Eurovision Song Contest 2024 (Mod warning, see OP updated 10/05 and post #3477 11/05)

Its like telling the missus you'd never cheat on her with Margot Robbie.

But then there’s that pesky little thing called principles….

I wonder would Erica sign it if she was picked over Bambi?

Also, they are targeting entirely the wrong person - their petition should have gone to RTE or the EBU. Bambie is in Eurovision as a mere representative of the broadcaster and is under contract to them. It's the national broadcaster who competes in the Contest, not the artist.

This day 41 years ago was a dark one for Ireland at Eurovision. On 23 April, the 1983 contest took place in Munich, West Germany (as it was then) - but Ireland wasn't there. Due to financial difficulties at RTÉ caused by the government's refusal to grant it a licence fee increase, major budget cutbacks had to be made in Montrose, with the National Song Contest and Eurovision participation two of the casualties. 

Ireland's withdrawal in 1983 is often attributed to a strike at RTÉ (including on Wikipedia and the normally well-researched Reorderboard channel on YouTube), but it was definitely due to financial constraints. Despite not competing, RTÉ still aired the contest live via the BBC, which meant RTÉ viewers could enjoy/endure (depending on how they felt about him) Terry Wogan's commentary. Brendan Balfe commented for Radio 1 listeners, but I assume he did so from Dublin and didn't travel to Munich.

On the night of the contest, RTÉ received over 50 complaints from viewers, mainly from those who were disgruntled at the decision not to enter a song. Some viewers, however, complained that RTÉ shouldn't have wasted money by showing a contest Ireland wasn't competing in, and 12 viewers complained about Terry Wogan's commentary!

All in all, the 1983 contest was a mixed bag. The standard of the songs was a big improvement on the weak 1982 contest and the orchestra was great, but the production from German television was poor. The stage was bland (it's considered one of the worst of the decade by many fans), and the show was a long-drawn-out affair that lasted for over three hours, the longest in contest history at that point.

Most of the blame for the show overrunning goes to the presenter, Marlene Charell, who hosted the show in three languages - German, English and French. The voting was a particularly tiring ordeal due to the trilingual repeating of the points and the many mistakes made by Marlene.

The running time wasn't all Marlene's fault, though. In an innovation for 1983, all the participating performers were introduced on stage at the beginning of the contest, stretching out the running time even further. This "opening ceremony" proved unpopular and was dropped the following year, but it returned in 2013, now known as the "flag ceremony."

There was a close voting sequence, but the slow pace took away so much of the excitement. After the first five countries had voted, it looked like Germany might have been on course for a second consecutive win, but Luxembourg soon took the lead and stayed here. However, it never surged ahead of its rivals, with Sweden, Yugoslavia and Israel staying close behind. It wasn't until the second-last jury in Belgium had voted that Luxembourg was guaranteed its fifth, and to date, last, Eurovision win.

By October 1983, RTÉ's financial situation had improved enough to allow Ireland to return to Eurovision. And what a comeback it would turn out to be! It would be 2002 before Ireland would miss the contest again, but that would be for reasons other than financial.

Yes, the orchestra that year really lifted the songs. The studio versions of some of my favourite songs from the 1983 contest are mediocre in comparison to the live versions.

I've always thought it was terribly harsh on Corinne Hermès that she was wiped from the montage of past winners that appeared at the start of the 1995 contest in Dublin. I appreciate that Ireland wasn't there in 1983 but that was no reason to wipe the Munich contest from history.

The Eurovision Semi-Finals will be live on BBC1, in previous years I seem to remember them being on BBC3?

Commentary on the semis comes from Rylan and Scott Mills.

I wouldn’t have known too much about your man Rylan before last years contest other than something something reality tv and randomly popping up on the comedy quiz show circuit etc…. But he’s actually a funny guy…

I’ll be watching all 3 shows in Lithuania on Lithuanian TV, unless perhaps RTÉ allow it to stream on the player without geo blocking it (but even when we’re in Ireland we don’t watch on RTÉ anyway..) I do have VPN’s I could use but BBC player is more hassle than it’s worth in trying to get going as I think you need an account…… so Lithuanian commentary it is…

I can't remember ever seeing Sweden so low in the odds before (in the modern era).

The song is not great but they've sent worse in the past 10 years.

That awful Justin Timberlake wannabe springs to mind from a few years back (Benjamin something??). Dreadful song. But the juries seemed to love it for some reason. Thankfully it came near the bottom of the televote.

Duplicate post.

Its like something out of Father Ted, you couldn't make it up, etc.etc.

Ireland now up to 7th in the odds to qualify with a 77% chance (which is edging up all the time).