Good afternoon readers...less than 3 hours to go now!!
Today's blogpost takes the form of "Why is the second semi final so hard to predict?". The only things certain to happen tonight are some form of Conchita Wurst related hastag, Jessica Mauboy, and Greece & Romania to make the final. But who else will qualify? Who won't qualify? Who will win the semi final? Who will make the top 3? Which country will be the surprise qualifier? Will we see another song shoot up around iTunes Charts across Europe? What's going to happen people!?!?
My 10 predictions are: Malta, Norway, Georgia, Austria, Lithuania, Finland, Ireland, Belarus, Greece & Romania. I just have an instinctual feeling that Georgia will qualify over fan favourite Israel, sending shockwaves and outrage across Europe. Although Eurovision fans will vote in their masses once again, it didn't stop Estonia falling out. Those 10 predicted were not my original 10 though, and indecisiveness is a theme across a large number of blogs. Perhaps we should just all wait and see? Hahahaha.
Maybe I'm trying to find a shock though...or maybe Georgia qualifying won't be that shocking at all...there are too few countries in this semi final for there to be a real shock. And that's where the problem truly is; too few countries. With the departure of favourites such as Serbia amongst others, Eurovision has declined once again. But still 37 countries is quite a few, and one massive semi final of 31 participants would be too exhausting even for some hardcore fans. Whatever the case, the situation is we will lose just 5 participants tonight, and for the sake of the former Yugoslavs, I feel relieved at least Montenegro will represent the region in the final - more walkouts would cause headaches. I never did a proper Congratulations to Sergej and Montenegro in yesterday's blogpost so here it is... Well Done!
But I won't waffle too much... I still have heaps of essay writing and exam revision to be getting on so I'll finish by reminding everyone the wonder of not being able to predict the qualifiers: this semi final will be very, very exciting! There does seem to be more buzz across social networks today as everyone seems in limbo over who might make it. I'm hoping that I get more than 8/10 correct for once!!
Good Luck to all nations competing tonight! I'm #TeamFirelight and #TeamRiseUp tonight, so a special Good Luck to Greece and Malta!
The second semi final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2014 will start at 21:00 CET and 20:00 BST (on BBC3).
Showing posts with label Ireland. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ireland. Show all posts
Thursday, 8 May 2014
Wednesday, 7 May 2014
Who will the UK give their 'douze' points to in SF2?
Okay so I am procrastinating again... Well Done Eurovision!
This blog post takes a different look...who will the United Kingdom give their points to in tomorrow night's semi final? This seems a slightly odd blog post, but keep reading folks and you'll see why...
So in tomorrow's semi final, we have:
Malta, Israel, Norway, Georgia, Poland, Austria, Lithuania, Finland, Ireland, Belarus, FYR Macedonia, Switzerland, Greece, Slovenia, and Romania.
NOW the UK's closest neighbour is Ireland, but will the UK give Ireland 12 points tomorrow night? I'd say that this year it really won't be as simple as that.
Other countries that the UK will give points to is: Malta, Lithuania, and Greece. I could guarantee you that the UK will also give something to Romania and probably Poland as well. Now I've already listed 7 countries with a high chance of getting points from the UK. In the past few years, the UK has also given points to those countries with a comical element for Brits: for example, Romania 2013, Moldova 2011 and so on. In this semi final, I'm convinced the UK will respond to Austria and Conchita Wurst - some finding it hilarious that there is a bearded lady representing us, some voting for who Conchita represents, and finally some because of the actual song (and let us not forget that she is singing a James Bond-esque ballad, a British icon). So that takes us to 8. Belarus also stand a good chance of a few comical votes, and Euro fanatics voting in the semi final will try to push Israel through. But then I look back to the list of competing countries and can see the UK also giving points to Norway, Finland and Switzerland. We tend to give points to the Swiss, so them too? And lest we forget the UK jury who could throw it all.
So have I sold the argument to you? Do you agree that the UK's votes are very hard to predict in this year's semi finals? Below is a prediction of where I see the United Kingdom's votes going this year:
UK votes for SF2?
