Is Eurovision A.I.?

No, it's not! Our own Jonathan (a real person - I can confirm) is in Vienna - in person, back to blog for you another year. Enjoy!

Servus aus Wien!

What the title says!

For the second year running I will be sharing my unsolicited Eurovision-related thoughts and feelings through these series of self-therapeutic blogs.

I am writing from the media centre in Vienna, which is by far the smallest but also the brightest one I've ever been to. In fact, the 2015 edition was my very first edition and in between I actually worked and lived in Vienna for a while - so it feels good but also weird to be back for a number of reasons. (I warned you, self-therapeutic.)

Upon entering the media centre earlier this morning, Taylor Swift's Love Story was playing through the speakers. Surprise interval act in the Grand Final qonfirmed? It would be nice vindication for her cancelled Eras Tour concert of August 2024 in this very city, for which yours truly had a ticket... Here's hoping.

I would also like to take this opportunity to share the contents of the media goodie bag I received yesterday. Next to the obvious things (a programme, a water bottle, a tote bag (doesn't the world have enough tote bags, really?)), there was also this wonderful thing.

Surprise interval act by Sophie and Magaly in the Grand Final qonfirmed? Likely not as sadly both sisters have passed away. But a nice hommage would only be fitting at this festive 70th edition, me thinks.

In any case, the goals for next week are to a) not lose my sanity and b) cover the ESC - how mutually exclusive those goals are remains to be seen.

Tomorrow (Monday), all press will be allowed to watch the first dress rehearsal in the arena again, for which I plan to do  some proper liveblogging. This of course depends on confirmation of the local authorities and proper equipment (Wi-Fi in the arena and the sorts). I will keep you posted!

For now, please enjoy the following classic Eurovision voting moment with moderation: (starting at 32 seconds if the timestamp thingy doesn't work)

Basel - Questions and Reflections

For the second year running, my pre-favourite has won Eurovision, which in all my years as a fan before had never happened before. Yet, also for the second year running, the contest left me with a bitter aftertaste and again the slightest feeling of falling out of love.

I am left with a few questions that I would like to raise here for your consideration and discussion on the MB or elsewhere.

As a gift to all you lovely ESC geeks and freaks, if you want an overview of the detailed scores and rankings from all shows, you can download an Excel sheet I made last night here. Enjoy!

1. What the hell just happened?

Picture: Sarah Louise Bennett/EBU

Okay, that one was too easy, I know - but still.

I had some predictions horribly wrong (I *really* got carried away by the San Marino hype, in spite of always strongly disliking their entry myself) and the only country I got right 100% in terms of placing was Albania. Many other countries were placed in similar-ish positions. I called the jury and public vote winners correctly, and the same applied to the nil points for Remember Monday.

But seriously, also nothing, nade, niente, nichts for Switzerland? I did predict it would get the majority of its points from the jury - but all of them? Truly insane.

I had also massively underestimated the appeal of Tommy Cash, among both votes. It's interesting how the televote top two consists of songs performed third and fourth in the running order. This mitigates all the discussions and critiques about 'good' and 'bad' positions considerably.

The same of course applies to the bookmakers. Sweden's odds kept improving until the start of the voting and then it all kinda fell apart. Sweden still came 4th, a showing that many countries would almost kill for (*cries in Red Sebastian*), but it felt very underwhelming for them.

A solution? Trusting your own gut feeling more! Curb your inner Fionnuola Sweeney and don't get carried away as much. Worry less about the effects of the running order and put less trust into how people spend their betting money.

2. How much time do we have left?

Maybe I'm a bit too dramatic here, but I genuinely believe that Eurovision as an event and a(n often ridiculed but nevertheless sustaining and thriving) European institution cannot survive its own voting system for too much longer.

Last year, the Israeli broadcaster and government set up a huge media campaign (including a billboard on Times Square in NYC) to urge people to vote for Israel, as massively as possible, no matter what their entry was. It was perhaps the clearest sign that Eurovision is very much a political event ever.

