Eurovision 2023: The Semi-final allocation pots!

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The Semi-Final Allocation Draw 2023 will take place on Tuesday 31 January at 20:00 CET live from Liverpool, alongside a ceremony which sees the Host City insignia pass from previous hosts Turin to Liverpool.

The draw will be hosted by AJ Odudu and Rylan and fans will be able to watch on the official Eurovision YouTube channel (or on BBC TWO or BBC iPlayer if you’re in the United Kingdom).

The Allocation Draw will determine whether countries participate in the First Semi-Final (Tuesday 9 May at 21:00 CEST) or the Second Semi-Final (Thursday 11 May at 21:00 CEST). Also randomly allocated is whether a country will perform in the first or second half of the Semi-Final they’ve drawn.

Semi-Final Allocation Draw: How does it work?

The United Kingdom and Ukraine, as the Host Country and reigning champion respectively, along with the other 4 members of the so-called ‘Big 5’ participating countries (France, Germany, Italy and Spain) do not compete in the Semi-Finals but their domestic audiences do get to vote in one of them… so before the competing countries are allocated a place in a Semi-Final, it will be randomly determined which of the Semi-Finals the Big 5 will each be allowed to vote on.

The next part of the draw will determine in which Semi-Final and in which half of the respective Semi-Final the other 31 participating countries will perform in.

Semi-Final Allocation Pots 2023

Pot 1

Pot 2

Pot 3

Albania
Austria
Switzerland
Croatia
Serbia
Slovenia

Denmark
Australia
Finland
Iceland
Norway
Sweden
Estonia

Armenia
Azerbaijan
Georgia
Israel
Latvia
Lithuania

Pot 4

Pot 5

Pot 6
Cyprus
Greece
Ireland
Malta
Portugal
San Marino

Belgium
Czech Republic
Netherlands
Moldova
Poland
Romania

France
Italy
Germany
Spain
United Kingdom
Ukraine

 
Drawing countries from different pots helps to reduce the chance of so-called neighbourly voting and increases suspense in the Semi-Finals. You can get a good idea of how it will all work by watching the 2022 Allocation Draw on the official Eurovision YouTube channel.

The Eurovision Song Contest is due to take place on 9, 11 and 13 May 2023 in Liverpool, the United Kingdom, on behalf of Ukraine who won the Contest thanks to Kalush Orchestra winning in 2022.

Source: Eurovision.tv

Stay tuned at Eurovisionfun for all the updates!

UK: Rina Sawayama will NOT represent the UK at Eurovision 2023

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British Japanese singer Rina Sawayama will not represent the United Kingdom at the Eurovision Song Contest.

The Eurovision Song Contest 2023 will take place in Liverpool after Sam Ryder finished in second place.  Last year’s winner, Ukraine was unable to meet the EBU demands to host the Festival.

It is still not clear who will wave the British flag representing the host country though.  However, there was an unfounded rumour that BRIT nominee Rina Sawayama would be the chosen one.

The rumour originates from TikTok and is based on the singer’s European tour.  Rina Sawayama does not  have any scheduled event between 27th February and the 16th of June.  This would be enough time to prepare to rehearse and participate in Eurovision related activities before the Grand Final which will take place in May 13, 2023.

Unfortunately for the fans of the Hold the Girl singer, this gap is not related to the Eurovision Song Contest.  According to a source from Radio Times, this overlap is purely coincidental.

The BBC is yet to confirm who will represent the host country in Liverpool.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZ0hqX_92zI&ab_channel=EurovisionSongContest

Source: RadioTimes

Are you excided to know who will succeed Sam Ryder?  Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for more news on the UK participation in Eurovision!

United Kingdom: TaP Music CEO reveals information about Eurovision 2023!

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In a post on his personal Instagram account, TaP Music Co-Founder and Co-CEO, and famous artist manager, Ben Mawson, has revealed information about the selection process for the UK’s representative at Eurovision 2023, which will be held in Liverpool.

As he reports, Eurovision 2023 is fast approaching and the search for the United Kingdom’s representative is ongoing.

 

Δείτε αυτή τη δημοσίευση στο Instagram.