12 - Ireland
10 - Lithuania
8 - Romania
7 - Malta
6 - Greece
5 - Austria
4 - Israel
3 - Poland
2 - Norway
1 - Switzerland
This blog post takes a different look...who will the United Kingdom give their points to in tomorrow night's semi final? This seems a slightly odd blog post, but keep reading folks and you'll see why...
So in tomorrow's semi final, we have:
Malta, Israel, Norway, Georgia, Poland, Austria, Lithuania, Finland, Ireland, Belarus, FYR Macedonia, Switzerland, Greece, Slovenia, and Romania.
NOW the UK's closest neighbour is Ireland, but will the UK give Ireland 12 points tomorrow night? I'd say that this year it really won't be as simple as that.
Other countries that the UK will give points to is: Malta, Lithuania, and Greece. I could guarantee you that the UK will also give something to Romania and probably Poland as well. Now I've already listed 7 countries with a high chance of getting points from the UK. In the past few years, the UK has also given points to those countries with a comical element for Brits: for example, Romania 2013, Moldova 2011 and so on. In this semi final, I'm convinced the UK will respond to Austria and Conchita Wurst - some finding it hilarious that there is a bearded lady representing us, some voting for who Conchita represents, and finally some because of the actual song (and let us not forget that she is singing a James Bond-esque ballad, a British icon). So that takes us to 8. Belarus also stand a good chance of a few comical votes, and Euro fanatics voting in the semi final will try to push Israel through. But then I look back to the list of competing countries and can see the UK also giving points to Norway, Finland and Switzerland. We tend to give points to the Swiss, so them too? And lest we forget the UK jury who could throw it all.
So have I sold the argument to you? Do you agree that the UK's votes are very hard to predict in this year's semi finals? Below is a prediction of where I see the United Kingdom's votes going this year:
UK votes for SF2?
12 - Ireland
10 - Lithuania
8 - Romania
7 - Malta
6 - Greece
5 - Austria
4 - Israel
3 - Poland
2 - Norway
1 - Switzerland
Monday, 17 March 2014
Happy St. Patrick's Day!
Yes it's the day of the IRISH!
In a special celebration of the patron saint of Ireland, I shall be donning green for the day and celebrating all that is Irish! We're having Irish Breakfast for dinner, lots of potatoes, and a lot of Guinness. Ironic for an Englishman who forgets St. George's Day every year. It seems very fitting then to celebrate Ireland in Eurovision, taking a look back at the 1994 contest.
20 years ago, Ireland did the seemingly impossible, by winning Eurovision 3 years in a row. "Rock N Roll Kids" was the winning song by Paul Harrington and Charlie McGettigan. Not the most popular winner there's ever been, but they did storm the scoreboard with a staggering 226 points from only 25 countries. The year also featured the debut of many countries; Poland finished 2nd which should officially go down as the best debut (Switzerland won the inaugural contest in 1956, and Serbia won on their return in 2007 following separation with Montenegro). My personal favourite of the year was Hungary. A truly beautiful song "Kinek mondjam el vetkeimet?" by Frederika Bayer finished 4th, and is often held in very high regard amongst Eurofanatics. It is Hungary's best finish so far, so we wish them Good Luck for 2014! Meanwhile, 1994 also had it's downs. Powerhouses like Luxembourg (who still have one of the best records in the contest) retired for good, as well as Italy taking a hiatus. And there was that bizarre relegation rule which we won't go into. Oh and I almost forgot...the 1994 contest was the first year we got to see the spokesperson for each country whilst they gave their votes! And what an interesting turn of events that proved to be.
But the 1994 contest is most remembered for... RIVERDANCE! Yes, Riverdance! Riverdance is without doubt the most popular interval act in the history of Eurovision, spawning one of the most successful dance shows of the 90s and 00s, continuing to stretch across the globe still today. Jean Butler and Michael Flatley became superstars, with Flatley going on to produce more and more Irish dance shows like Feet of Flames, and my personal favourite, Lord of the Dance. Riverdance became a chart-topping record in Ireland and performed well in charts across Europe; the score by Bill Whelan is undeniably beautiful, who rightfully went on to win a Grammy for his composition. So forget about the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest for today's folks, remember the 1994 contest instead! Listen to Riverdance and do an Irish jig! Happy St. Patrick's Day!