The EBU's reaction? Crickets. They let it all happen again this year. Unexplainable, as Nemo sang. And this time it really paid off for Israel, because they won the televote and now, like Ukraine in 2022, can use this as a 'signal' that Europe supports them and their atrocities.

And there, I said it: Ukraine. I didn't hate Bird of Pray, but Ziferblat won the first semi final is, pardon my French, absolutely ridiculous. While we have no way of knowing for certain as that would require in-depth qualitative research among voters in numerous parts of the continent, it does at least indicate that people vote less for a song and more for a country. This is actually backed up by prior research, albeit limited and by now rather old.

A solution? Limiting the number of votes per device and credit card. One person, one vote. Of course this hurts broadcasters financially as they in many cases profit of televotes which sustains their further participation. So again, this is not as easy and straightforward as it all sounds. But some action will be inevitably necessary.

3. Oú est Céline?

Carzo, of course, whose presence on stage with Paola and Peter, Sue and Marc would have made that fabulous interval act even better. Who cares she went for Luxembourg??

No, of course I mean La Dion.

During the two rehearsals on Friday, the hosts gave the exact same speech as during the first semi final on Tuesday and we saw the same recorded video message by our chanteuse québécquoise.

Yet by yesterday morning, the script had altered and any mentioning of Dion had been cut entirely. This only fuelled hope and expectations that she would make a surprise appearance, but we got nothing.

Something happened for sure. Was she actually in Basel but did she decide to not show at the last moment? Did Lumo abduct her? Can anyone confirm that Céline Dion is actually okay right now? Please?

A solution? A new video message from Céline, hopefully not asking for ransom or a hosting job for Lumo during Eurovision 2026 in Vienna/Innsbruck/Graz to guarantee her survival.

4. Why was Michele Hunziker there?

It took me a while, but I ended up genuinely liking Sandra and Hazel. They had to find their groove but once they did they had very good chemistry on screen. Hazel was a revelation and I love that she got her pockets of time to do her own thing and shine off-script.

But for some bizarre reason the organisers felt the need to include a third host in the final. I'm not sure if she was inebriated, stoned or both, but it felt as if she was thrown in at the last minute and hadn't had a second to read the script before she had to read her lines from the teleprompter.

It just all felt very unnecessary in what was already a very long final with many unnecessary parts. This of course includes Hunziker's heartless rendition of Volare. But don't you dare criticise or touch Sandra's Canzone per te performance. Studer needs to be protected at all times.

A solution? Sticking to the same hosts across all shows. Yes, looking at you too, Graham Norton.

5. Why do the Swiss hate people who want to follow the voting?

There were many odd choices made in how the shows were structured and flowed but arguably the worst thing for me was the jury vote reveal.

We only saw the total scoreboard for a few seconds per country before moving on, making it impossible to keep track of what was going on.

This truly baffles me as I thought the Swedes absolutely nailed the jury vote presentation last year. The first points were displayed on the full scoreboard automatically while also having the host and spokesperson on-screen the entire time. It was so easy and convenient to follow.

Who came up with this? Why did they think it was a good idea? How long did it take you before you realised that Estonia was actually doing *well* in the jury vote and that Iceland still had zero?

A solution? Just not doing this ever again??

6. Where was Lumo?

This is an honest question. The... figure (in lieu of a better word) had been introduced as the official mascot for this year's edition. Yet, Eurocat, Eurobird and good old Leo (from 2022 fame; I too had to look it up again) were featured prominently during the shows' postcards. Lumo was absolutely nowhere. I didn't see it anywhere in the streets of Basel, and believe me, I have looked for it.

I was totally expecting Lumo to announce the Swiss jury votes but I guess the Italian mouse stole its limelight?

What was the point of introducing a mascot if it ended up not being used at all? Could the extremely negative reactions have caused or at least contributed to its disappearance? Where is Lumo now? Are they okay? Is Céline Dion with them?

