Predicting Copenhagen (3)

Having spent two weeks almost in Copenhagen last year, I'm joining the gang who are spending two weeks definitely not in Copenhagen this year. Of course, we'll have our mobile "press centre" with us too, and I'm looking forward to blogging as usual about the betting markets and whatever the 2014 equivalent of Jonas Gygax's silly face is.

But in the meantime, I'm happy to jump at the challenge of some WILD PREDICTING! WILD! LIKE THE CARPATHIAN WOLVES! Sticking my neck out, here are some of things I reckon will happen over the next fortnight:

• Austria will fail to qualify. Not because the conservative corners of Europe hate the idea of a bearded lady, but because it's a dog of a song and Conchita's vocals are shouty and horrible. Meanwhile, the fanboys will be doubly incensed because:
  
• Georgia will qualify. Forget the meandering structure and the lack of a discernible melody: this is Real Music played by Real Musicians, and the juries will absolutely lap it up. Plus they've got Lithuania to give them all 58 points as usual. SHIN!
• Finland will finish in the top 10. It's fresh, modern, credible and non-banal, and juries and televoters will love it in equal measure.
• The Danish hosts will start their script in rhyming couplets before winking at the camera and saying "Only kidding!". (OK, so that's not a real prediction - but wouldn't it be amazing?)

Of course, just two weeks from now it'll all be over and I'll no doubt be looking back on my WILD PREDICTIONS with a face like this:

But that's the fun of it, isn't it? :-) Bring on the rehearsals!