In a special celebration of the patron saint of Ireland, I shall be donning green for the day and celebrating all that is Irish! We're having Irish Breakfast for dinner, lots of potatoes, and a lot of Guinness. Ironic for an Englishman who forgets St. George's Day every year. It seems very fitting then to celebrate Ireland in Eurovision, taking a look back at the 1994 contest.
20 years ago, Ireland did the seemingly impossible, by winning Eurovision 3 years in a row. "Rock N Roll Kids" was the winning song by Paul Harrington and Charlie McGettigan. Not the most popular winner there's ever been, but they did storm the scoreboard with a staggering 226 points from only 25 countries. The year also featured the debut of many countries; Poland finished 2nd which should officially go down as the best debut (Switzerland won the inaugural contest in 1956, and Serbia won on their return in 2007 following separation with Montenegro). My personal favourite of the year was Hungary. A truly beautiful song "Kinek mondjam el vetkeimet?" by Frederika Bayer finished 4th, and is often held in very high regard amongst Eurofanatics. It is Hungary's best finish so far, so we wish them Good Luck for 2014! Meanwhile, 1994 also had it's downs. Powerhouses like Luxembourg (who still have one of the best records in the contest) retired for good, as well as Italy taking a hiatus. And there was that bizarre relegation rule which we won't go into. Oh and I almost forgot...the 1994 contest was the first year we got to see the spokesperson for each country whilst they gave their votes! And what an interesting turn of events that proved to be.
But the 1994 contest is most remembered for... RIVERDANCE! Yes, Riverdance! Riverdance is without doubt the most popular interval act in the history of Eurovision, spawning one of the most successful dance shows of the 90s and 00s, continuing to stretch across the globe still today. Jean Butler and Michael Flatley became superstars, with Flatley going on to produce more and more Irish dance shows like Feet of Flames, and my personal favourite, Lord of the Dance. Riverdance became a chart-topping record in Ireland and performed well in charts across Europe; the score by Bill Whelan is undeniably beautiful, who rightfully went on to win a Grammy for his composition. So forget about the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest for today's folks, remember the 1994 contest instead! Listen to Riverdance and do an Irish jig! Happy St. Patrick's Day!
Riverdance - the interval act of the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest.
Wednesday, 15 May 2013
POST SEMI FINAL 1 EXCITEMENT
SO wasn't last night just BRILLIANT!?
So glad to have Eurovision back on the screen! And wasn't it amazing? I don't know who commentates for your country, but you should really listen to Scott Mills and the girl from the Scissor Sisters who did the commentary for BBC (United Kingdom). They were hilarious. And of course we have Graham Norton for the final which is just excellent!!
First of all, wasn't Lynda Woodruff absolutely hilarious? Shame I can't say the same for Petra Mede - personally I found parts of her hosting just cringe-worthy nonsense. I thought Loreen was fantastic though. Those children were adorable and apart from when Loreen seemed to descend into a pit of over-excited Euro fanboys (although if I was in Malmo, I'm pretty sure I would have done exactly the same), I really enjoyed the opener to the show. The performances went without hiccough as far as I noticed, but I have to admit there were 2 absolute stand outs for me. They were (without bias) Moldova and Ireland! They worked perfectly going one after the other, but the best bit was that I wasn't expecting them to be so good. Wasn't Aliona Moon's dress just sheer brilliance!? Oh and of course, Pasha was on the piano. Splendid!
Let downs? Denmark. I knew that I would get extremely bored of the song by now, but still her performance wasn't just disappointing, it was embarrassing. No emotion at all, and her voice just came across generic without anything special. If it wasn't for the strength in the song and the tin whistle then I would even go as far as ruling Denmark out of contention. Don't get me wrong, I still reckon Emmelie will be top 5 at least, but will she win? Definitely needs to up her game.