 

Η δημοσίευση κοινοποιήθηκε από το χρήστη Ben M (@bentap77)

Of particular interest, however, is what he revealed in the comments of this post, many of which have since been deleted. So, apart from clarifying that the UK representative has not yet been chosen, Ben Mawson has also put an end to the rumours that famous singer Rina Sawayama would represent the United Kingdom with her song Frankenstein, released last September. However, he did not rule out the possibility of Rina Sawayama participating with another song.

As a reminder, the United Kingdom will follow the same formula for selecting a representative and song, which was followed in 2022, for Eurovision 2023. As such, the BBC and BBC Studios will once again work with TaP Music (a group of international music labels), which is behind highly successful pop artists such as Lana del Rey, Ellie Goulding, London Grammar, Dermot Kennedy and Mabel, to select the song and singer who will represent the United Kingdom in May 2023 in Liverpool.

It was a successful formula, as the UK was represented at Eurovision 2022 in Turin – via the same selection process that will be followed this year – by Sam Ryder, scoring the 2nd place in the Grand Final and 1st place in the jury vote.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZ0hqX_92zI

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the developments regarding the UK’s participation in Eurovision 2023!

Eurovision 2023: Semi-final allocation draw scheduled for the end of January!

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In the latest episode of ” The Euro Trip podcast”, Councilor and Deputy Mayor of Liverpool Harry Doyle was a guest and spoke among others things, about the preparations for Eurovision 2023.

The allocation draw for the semi finals is any important date, since it marks the official start of the Eurovision season. During the event, the draw to determine in which semi finals countries will perform and which out of the two semis Big Five must broadcast and vote takes place, as well as the host city insignia exchange.

Mr Doyle revealed that preparations are underway for the ceremony which is gonna take place at the end of January. Furthermore, meetings with representatives of local and Ukrainian communities of Liverpool will also take place, to explore ways of collaboration. We remind you that as part of the agreement of BBC to host Eurovision 2023 on behalf of Ukraine, is to include Ukrainians and Ukraine culture as part of the shows.

Even though Mr Doyle did not reveal the exact date of this years allocation draw, it is expected that it will be at the last Tuesday of January, as it happened the two previous years, meaning January 31st.

Below you can listen the full episode of the podcast:

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the latest updates on Eurovision 2023!

Source: The Euro Trip Podcast

Eurovision 2022: These are the 50 most-watched performances on YouTube!

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For yet another year, just some hours before the New Year, Eurovision TV reveales the 50 songs that got the most views throught the year, on the contest’s official YouTube channel.

On the list, there are 13 winning songs, while 23 more from the 40 songs that took part in Eurovision 2022.

Let’s see the songs that the TOP 50: Most watched in 2022 is consisted of:

