Eurovision. There have been many words written on the subject in recent days and many of them are simply last years words regurgitated. I am older than I care to admit and have taken more than a passing interest in the subject since Bucks Fizz became my childhood heroes (after Adam Ant, Abba and Tina Charles – God aren’t kids fickle…) when they won the competition in 1981. And, I have to say, I struggle to remember a time when people didn’t complain about a) The Voting and b) Terry Wogan’s commentary.For many years the voting argument was aimed at the Nordic countries for patting each other on the back with the obligatory ‘douze’ points – Not forgetting Cyprus and their 12 point love of Greece. However, in this new millennium that all seems to be forgotten (even though it continues as before) as we have a new enemy, ‘the east’.
Apparently ‘the east’ are now rigging the voting and making a mockery of the competition. Plus, viewers no longer vote for their favourite song, they vote according to a country’s political pursuits – maybe we should rename it the Eurovision Political Popularity Contest?? At the end of the day we all believe what we want to believe, but I think it’s all nonsense.
Its already been pointed out on various blogs that if you only count the votes cast this year by the ‘western’ countries, the result is exactly the same – a win for Serbia and a second place for the Ukraine. In fact, there is little change in the top ten highest scoring countries and the UK and Ireland’s place at the bottom. Proof, if you want to believe it, that a handful of the now massive 42 voting countries, awarding 12 points to their neighbours, does not distort or corrupt the result. Let’s not forget that apart from the odd exception (e.g. Ireland) Eurovision is won by a different country every year. Its also been pointed out that this year’s competition was held in Helsinki – because ‘western’ Finland won the competition last year of course with just as many Balkan, former soviet and Yugoslav countries voting for one another. Critics in this country seem to forget that ‘most’ countries do not award their neighbours 12 points and all countries award many other points besides the magic 12. This guarantees the spontaneity of the result each year.
As for the political element, well come on, how many people in this country can name more than one other political leader in Europe? Sure we all know Bush and Putin, but who can rattle off the name of the current Slovenian leader or even that of our close neighbours France and Italy for example? To suggest that people voting in Eurovision are being that articulate en-masse is ridiculous. Respected BBC ‘DJ’s’ are suggesting it’s the Iraq war that has consigned us to the bottom of the heap – with respect, does anyone remember the French position on the Iraq war? And what good has it done them? I believe they were at the bottom of the heap along with us and Spain – who pulled their troops out of Iraq - and Germany and Ireland – the former I’m not aware even has an army or that the second has any troops there either… Let’s also not forget, if you think the UK is suffering for being perceived as a war mongering country, how on earth did Serbia end up winning the competition? No only did it win, it won with massive support from its own neighbours, many of whom it was at war with until a few years ago!
So why has the UK done so badly in recent years? It’s worth remembering that as the UK, Germany, France and Spain (the big 4) pay the biggest contribution to the staging of Eurovision, we automatically qualify for the final. Many people forget that there are actually two Eurovision song contests, so if you are not one of the big 4, or one of the highest scorers on the night, you have to take part in the qualifier and face the possibility that you may not make it to the final. This could be where some of the ‘partisan’ voting comes from. I am reliably informed that much is made in the commentaries in many countries of the fact that the big 4 automatically qualify and therefore do not need the support of the viewers as much as the other countries. This means that your vote is more valuable to a non auto-qualifying country, as not only will you help that country potentially win, you will help them qualify automatically for next years final too. You can then understand why viewers may vote for a neighbouring country where there may be a shared language, culture and a few aunts and uncles.
There can also be momentum behind many of the highest scorers. For example, this year’s Ukrainian entry courted much controversy to the stage where effigies of the singer were being burned in the streets. This ensured a lot of publicity for the song so it was already familiar to many people before the final itself. It will also have attracted a lot of support from those who wanted the song to do well to make a point to the critics – this may have hurt Scooch who turned in their own, excellent, camp performance.
Many of the singers too are well known in their native territories – the winning Serbian singer included. This will also guarantee a certain amount of support. By contrast, our performers are usually unknown or fairly minor celebrities as, given our attitude towards the competition, no big western acts will entertain the idea of entering.
Then there is the European mood and the quality of the performance. There is no such thing as a sure fire formula for winning Eurovision. Just contrast last years incredible performance-led winners Lordi with this years minimal, lyric-centric winner. There is just no way of knowing what Europe is going to warm to. A few years ago Javine gave an excellent performance for the UK of what was essentially a carbon copy of a previous winner. Unsurprisingly, she didn’t win. This has never been the way to win Eurovision. You need, a little originality, a little momentum and a whole lot of luck!
And the less said about Gemini, the better…
On the whole I think Eurovision is a great event and it does not deserve to receive the sour-graped criticism we have seen since Saturday. While the funding and qualification criteria remain as now, its true that things will remain stacked against us, but at the same time I do not feel that we stand no chance of winning – or at least ‘doing well’. With over 40 countries taking part, the show is a lottery. You cannot guarantee you will do well or win on a regular basis. My enthusiasm for the show was ignited when Bucks Fizz claimed the crown back in 1981 and it was 16 years before we won again. Its only been 10 years since our last win, so come on Britain, get over it!