Surprises? Belgium. Undoubtedly, Roberto Bellarosa has come a long way since being chosen to represent the Belgians this year. The re-mastering of the song never really changed much for me, but some how it really came across on the stage and the sounds and everything were just fantastic. AND HE CAN SING! After hearing that he won "The Voice" I was very sceptical of the amount of talent, but it turns out that Roberto can sing, so Congrats to him!
But let's be honest - the biggest shock was LITHUANIA QUALIFYING FOR THE FINAL. HOW!? I think Andrius Pojavis has tons of charisma, and naturally, his eyebrows can make for an interesting performance. But please, the song!? He sings about shoes for goodness sake! In all fairness, I was very critical of Donny Montell last year and he ended up doing very well for himself. There is always one shock, but I was maybe thinking Slovenia or Montenegro would provide the shock...not Lithuania and some dodgy lyrcis.
Interestingly, all the ex-Soviets made it through, but none of the ex-Yugoslavs made it through. If you've been reading all the blogs around they probably have reported how much of a shock it is blah blah blah. But is it that much of a shock!? Let's take a look at the facts. Slovenia was first up and Straight Into Love has never been popular, let's face it. Hannah and the dancers may have been great, but the song just wasn't good enough. It was the first real up beat song, but there were plenty of better upbeat songs coming later. Slovenia would have been forgotten...
Then we have Croatia. Now I found this interesting - it's not been a big favourite with fans but the vocals are very strong and the composition of the song works really well. The message comes across and I thought the juries would support that. Plus, its sung in national language. I think perhaps Croatia may have just missed out because they didn't receive enough televotes. And they were 4th after all...and they did proceed big favourite Denmark.
Coming up next is Montenegro. Igranka did provided a huge contrast to Birds before it and Something after it. But to vote for this, you have to appreciate it's absolute bonkers-ness and the song does require an acquired taste. I believe the juries didn't like this and it was the televoting that may have made this just miss out. Montenegro have never qualified independently though so they are always punching above their weight.
Finally we had Serbia. Not only do they have a strong qualifying record in Eurovision, they also performed last which usually makes you fresh for both juries and televoters. Yes there was some dodgy acting of the song, and the dresses looked like an explosion in the sweet factory but they had something going on. There was something to watch on screen, but perhaps everyone just saw this as a bit of mess following the slickness of Love Kills (let's be honest, that performance was rehearsed to the core - it was slick!). It'll be interesting to see if Serbia did finish 11th.
Every year there is diaspora voting (and it has been going for year's people!) so you'd of thought that one of the ex-Yugoslav countries would have benefitted from this. Evidently not (even if I did happen to vote for Ireland several times myself last night - but I did vote for Moldova just as many times, and I might have snuck one or two votes in for the Netherlands as well). If there was strong diaspora voting from the ex-Soviets that would explain why Lithuania made it but still, it just goes to show that we don't just vote for our neighbours anymore! And plus, there were 4 of the top favourites in last night's semi - Denmark, Russia, Ukraine and the Netherlands.
That brings me to my favourite part of last night - the Netherlands qualified for the final! Birds was such a contrast to Gravity and Igranka that Anouk really stood out. The song was very deep and emotional, and so unique that I think it may have put televoters off. But rest assure, I believe the juries rate this. I don't care how the Dutch do in the final, I'm just thrilled they shook off that horrible curse of not making it through!
And the draw for the final? WELL, this year we don't have one. You draw whether you perform in the first or the second half of the final. Maybe not as exciting in the press conference, but there were many countries who drew the first half. Denmark managed to sneak a second half performance though, so it'll be interesting to see where SVT places them. Ireland got second half - yes! Moldova sadly drew first half though :(
NO! I won't speculate...Russia and Albania proved top 5 can still happen from poor positions (although what would have happened if you had swapped Sweden and Azerbaijan in 2011? I'm still convinced Eric Saade would have snatched that victory and Sweden would have done the double).
Now I promise I won't speculate until I've seen the full draw, but I've just found out that Bonnie Tyler will perform for the UK in the second half of the final. Yes Yes Yes! This news does delight me. If Bonnie performs in the last 3 or 4, I reckon we stand a good chance of contending for the grand prize. She has that lift after all! (it's not a giant - but Bonnie Tyler brought on stage by a Giant? Only Ukraine could pull that off - which incidentally they very much did!).