50) 🇱🇻 Citi Zēni – “Eat Your Salad” – Latvia 2022 

49) 🇦🇿 Efendi – “Mata Hari” – Azerbaijan 2021

48) 🇫🇮 Blind Channel – “Dark Side” – Finland 2021

47) 🇦🇿 Nadir Rustamli – “Fade To Black” – Azerbaijan 2022

46) 🇬🇷 Helena Paparizou – “My Number One” – Greece 2005

45) 🇹🇷 Mor ve Ötesi – “Deli” – Turkey 2008

44) 🇫🇮 The Rasmus – “Jezebel” – Finland 2022

43) 🇷🇸 Marija Šerifović – “Molitva”– Serbia 2007

42) 🇩🇪 Lena – “Satellite” – Germany 2010

41) 🇸🇪 Måns Zelmerlöw – “Heroes”– Sweden 2015

40. 🇲🇩 Sunstroke Project & Olia Tira – “Run Away” – Moldova 2010

39) 🇮🇹 Mahmood – “Soldi” – Italy 2019

38) 🇬🇷 Amanda Georgiadi Tenfjord – “Die Together” – Greece 2022

37) 🇧🇪 Jérémie Makiese – “Miss You” – Belgium 2022 

36) 🇺🇦 Ruslana – “Wild Dances” – Ukraine  2004

35) 🇷🇺 Sergey Lazarev – “You Are The Only One” – Russia 2016

34) 🇦🇿 Aysel and Arash – “Always” – Azerbaijan 2009

33) 🇺🇦 Jamala – “1944” – Ukraine 2016

32) 🇷🇺 Manizha – “Russian Woman” – Russia 2021

31) 🇵🇹 MARO – “saudade, saudade” – Portugal 2022

30) 🇩🇪 Malik Harris – “Rockstars” – Germany 2022

29) 🇫🇷 Barbara Pravi – “Voilà” – France 2021

28) 🇵🇱 Ochman – “River” – Poland 2022

27) 🇫🇮 Lordi – “Hard Rock Hallelujah” – Finland 2006

26) 🇸🇪 Loreen – “Euphoria” – Sweden 2012

25) 🇨🇾 Eleni Foureira – “Fuego” – Cyprus 2018

24) 🇨🇾 Andromache – “Ela” – Cyprus 2022

23) 🇫🇷 Alvan & Ahez – “Fulenn” – France 2022

22) 🇹🇷 maNga – “We Could Be The Same” – Turkey 2010

21) 🇳🇱 Duncan Laurence – “Arcade” – Netherlands 2019

20) 🇸🇪 Cornelia Jakobs – “Hold Me Closer” – Sweden 2022

19) 🇺🇦 Verka Serduchka – “Dancing Lasha Tumbai” – Ukraine 2007

18) 🇹🇷 Hadise – “Düm Tek Tek” – Turkey 2009

17) 🇦🇹 LUM!X feat. Pia Maria – “Halo” – Austria 2022

16) 🇲🇩 Zdob şi Zdub & Advahov Brothers – “Trenulețul” – Moldova 2022

15) 🇳🇱 S10 – “De Diepte” – Netherlands 2022

14) 🇮🇹 Mahmood & BLANCO – “Brividi” – Italy 2022

13) 🇦🇱 Ronela Hajati –“Sekret” – Albania 2022

12) 🇮🇱 Netta – “TOY” – Israel 2018

11) 🇦🇲 Rosa Linn – “Snap” – Armenia 2022

10)🇷🇸 Konstrakta – ”In Corpore Sano” – Σερβία 2022

9)🇷🇴 WRS – ”Llámame” – Ρουμανία 2022

8)🇺🇦 Go_A – ”Shum” – Ουκρανία 2021

7)🇳🇴 Alexander Rybak – ”Fairytale” – Νορβηγία 2009

6) 🇮🇹 Måneskin – ”Zitti E Buoni’‘ – Ιταλία 2021

5) 🇳🇴 Subwoolfer – ”Give That Wolf A Banana” – Νορβηγία 2022

4)🇬🇧 Sam Ryder – ”SPACE MAN” – Ηνωμένο Βασίλειο 2022

3)🇷🇺 Little Big – ”Uno” – Ρωσία 2020

2)🇪🇸 Chanel – ”SloMo” – Ισπανία 2022

1)🇺🇦 Kalush Orchestra – ”Stefania” – Ουκρανία 2022

 

What do you think of the TOP 50, do you agree with the results? Write us in the comments below!

Stay tuned on Eurovisionfun for all the news regarding the Eurovision Song Contest!

United Kingdom: The BBC ready to take over the organization for Eurovision 2024!

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In the latest episode of the Euro Trip podcast, Eurovision 2023 executive producer Andrew Cartmell was a guest.

The producer of this year’s contest spoke about the preparations for the event which will take place in May in Liverpool, the plans for the selection of the next participation of the United Kingdom, but also the intention to undertake the event again for 2024!

“We are now in the production phase of the three live shows. The most important thing – regardless of the final result – is the quality of the performance and the song.

Of course we would like to get along. It would be amazing to be in the top ten or top five, why not win? We have to do this every year. We have to go in wanting to win. Nobody says, ‘Don’t win it, you can’t host it twice.”

The 67th Eurovision Song Contest will take place in Liverpool and more specifically at the M&S Bank Arena.

The first Semi-Final will be played on Tuesday 9 May, the second Semi-Final on Thursday 11 May and the Grand Final on Saturday 13 May 2023.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZ0hqX_92zI

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the updates in Eurovision 2023!

Source: eurotrippodcast.com

BBC reveals further production team details for Eurovision 2023!

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A few months ago, BBC revealed the core production team for Eurovision 2023. Today, further details are revealed regarding the team responsible to produce the three live shows in May 2023.

The rest of the team is consisted of:

  • Multi Camera Directors: Nikki Parsons, Richard Valentine and Ollie Bartlett

Nikki Parsons will be lead director on the Grand Final. Since 2006 Nikki has been Series Director of the BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing (the UK version of Dancing With The Stars), and has huge expertise in directing live entertainment shows in UK and US. Richard Valentine is a BAFTA and Royal Television Society award winning Multi Camera director and Ollie Bartlett has worked at multiple shows and was one of the BBC directors on the coverage of Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral.