A solution? Announcing Lumo as the eternal mascot of Eurovision after the eternal logo and the eternal slogan. It would only be fitting.

--

On a final note, thanks to all of you who read and commented on the blogs over the past week. It was intense but I very much enjoyed doing them and hope you enjoyed reading them :) Tack och forlåt!

Final - Predictions

Soon we will know who is the best in the Eurovision Song Contest!

As the final of the 69th Concours is upon us, I thought I would share my final Final predictions in a top 26 ranking.

So without further ado, here I go... Bye!

"Oh no no, come back" - Marie N

Because you ask so nicely then.

26. Iceland

I can't see juries voting for this at all and doubt televoters will care a lot for it either with so much else on offer.

25. Spain

Lo siento eurofans but I think this will have among the least convincing overall jury and televote appeal.

That said, I think the points will be scattered all over the place so we could very well end up with a 2011-style result with very high scores even for the lowest ranked countries.

24. United Kingdom

Even the vocals were a bit off during the last rehearsals, which was kinda like their whole thing. This will get some jury points but I do fear another "I'm sorry... zero points" scenario in the televote.

23. Armenia

This could be a typical case of "does relatively well in the semi but then falls apart in the final". The running order position also does this no favours whatsoever.

22. Denmark

So so so happy for Sissal and my new home country but I predict a Anja Nissen-esque result with quite a few jury points but only televote points from Australia, because why not?

21. Norway

That's three Nordics outside of the top 20, correct. At this point things become a bit random admittedly but as nice as it is as an opener, I fear it will likely be mostly forgotten when the recaps come along.

20. Portugal

I had this dead last for the semi but since then have some somewhat around - I think I can understand why people would pick up their phones to vote for it, to a limited extent at least. This after Malta is brilliant.

19. Luxembourg

I really wish I could have placed this higher, and yes, last year proved that #2 doesn't have to mean anything bad. But Luxembourg just isn't Ukraine. I can't see this getting a lot of televote points either and think jury support will be limited.

18. Malta

Maybe this is wishful thinking on my end but I also expect juries to not go for this at all and audiences only to a limited extent in a handful of countries that will shower it with love, only for it to be ignored by others.

17. Poland

This is partly because I've grown to dislike the Polish fan media journalists in the media centre. They are LOUD. But also because I think Finland will still overshadow this.

Yes, I also regret not placing this 18th to repeat her result from 30 years ago.

16. Germany

I still think this could do a surprise top 10 in the televote but expect very little jury support. Too bad as Baller really is a banger.

15. Lithuania

This will pick up some high scores from a few countries and probably nothing from most - but I'm very glad to have it in the final. Don't expect juries to massively go for this either so a midtable result seems the ceiling to me.

14. Latvia

The opposite where I expect quite some jury love but less attention from televoters. But again, so so happy it made the final, against my own pessimistic expectations - hope this will do better again tonight!

13. Netherlands

I know. Sorry noorderburen. But I do think the running order did Claude dirty and I fear it will hurt his chances to have it so close to two of the other arguably more 'artistic' performances (Austria, Latvia and later Albania being the others imho).

12. Estonia

I know, the Baltics are all very close! But the early draw will not do this favours. I still expect around 100 televote points but very little from the juries.

11. Italy

I do think this stands out between Erika and Justyna in a good way, which is why I actually bumped it up quite a bit compared to what I had in mind initially. Juries will really appreciate this but televoters much less so I fear.

10. San Marino

Yes. Don't freak out. Rather, hear me out.

This has an amazing position in the running order, right after two of the big favourites and the very personal, intense French performance, only followed by the more difficult to digest Albanian song. I expect the public to react very positively to this, against what I hope.

09. Greece

Stunning staging and vocals elevate this a lot more than what I had in mind prior to the dress rehearsals. A 2022-esque result seems feasible.