SO then I look forward to tomorrow's semi final! Will FYR Macedonia be the only ex-Yugoslav country? Will Latvia join their friends in the final? Will we have ALL Scandinavian countries in the final? Will San Marino finally qualify?
My bets on the BIG shock (cos you know there will be one)...Malta (hopefully).
So glad to have Eurovision back on the screen! And wasn't it amazing? I don't know who commentates for your country, but you should really listen to Scott Mills and the girl from the Scissor Sisters who did the commentary for BBC (United Kingdom). They were hilarious. And of course we have Graham Norton for the final which is just excellent!!
First of all, wasn't Lynda Woodruff absolutely hilarious? Shame I can't say the same for Petra Mede - personally I found parts of her hosting just cringe-worthy nonsense. I thought Loreen was fantastic though. Those children were adorable and apart from when Loreen seemed to descend into a pit of over-excited Euro fanboys (although if I was in Malmo, I'm pretty sure I would have done exactly the same), I really enjoyed the opener to the show. The performances went without hiccough as far as I noticed, but I have to admit there were 2 absolute stand outs for me. They were (without bias) Moldova and Ireland! They worked perfectly going one after the other, but the best bit was that I wasn't expecting them to be so good. Wasn't Aliona Moon's dress just sheer brilliance!? Oh and of course, Pasha was on the piano. Splendid!
Let downs? Denmark. I knew that I would get extremely bored of the song by now, but still her performance wasn't just disappointing, it was embarrassing. No emotion at all, and her voice just came across generic without anything special. If it wasn't for the strength in the song and the tin whistle then I would even go as far as ruling Denmark out of contention. Don't get me wrong, I still reckon Emmelie will be top 5 at least, but will she win? Definitely needs to up her game.
Surprises? Belgium. Undoubtedly, Roberto Bellarosa has come a long way since being chosen to represent the Belgians this year. The re-mastering of the song never really changed much for me, but some how it really came across on the stage and the sounds and everything were just fantastic. AND HE CAN SING! After hearing that he won "The Voice" I was very sceptical of the amount of talent, but it turns out that Roberto can sing, so Congrats to him!
But let's be honest - the biggest shock was LITHUANIA QUALIFYING FOR THE FINAL. HOW!? I think Andrius Pojavis has tons of charisma, and naturally, his eyebrows can make for an interesting performance. But please, the song!? He sings about shoes for goodness sake! In all fairness, I was very critical of Donny Montell last year and he ended up doing very well for himself. There is always one shock, but I was maybe thinking Slovenia or Montenegro would provide the shock...not Lithuania and some dodgy lyrcis.
Interestingly, all the ex-Soviets made it through, but none of the ex-Yugoslavs made it through. If you've been reading all the blogs around they probably have reported how much of a shock it is blah blah blah. But is it that much of a shock!? Let's take a look at the facts. Slovenia was first up and Straight Into Love has never been popular, let's face it. Hannah and the dancers may have been great, but the song just wasn't good enough. It was the first real up beat song, but there were plenty of better upbeat songs coming later. Slovenia would have been forgotten...
Then we have Croatia. Now I found this interesting - it's not been a big favourite with fans but the vocals are very strong and the composition of the song works really well. The message comes across and I thought the juries would support that. Plus, its sung in national language. I think perhaps Croatia may have just missed out because they didn't receive enough televotes. And they were 4th after all...and they did proceed big favourite Denmark.
Coming up next is Montenegro. Igranka did provided a huge contrast to Birds before it and Something after it. But to vote for this, you have to appreciate it's absolute bonkers-ness and the song does require an acquired taste. I believe the juries didn't like this and it was the televoting that may have made this just miss out. Montenegro have never qualified independently though so they are always punching above their weight.