  • Lead Creative Director: Dan Shipton

Dan has worked in many major events and will oversee various creative elements of the shows including the interval acts and the Flag Parade working together with German Nenov, who has been appointed by Ukrainian broadcaster UA:PBC as their Creative Director.

  • Music Director: Kojo Samuel

Kojo was the Music Executive of the 2022 Commonwealth Games Closing Ceremony and will oversee the music production and arrangements on the show’s interval acts and the Flag Parade.

  • Set Designer: Julio Himede

Julio has designed sets for many major events and TV shows such as the 64th Annual Grammy Awards, the 2018-2021 MTV Video Music Awards, the 2016-2021 MTV EMAs etc.

  • Head of Sound: Robert Edwards

BAFTA winner Robert Edwards will supervise the sound and it’s not the first time he is involved with Eurovision since he was the Sound Supervisor for Eurovision 2018.

  • Lighting Designer: Tim Routledge

Tim is a multi-award winning Lighting Designer having worked for major events and TV-shows like X-Factor, Commonwealth Games Opening Ceremony 2014 and more.

We remind you that the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 will take place in Liverpool. The semi-finals will take place in May 9 and May 11 and the Grand Final on May 13th, live from Liverpool Arena.

Stay tuned on Eurovisionfun for all the news regarding the Eurovision Song Contest 2023, in Liverpool!

Source: Eurovision.tv

Eurovision 2023: The odds after the Ukrainian national final!

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A few hours have just passed since the first national final of this season and as expected, there are not a few rearrangements in the betting tables. That’s why your favorite column is here again, to give you a first taste of the betting odds ahead of the 67th Eurovision Song Contest.

While you are preparing for your Christmas break and a “hot” Eurovision winter, the bookers are already busy, with the Eurovision 2023 winner section already being offered to some companies. So, we’re taking this opportunity to present to you what we have so far for the next contest.

Winner and Top 5

Despite the dominance of an underdog in yesterday’s Ukrainian national final, TVORCHI, the Eastern European country still remains at the top of the betting tables. Nevertheless, the odds for a possible fourth Ukrainian victory are “rising”, approaching 4.40 in some companies.

This is a clear increase compared to the previous time period, where a victory of Ukraine barely tripled the money of the bettor. The Ukrainian back-to-back is currently being played at odds between 2.75 and 4.40.

Behind Ukraine, in the Top-3, are Italy and Sweden. The Eurovision 2022 host and the six-time winner of the competition are among the heavy favorites for Eurovision 2023, with bookers relying mainly on the long tradition and quality of entries at Sanremo and Melodifestivalen respectively. Italy’s win is offered at 8 and Sweden’s win at 10.

Spain and the United Kingdom complete the top five. These are two countries that impressed in Turin and in which the betting companies show confidence that they can achieve an equally successful result in Liverpool in May. Bookers give the British victory at odds between 7 and 18, while the corresponding Spanish one between 15 and 16.

Top 10

Greece is seen as the sixth favorite to win Eurovision 2023, with bookers recognizing the positive results of the 2021-2022 biennium and the change of approach by ERT within the current decade. Greek victory is played at odds between 17 and 20.

In seventh and eighth place, with similar odds, Norway and Australia are playing. Both are played at a maximum of 21, making two respectable sizes for our favorite contest. Ninth is France, which is called upon to prove that the 2nd place in 2021 was not a “firework”, while the first ten are jointly completed by Belgium and Serbia. Both the Central European country and the Balkan country return 34 times the money of those who bet on them.

Do you think Ukraine can make it back-to-back and become the first country since Ireland in the early 90s to achieve back-to-back wins in our beloved contest?

Junior Eurovision 2022: The Grand Final takes place tonigh in Yerevan!

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The big day for all Junior Eurovision fans has arrived. This afternoon, the Grand Final of the Junior Eurovision Song Contest, which celebrates its 20th edition will take place!

Live from Yerevan, Armenia at 16:00 pm CET, 16 countries will battle it out for the coveted first place and victory in Junior Eurovision 2022.