08. Albania

I will never be the song's biggest fan but think it was more impactful in the semi than the final flow. I fear being a closer and coming right after the horrible insanely catchy Tutta l'Italia will hurt the chances of this in the televote. But it will definitely be up there - my top 8 prediction consists of the 'big hitters' for me.

07. Ukraine

Well, we all know why.

06. Switzerland

Even though I fear this will get 85% or more of its total points from juries alone, I do believe in a good to very good showing for the host country. For what it's worth, this would be my winner if I had a say.

05. Israel

See Ukraine - although I expect more jury votes and (slightly) less public votes than last year. Still, I wouldn't be surprised as this would top the televote ranking as I expect scores to be lower and more scattered than in previous editions.

<insert split screen>

04. Finland

This is such a breath of fresh air in the final running order and will go very far. This could have been an Eleni Foureira situation had it been in semi 1, I think, in terms of momentum build. But for now I think this is its ceiling.

03. Austria

It pains me to write this as it is still my big favourite and I hope I will be wrong. But I can't see audiences following en masse although this might still be my best guess for a jury winner. Not as convincingly as the past two years, but still - if it can do that, it will be a lot more difficult to beat.

02. France

I had not really rated Maman prior to the dress rehearsals but the performance works so well. It has a wonderful position in the running order... but I think a 2021-esque result is most realistic still.

01. Sweden

Anticlimax much right? I know. Hear me out.

I think Sweden will win overall but without winning either the jury or public vote. 2016 or 2019 style really.

And then we all go to Örnsköldsvik together and have a gay old time next year!!

Semi result predictions:

- Sweden and Israel won the semis

- In both semis I expect the battle for 10th place to have been very close

- No country will have ended with 0 points

We'll see!!

Final - Dress rehearsal 1

If all goes according to plan, in about 36 hours we will know the winner of the 69th ESC. But before that, we still have three last dress rehearsals to get through.

I will be attending the first one of those in person again, live from the still tiny but shiny St. Jakobshalle, watching the stage and the big screens.

You know what to expect at this point as you've seen all performances so this blog will focus on other elements (again listed in part 2 as to not spoil things). Based on the terrific ideas by ThomNL and ijwblue, the 26 competing performances will be mercilessly judged by yours truly based on three parameters:

LYS: How's the flow?? How does the performance tie in with the overall feel and flow of the final?

NUŠA: How are the energy levels of the artists? Of course no one can beat Nuša Derenda but I will try to find appropriate comparisons from ESC's rich history to paint you a picture.

SUNTRIBE: Let's get loud! I will measure audience reactions in the arena during the first dress rehearsal using an app (the things I do for blogging purposes...) that tracks decibel levels. To give you an idea, the image below that I've taken from this website explains what the numbers mean.

PART 1: The performances

01. Norway

LYS: Quite the perfect opener really but also in bigger risk of being forgotten more at the end.

NUŠA: Tooji but less cocky

SUNTRIBE: 70.3 dB

02. Luxembourg

LYS: Last year proved that #2 isn't a bad thing necessarily. I can see why this is necessary to keep the energy going.

NUŠA: Natalia Gordienko but less influenced by Kirkorov

SUNTRIBE: 90.0 dB

03. Estonia

LYS: Feels a bit out of place here as the energy is a lot lower than it seems at first.

NUŠA: Frédéric Etherlinck but less hungover.

SUNTRIBE: 82.4 dB

04. Israel

LYS: It works very well as the first ballad of the night. Also clever to get it over and done with early on.

NUŠA: Annet Artani but without Britney Spears.

SUNTRIBE: 88.8 dB

05. Lithuania

LYS: Very odd choice to have this year's moodiest song right after the most controversial one. Energy and vibe feel off.

NUŠA: 90s Irish spokesperson lady but without Irish greetings

SUNTRIBE: 70.1 dB

06. Spain

LYS: Great to get the energy flowing again in the show! Much-needed at this point so great r/o for Melody.

NUŠA: Alina Eramia-level

SUNTRIBE: 94.5 dB

07. Ukraine

LYS: The past few songs have really showcased the great diversity in genres which works really well.