Finally we had Serbia. Not only do they have a strong qualifying record in Eurovision, they also performed last which usually makes you fresh for both juries and televoters. Yes there was some dodgy acting of the song, and the dresses looked like an explosion in the sweet factory but they had something going on. There was something to watch on screen, but perhaps everyone just saw this as a bit of mess following the slickness of Love Kills (let's be honest, that performance was rehearsed to the core - it was slick!). It'll be interesting to see if Serbia did finish 11th.
Every year there is diaspora voting (and it has been going for year's people!) so you'd of thought that one of the ex-Yugoslav countries would have benefitted from this. Evidently not (even if I did happen to vote for Ireland several times myself last night - but I did vote for Moldova just as many times, and I might have snuck one or two votes in for the Netherlands as well). If there was strong diaspora voting from the ex-Soviets that would explain why Lithuania made it but still, it just goes to show that we don't just vote for our neighbours anymore! And plus, there were 4 of the top favourites in last night's semi - Denmark, Russia, Ukraine and the Netherlands.
That brings me to my favourite part of last night - the Netherlands qualified for the final! Birds was such a contrast to Gravity and Igranka that Anouk really stood out. The song was very deep and emotional, and so unique that I think it may have put televoters off. But rest assure, I believe the juries rate this. I don't care how the Dutch do in the final, I'm just thrilled they shook off that horrible curse of not making it through!
And the draw for the final? WELL, this year we don't have one. You draw whether you perform in the first or the second half of the final. Maybe not as exciting in the press conference, but there were many countries who drew the first half. Denmark managed to sneak a second half performance though, so it'll be interesting to see where SVT places them. Ireland got second half - yes! Moldova sadly drew first half though :(
NO! I won't speculate...Russia and Albania proved top 5 can still happen from poor positions (although what would have happened if you had swapped Sweden and Azerbaijan in 2011? I'm still convinced Eric Saade would have snatched that victory and Sweden would have done the double).
Now I promise I won't speculate until I've seen the full draw, but I've just found out that Bonnie Tyler will perform for the UK in the second half of the final. Yes Yes Yes! This news does delight me. If Bonnie performs in the last 3 or 4, I reckon we stand a good chance of contending for the grand prize. She has that lift after all! (it's not a giant - but Bonnie Tyler brought on stage by a Giant? Only Ukraine could pull that off - which incidentally they very much did!).
SO then I look forward to tomorrow's semi final! Will FYR Macedonia be the only ex-Yugoslav country? Will Latvia join their friends in the final? Will we have ALL Scandinavian countries in the final? Will San Marino finally qualify?
My bets on the BIG shock (cos you know there will be one)...Malta (hopefully).
Saturday, 19 May 2012
Ireland - 2012
Here they are...the twins...it's John and Edward.
JEDWARD. WATERLINE.
I am a massive Jedward fan. I can't even do this review without any bias. I will summarise this REALLY quickly.
Jedward are amazing.
Jedward should win Eurovision this year.
Waterline isn't the best song, but its' better than Lipstick.
Lipstick was Jedward's entry for Ireland last year. They finished 8th.
Jedward had a small European fanbase when they entered last year. It has grown massively since last May, and now they have fans scattered all over Europe.
Jedward and Waterline have done poorly in the polls, but so what? Lipstick did, and everyone knows Jedward are all about the performance and what they do on the stage.
EUROPE, PLEASE VOTE FOR THIS.
Song Rating: 10/10
Liklihood to win: 7/10
Current odds: 20-1 (oddschecker.com) (on average)
JEDWARD. WATERLINE.
I am a massive Jedward fan. I can't even do this review without any bias. I will summarise this REALLY quickly.
Jedward are amazing.
Jedward should win Eurovision this year.
Waterline isn't the best song, but its' better than Lipstick.
Lipstick was Jedward's entry for Ireland last year. They finished 8th.
Jedward had a small European fanbase when they entered last year. It has grown massively since last May, and now they have fans scattered all over Europe.
Jedward and Waterline have done poorly in the polls, but so what? Lipstick did, and everyone knows Jedward are all about the performance and what they do on the stage.
EUROPE, PLEASE VOTE FOR THIS.
Song Rating: 10/10
Liklihood to win: 7/10
Current odds: 20-1 (oddschecker.com) (on average)
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