is very possible though. Actually, I do think they could win. I don't know. Here's my predictions and wishlist for tonight...

PREDICTED TOP FIVE

1st - Russia

2nd - Italy

3rd - Sweden 

4th - Australia 

5th - Azerbaijan 

MY TOP FIVE

1st - Albania 

2nd - Spain 

3rd - Estonia

4th - Russia

5th - Australia 

Valentina Monetta will read out San Marino's votes. Will the queen of San Marino return to the contest next year? Elsewhere we have Suzy for Portugal, Basim for Denmark, Tanja for Estonia, Krista for Finland, Tinkara for Slovenia, Andrea for Montenegro, Cleo for Poland, Teo for Belarus.. Many familiar faces indeed. And of course the UK has the lovely Nigella!! Enjoy the show tonight my friends and I'd just like to say - thank you for following this little blog throughout the year. :-)

Good luck to everyone!!!!

#ESC2015: REVIEW OF THE SEMI FINALS!

Twenty countries have managed to qualify through the semi finals for tomorrow nights big grand final. I have loved both shows even if I'm not 100% happy with the results.. We're always going to have some great songs that won't make it.. Find out what this blogger thought about the shows and the week so far below:

SEMI FINAL ONE
The first semi final was amazing! Albania made it, Russia made it.. Georgia made it! So did Estonia, Greece, Belgium... all amazing songs. I think Russia won this semi final and I think 10th place would've been either Hungary or Serbia. I'm a little shocked Hungary made it through but pleased. Boggie's performance brought a tear to my eye. Very touching. Armenia's entry could've been a disaster live but Genealogy impressed me. Moving away from the songs, the hosts are pretty good although not very memorable.. Does this make sense? I love Conchita hosting the green room! She's a natural :) and I also love it when the participants walk from the green room onto the stage during the opening.. That's a lovely touch. Talking of Conchita, this photo is beautiful! Love it!

Overall I was impressed with the results. My biggest disappointment was The Netherlands not qualifying though... Why ay ay ay didn't they make it? I'm also sad that we won't see Macedonia in the final. Daniel performed brilliantly and I now fear we may not see a Macedonian entry in next years contest... wasn't they close to withdrawing last year? Finland not making it was a shock. It wasn't my favourtie song - far from it - but I thought PKN deserved it.. Moldova, Denmark and Belarus deserved what they got. I got 7/10 right. I thought Denmark, Finland and The Netherlands wouldn't make it. Unfortunately I have read some comments saying Elhaida was vocally poor. I don't agree. She smashed it. I want Albania to be top ten but whether she will or not remains to be seen....

SEMI FINAL TWO
Now I was rather upset with some results from last nights semi. Czech Republic, Ireland and Malta all deserved to qualify! I am really sorry to see them miss out. Ireland's Molly is a true star. She's only 16 but her performance last night was one of the best. Also Amber really impressed me. And as for the Czech Republic.. Marta & Václav didn't just deserve the final, but they deserved top ten. Obviously the rest of Europe (and Australia) didn't agree with me. I'd be saddened but not shocked if they quit Eurovision. Even though I didn't think Portugal would make the final, I'm still upset Leonor failed to qualify. I'm not saying that I dislike the Cypriot song but I don't think they deserved to have qualified over some that missed out... but that's they way it goes. John was flawless vocally. I was underwhelmed with Iceland so it was no surprise to see Maria fail although I was a bit surprised about Switzerland's non qualification. San Marino's failure didn't surprise me. I got 9/10. I thought Iceland would make it and Latvia wouldn't. For once I am happy to be wrong!

With regards to the qualifiers, I'm thrilled Latvia and Israel finally qualified after all these years! Sweden, Azerbaijan and Norway are possible winners so it was no surprise to see them make it. I was a bit confused with the Azeri dancers are first but they did make the performance memorable. I hope Elnur won't flop like Dilara. Lithuania's performance featured three kisses, including a lesbian and gay kiss. Are Vaidas and Monika a couple? Knez qualified and I think Montenegro could achieve top ten tomorrow night. I think Sweden won this semi.



DRAMA! 
Even though nothing is official, it seems the EBU are going to allow Australia to participate next year too and the year after.. I don't mind but this will do doubt get some people raging IF it turns out to be true. China have sent a delegation to Vienna and they're broadcasting it too - maybe we'll see them debut one year? A Moroccan delegation are also in Vienna it seems. Is this the end of EUROvision? Personally, I'd love to see as many countries as possible compete. One could argue Israel, Azerbaijan and Cyprus aren't European countries yet they're allowed to compete..

Elsewhere Michele from San Marino threw some shade in Måns's direction although did later say he was joking. Hmmm..


Apparently fake cheers will be used tomorrow after Russia's performance. I am not in Vienna so I don't know if it's true or not although I'm upset if it is. As much as I hate to see booing in Eurovision, the crowd still have a right to express how they feel. It's freedom of speech. I was so sad to see Dima booed in London although if that's how the masses feel. fine. Even though I don't agree with booing an act - I do agree with freedom of speech. If Polina wins - and it's very possible - expect some more controversy! Stay tuned for a special preview of the grand final!

EUROVISION 2015 IS HERE!