NUŠA: Céline... Carzo. But pink.

SUNTRIBE: 72.2 dB

This was a pretty bad performance unfortunately and the singer knew it, walking off stage angry with himself.

08. United Kingdom

LYS: This also would have been a great opener actually but it does the trick after a break too.

NUŠA: Suntribe but off off off Broadway.

SUNTRIBE: 79.4 dB

09. Austria

LYS: I think this works *so* well here as the first entry that's actually a contender and properly gets the show started.

NUŠA: Çetin Alp but with longer waves

SUNTRIBE: 69.5 dB (!)

10. Iceland

LYS: Having the most child-like song and performance come right after the most artsy ones of the night is a bold move but I think I like it?

NUŠA: Marcus & Martinus but from Wish

SUNTRIBE: 64.4 dB

11. Latvia

LYS: And we're back to the fine arts. This could have been spaced out more from Austria to make it stand out more on its own merit.

NUŠA: Neiokõsõ but less aggressive.

SUNTRIBE: 77.4 dB

12. Netherlands

LYS: Very odd that this also more artistic performance gets shoehorned right before Erika Vikman and so shortly performances with similar vibes from Austria and Latvia.

NUŠA: Jean-Jacques but less annoying.

SUNTRIBE: 87.6 dB

13. Finland

LYS: Perhaps the best possible position for them - this stands out so much here. Televote magnet?

NUŠA: Lena Philipsson but after UK watershed time.

SUNTRIBE: 88.4 dB

DRAMA: The microphone didn't work and Erika had to finish her song on the main stage. The crowd chants Erika's name in support. The SUNTRIBE goes up to 96 dB but I won't count it.

We get a filler montage of past Eurovision meetings which will obviously not be shown here tomorrow. It is confirmed that Finland will perform again. This time around everything goes smoothly and Erika comes in time.

14. Italy

LYS: This would have worked a lot better if it weren't for the short break before which took out the flow - coming back with a piano/guitar/harmonics ballad maybe wasn't the best of ideas but I guess they needed something between Finland and Poland.

NUŠA: Lux57 but even more black and white, somehow

SUNTRIBE: 70.3 dB

15. Poland

LYS: This will definitely grab everyone's attention again - for better or worse remains to be seen though.

NUŠA: Ruslana but without unconditional love for Axel Hirsoux

SUNTRIBE: 78.4 dB

We are seated right below very loud Polish journalists/fans and a Belgian colleague next to me remarks that Germany might have left them alone if they would have screamed as loudly in 1939. Speaking of which...

16. Germany

LYS: This is such an odd blend of very high and low energy at the same time and it doesn't work as well as it could or should. Coming after Poland does it little favour. However, I still think there could be televote appeal for this.

NUŠA: Elena Ionescu without in-ears

SUNTRIBE: 60.3 dB

17. Greece

LYS: Damn it, this works so well here... Blows the previous ones out of the water.

NUŠA: Moran Mazor, but more mythical

SUNTRIBE: 63.4 dB

18. Armenia

LYS: One of the most clever performances of the year comparing what happens in the arena vs. what you see on screen. Yet I feel this was left out at first while assembling the order and shoehorned in here because the producers had no choice. Works less well than in the semi I think.

NUŠA: Robin Bengtsson but after work hours.

SUNTRIBE: 69.4 dB

19. Switzerland

LYS: Joins Armenia in huge arena vs. screen discrepancy - so odd choice to have them back-to-back from an arena audience perspective. Of course this is the host country so it will get a warm welcome. This was already fixed so little to say about this in itself but rather what was positioned around it. Well done, producers.

NUŠA: Åse Kleveland but without an old man

SUNTRIBE: 81.3 dB

20. Malta

LYS: Feels a bit underwhelming to be honest - much lower energy than it should have but of course this needs a big energetic crowd to come to life. Still, something is lacking and it's not just a song.

