Tag Archives: Eurovision

The Associated Press reports: The Netherlands’ contestant in the Eurovision Song Contest who was dramatically expelled from the competition hours before the grand finale will likely be charged for making illegal threats, Swedish police said Monday. Joost Klein had failed to perform at two dress rehearsals on Friday and the organizer, the European Broadcasting Union said that police were investigating …

CNN reports: Switzerland’s Nemo won a chaotic and politically fraught Eurovision Song Contest, triumphing in a competition in Sweden that was upstaged by controversy over the presence of Israel. The typically jovial event – one of the most-watched in the world’s cultural calendar – descended into turmoil in recent days, as organizers tried and failed to contain anger aimed towards …

NBC News reports: A Dutch public broadcaster reacted angrily after the Netherlands’ contestant in the Eurovision Song Contest was dramatically expelled from the competition hours before Saturday’s final over a backstage incident that is being investigated by police. The European Broadcasting Union, which organizes Eurovision, said Swedish police were investigating “a complaint made by a female member of the production …

The BBC reports: Sweden’s Loreen was always the one to beat, and her team knew it too. She had something none of the other contestants competing on Saturday’s Eurovision grand final had – the experience of winning it before. The 39-year-old from Stockholm took the title with her banger Euphoria in Baku, Azerbaijan, in 2012. Now, with Tattoo, and 583 …

Deadline reports: Liverpool has been selected as host city for the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest, the wildly popular music competition that will be entering its 67th year. The city of the Beatles won out Friday over Glasgow, the fellow finalist from a shortlist of UK cities that included Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester, Newcastle and Sheffield. The news comes after the UK …

The BBC reports: The Eurovision Song Contest will take place in the UK next year, it has been confirmed. The show’s organisers decided the event could not be held in the winning country, Ukraine, due to the ongoing war following Russia’s invasion. The UK came second this year, so talks were opened with the BBC. “We are grateful to our …

From the European Broadcasting Union: The Rules of the Eurovision Song Contest, that all participating broadcasters agree upon, clearly state that the event can be moved in a force majeure situation such as an ongoing war. In response to the EBU’s security questionnaire a number of risks that would impact the immediate planning for such a large event, including the …

The New York Times reports: The Ukrainian rap and folk band Kalush Orchestra won the Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday, as European viewers and juries delivered a symbolic, pop culture endorsement of solidarity behind Ukraine in its defense against Russia’s invasion. After 80 days of fighting that has forced millions from their homes, brought ruin to cities and towns across …

CNET reports: The Eurovision Song Contest 2021 is about to conclude, with the multinational competition returning after a year’s hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Hosting this year is Rotterdam, the Netherlands, which was slated to host Eurovision 2020 before its cancellation. The first semifinal was broadcast on Tuesday, followed by the second semifinal Thursday. The highest-scoring entries from the …

The Associated Press reports: Dozens of Orthodox Christian faithful held up wooden crosses and sang Church hymns outside of Cyprus’ state broadcaster on Saturday to demand the withdrawal of the country’s controversial entry for the Eurovision song contest — titled “El Diablo” — that they say promotes satanic worship. Some of the protesters, including families, held up placards reading in …

Vulture reports: There are so few things that bring us together on a global scale, and coronavirus is determined to be the last one standing. For the first time in the competition’s 64-year history, the Eurovision Song Contest is canceled, according to the European Broadcasting Union. The singing competition was originally meant to take place May 12 through May 16 …

The Telegraph reports: Hungary has pulled out of next year’s Eurovision song contest amid speculation the decision was triggered by a backlash to the competition’s LGBT-positive messaging. While no official reason has been given for the withdrawal, sources within Hungary’s public broadcaster reportedly believe it is due to a rise in homophobic rhetoric within the country around the contest, with …

The Evening Standard reports: Duncan Laurence propelled the Netherlands to Eurovision 2019 victory after a triumph in Tel Aviv on Saturday night. The Dutch singer lifted the trophy up high in Israel after topping the table with 492 points and beamed as he received the microphone from last year’s winner Netta. Madonna wowed the audience with a two-song performance during …

“I’ll never stop playing music to suit someone’s political agenda nor will I stop speaking out against violations of human rights wherever in the world they may be. My heart breaks every time I hear about the innocent lives that are lost in this region and the violence that is so often perpetuated to suit the political goals of people …

The BBC reports: Madonna is set to play two songs during the interval of the Eurovision Song Contest in Israel next month. The pop icon will reach more than 180 million viewers when she takes to the stage in Tel Aviv on 18 May. Her appearance was first announced by local promoters Live Nation Israel, who said the performance would …

The Times Of Israel reports: Anti-Israel protesters briefly interrupted a Eurovision song contest qualifying round in France Saturday, as Israeli singer Netta Barzilai stood on stage. A broadcast of the concert showed four or five protesters rush the stage, with at least one person holding a sign reading “No to Eurovision 2019 in Israel,” before being swiftly escorted away. The …

The BBC reports: A man stormed the stage while the UK’s entry, SuRie, was performing at the Eurovision Song Contest. SuRie was singing her song Storm when a man wearing a rucksack ran onto the stage, grabbed her microphone, and appeared to say: “Nazis of the UK media, we demand freedom.” He was swiftly dragged off stage and SuRie continued …

NBC News reports: Today, the EU is more fragile than at any point since its founding in 1993, and yet Eurovision is still one of the highest rated global events of the year, beating out more U.S.-centric events like the Oscars and the Super Bowl handily. Eurovision encourages songs to stay “universal” in their messaging.  But most that perform are …

The Guardian reports: The European Broadcasting Union has blocked a Chinese broadcaster from airing the Eurovision song contest after it edited out LGBT elements from an online stream of the semi-finals on Tuesday. Mango TV, a video-streaming site linked to one of China’s most watched channels, Hunan TV, blacked out the performance of Ireland’s Ryan O’Shaugnessy, during which two male …

The BBC reports: Eurovision winner Conchita Wurst says she is HIV positive, and has been receiving regular treatment for “several years”. The 29-year-old star said she had intended to keep the information private, but an ex-boyfriend had “threatened to go public”. “I will not give anyone the right to frighten me and influence my life,” she wrote on Instagram. “Coming …