Yihuu - omg Eurovision is here!! The first semi final of Eurovision 2015 will be held live from Vienna tonight! This blogger is beyond excited - but then, who isn't? An important note - I won't be able to blog during the week as I'm going on a mini break but I'll still watch the shows, naturally, however I won't be able to post anything until the weekend. Most likely on Saturday but let's see. Anyway, below you can find the countries who will participate in tonight's semi and with my predictions and hopes... (* = I predict they will qualify, BOLD = I want them to qualify). 

1.  Moldova 
2.  Armenia *
3.  Belgium
4.  The Netherlands *
5.  Finland *
6.  Greece *
7.  Estonia *
8.  FYR Macedonia
9.  Serbia 
10.  Hungary *
11.  Belarus 
12.  Russia *
13.  Denmark *
14.  Albania *
15.  Romania *
16.  Georgia 

...and here is the line-up for semi final two. I doubt I'll get these right but hey, it's a lot of fun :-)

1.  Lithuania *
2.  Ireland
3.  San Marino
4.  Montenegro *
5.  Malta
6.  Norway *
7.  Portugal
8.  Czech Republic 
9.  Israel *
10.  Latvia 
11.  Azerbaijan *
12.  Iceland *
13.  Sweden *
14.  Switzerland
15.  Cyprus *
16.  Slovenia *
17.  Poland *

I really hope everyone enjoys the shows! And good luck to all the participants!! But especially Elhaida, Polina, Trijntje, Elnur, Stig and Elina, Guy, Nina and Edurne ;-) 

...aaaaaand Nigella Lawson will announce the UK's points! Amazing choice!! I love her. She's fantastic and I don't think the BBC could've picked someone better.  If you're not familiar with Nigella, watch this! She's fab! 

Vienna 2015: Semi final 2 rehearsed!

This blogger is slightly behind... opps! The 17 acts in semi final two have all rehearsed now. The countries getting the best reactions seems to be Azerbaijan, Poland and I'd say San Marino. Call me crazy but their performance appeared to me really strong. A shock qualifier? Even though the song isn't the best, I'd still like to see the microstate qualify. Montenegro's rehearsal was awesome too. I think Azerbaijan are winning this semi final and who knows, maybe the final too? The dancers are amazing, the backdrop is superb... They've spent a lot of money on this y'all! Elnur apparently had some technical problems though but that can be ironed out. Switzerland looks great on screen too. Meanwhile, I think Iceland looks fab! And no dancers - thank God!

Slovenia has received mixed reactions. There's some work to be done there me thinks. Ireland also seems to be getting a mixed reaction. Molly's great - we know this - so why does she need backing singers behind her? It looks weird. Hmm.. I still hope to see Ireland qualify though!

Elsewhere we have Cyprus and Czech Republic. Both songs I didn't see qualufrying but I think (and hope) I'll be wrong. Especially in the Czech Republic's case. They're really bringing it.

I'm underwhelmed with Norway. The backdrop is boring and it still seems that Deborah is having nerves on stage.. Oh and I love Portugal's hats!! Finally, let's talk about Sweden! The song you either love or love to hate. Måns Zelmerlöw is one of the favourties to win but his rehearsal has so many dislikes online and it seems people's opinions on the song are changing. I'm think Sweden will do well but who knows?

So the first semi finalists have all rehearsed for the 2nd time today so stay tuned for more...

Vienna 2015: Semi final one rehearsed!

Is Polina our winner?

Unfortunately, this blogger isn't in Vienna although I have been paying close attention to the rehearsals. The 16 countries who will compete in the first semi final  have now all rehearsed and it seems Russia are the most popular. Polina looks stunning - the staging is amazing and damn, A Million Voices is a friggin' awesome song! I'm going to be so annoyed if she gets booed next week.....

Elhaida from Albania also rehearsed today and it's still looking like Albania might get their best placing ever. Georgia and Romania also look really promising. With regards to yesterday, I think Estonia and Armenia are looking the strongest. They'll both be in the final. Finland is so just bizarre and random that I'm actually liking it now. Are PKN going to make the final? Greece is also looking very strong - I just hope the song will be memorable enough... the overall reaction of Greece's rehearsal was very positive though.

Now everyone's talking about Trijntje's dress. My first reaction was huh? but hey, she looks gorgeous and she's confident in her own body - so that's all that matters. I'd take my hat of to her if I had one. The staging is apparently a bit random so there's some work to be done it seems... Why ay ay ay couldn't they keep it simple?

Belgium looked good but maybe there's too much happening? It might be messy. And I'm afraid Serbia won't be qualfirying. Maybe 15 years ago that song would've fared better. Or maybe not. So judging from the first rehearsals I think; Russia, Estonia and Georgia are the best. Georgia could be a dark horse. Love the eye!!! And maybe even Romania?! Voltaj were fab! The song has a message that'll touch a lot of people.  I hate to say it but Serbia really is looking awful.. Bojana is much better than the song. Hungary looks okay but the song? Me thinks viewers will fall asleep halfway through their performance. But we won't be failing asleep during Moldova! Whether you like Eduard's song or not, they're putting on one heck of a show! More to follow in the coming days....

Photos from Eurovision.tv