NUŠA: If Destiny and Erika Vikman had a love child that would be an annoying teen

SUNTRIBE: 89.3 dB

21. Portugal

LYS: The difference in energy between the Portuguese journalists/fans in the arena and the Portuguese performers is hilarious.

NUŠA: Softengine but so soft you don't see or feel it anymore

SUNTRIBE: 68.4 dB

22. Denmark

LYS: Very low energy, not just the performance vs song but also the comment below so it's understandable

NUŠA: Marlene Charrell when she has to introduce the Norwegian conductor.

SUNTRIBE: 76.4 dB

She doesn't sing the choruses to save her voice and asks the crowd to do so. Of course they do.

23. Sweden

LYS: The Big Favourite, making the wait for it almost as long as possible will definitely work in its favour. But no matter where this would be put, it is almost impossible to imagine this not winning the public vote at this point.

NUŠA: Dubrovački trubaduri but in a sauna

SUNTRIBE: 79.5 dB

24. France

LYS: It needs a lot of prep time, but very clever to position this so late and right after Sweden as the big outsider. Easy to see why this is racing up the odds as we speak. This is "A Moment" - more so than Sweden perhaps.

NUŠA: Mika Newton but with a mother from Cork

SUNTRIBE: 85.5 dB

25. San Marino

LYS: Very dangerous to have this here - it's annoying as hell but such an earworm and people will remember it. Works quite well after the intense French performance too as something easily digestible and upbeat. Could do surprisingly well in the televote.

NUŠA: DJ Bobo but at an Italian wedding

SUNTRIBE: 61.3 dB

26. Albania

LYS: I think this would have worked a lot better in 22-24 like Konstrakta a few years back. It kinda feels more like an interval act already and doesn't really work as a closer for me. That said, this will go big.

NUŠA: Julie and Ludwig but mainly Off again

SUNTRIBE: 84.4 dB

So according to my measurement system (a smartphone in my lap), the top 10 according to the journalist arena of today's first dress rehearsal was:

1. Spain
2. Luxembourg
3. Malta
4. Israel
5. Finland
6. Netherlands
7. France
8. Albania
9. Estonia
10. Switzerland

Make of that what you want!

PART 2: The rest of the show

The final opens with a pretty cool and funny video in which our now three hosts try to recover the lost winner trophy. There are jabs at Nemo who broke theirs last year and many Eurovision songs are used of course.

Nemo then opens the final performing The Code, alone on stage with an impressive light and laser show.

Next is the flag parade, very traditional stuff but the visuals are amazing. After Greece there is a random dance break moment for twenty seconds that doesn't really do anything.

Michelle Hunziker has a rather unpleasant voice and already in the opening she seems... unnecessary? The voting lines again open at the beginning of the show. It's quite anticlimactic without a big crowd :D

We get our first short break after Ukraine with the three hosts trying to pump some life into the crowd, the show and everyone's lives. It's pretty awkward BUT THEN Sandra performs an abridged version of Canzone per te and world peace has never been closer <3 If that wasn't enough, Michelle Hunziker in the same break also performs a snippet of Volare because she speaks Italian you know. I want her to call out Mr. Naeff at some point.

After Iceland we see Michelle and Hazel and apparently Michelle can do funny things with her tongue too. It sounds wrong and it kinda is but not that wrong, trust me.

After (the second performance from) Finland, Sandra and Hazel advertise the Eurovision 2025 CD and DVD, and every year this is my only reminder that these are still actually released.

After Germany we get a backstage video of how all props are carried on and off the stage in a matter of second. Hazel rightfully remarks that these are hte people who actually work - he typed, comfortably sitting in an arena.

After Denmark we get a reminder of the Made in Switzerland interval from semi 1 because they are obviously really proud of it. No Petra Mede though, which is too bad considering what country is next.

After Sweden we get another big break where we cut live to the football arena next door where the final will also be aired for 36.000 spectators, Parken-esque. It drags on quite a bit but we get why as France does need a lot of prep time on stage.