From the Karen Demirchyan Sports and Concerts Complex right in the center of the Armenian capital, presenters Iveta Mukuchyan, Karina Ignatyan and Garik Papoyan, along with Robin the Robot, will welcome us to the 20th edition of the children’s music festival.

Running Order

Armenia, represented by Nare, will perform 15th in Sunday’s grand final. The show will be opened by Luna from the Netherlands, while Zlata Dziunka from Ukraine will perform her song last.

  1.  🇳🇱 Netherlands: Luna – La Festa

  2.  🇵🇱 Poland: Laura – To The Moon

  3.  🇰🇿 Kazakhstan: David Charlin – Jer-Ana (Mother Earth)

  4.  🇲🇹 Malta: Gaia Gambuzza – Diamonds In The Skies

  5.  🇮🇹 Italy: Chanel Dilecta – BLA BLA BLA

  6.  🇫🇷 France: Lissandro – Oh Maman!

  7.  🇦🇱 Albania: Kejtlin Gjata – Pakëz Diell

  8.  🇬🇪 Georgia: Mariam Bigvava – I Believe

  9.  🇮🇪 Ireland: Sophie Lennon – Solas

  10.  🇲🇰 North Macedonia: Lara feat. Jovan & Irina – Životot E Pred Mene

  11.  🇪🇸 Spain: Carlos Higes – Señorita

  12.  🇬🇧 United Kingdom: Freya Skye – Lose My Head

  13.  🇵🇹 Portugal: Nicolas Alves – Anos 70

  14.  🇷🇸 Serbia: Katarina Savić – Svet Bez Granica

  15.  🇦🇲 Armenia: Nare – DANCE!

  16.  🇺🇦 Ukraine: Zlata Dziunka – Nezlamna (Unbreakable)

Voting

Online voting will determine 100% of the public vote as voting by phone or SMS is not possible. As it was until now in Eurovision, the public decides by 50% on the results, with the remaining 50% coming from the votes of each country’s juries. The JESC 2022 Jury will include three music industry professionals and two children aged 10 to 15 years.

The vote for Junior Eurovision 2022 is divided into two phases:

 -Phase 1: voting begins at 8 pm today (CET time). This round of voting will remain open throughout Saturday, closing at 15:59 on Sunday, December 11 – shortly before the show begins.
–Phase 2 :takes place during the live broadcast. The window will open after the appearance of the last country, Ukraine. The second phase will last about 15 minutes.

You can watch the Grand final of Junior Eurovision 2022 through the official YouTube channel of the competition:

https://youtu.be/XS7AhDpz61c

Which country do you think will succeed Armenia and win the 20th edition of the Junior Eurovision Song Contest?

Junior Eurovision 2022: The voting starts now! | How to vote for your favorite songs!

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The countdown for the grand final of Junior Eurovision 2022 has begun. There are two days left to find out which country will be the winner of this year’s contest. After defining the order of songs appearances and analyzing this year’s Junior Eurovision favorites, it’s time to take a look on how to vote.

The vote for Junior Eurovision 2022 is open to the public. What you need is to:

  1. have an internet connection
  2. and a device to connect to the contest’s site.

You can vote for your favorite songs on the contest page, but only after watching a recap of all 16 songs. This video will come from parts of the participants’ second rehearsal .

Once the recap is complete, viewers will be able to vote for their favorite three entries. No geographical restrictions apply, so fans can vote for their own country if they wish so. In an effort to avoid duplication of voting, it is necessary to create an account at junioreurovision.tv before voting.

When do we vote?
The vote for Junior Eurovision 2022 is divided into two phases:

 -Phase 1: voting begins at 8 pm today (CET time). This round of voting will remain open throughout Saturday, closing at 15:59 on Sunday, December 11 – shortly before the show begins.
–Phase 2 :takes place during the live broadcast. The window will open after the appearance of the last country, Ukraine. The second phase will last about 15 minutes.

You can vote HERE!

The way to calculate the final result

Online voting will determine 100% of the public vote as voting by phone or SMS is not possible. As it was until now in Eurovision, the public decides by 50% on the results, with the remaining 50% coming from the votes of each country’s juries. The JESC 2022 Jury will include three music industry professionals and two children aged 10 to 15 years.

You can watch a explanatory video below:

https://youtu.be/mYR4ZopjxTE

Stay tuned on Eurovisionfun for all the news regarding the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2022, in Yerevan!