Today the world of media, entertainment and beyond has been
shocked and saddened by the news of the death of Sir Terry Wogan, at the age of
77.
Sir Terry died after a short battle with cancer, in news
confirmed by his family this morning.
If you ask young and old across Britain, Europe and the
world, you’d more than likely find everyone to know of Wogan, and have a
personal memory of him.
It’s this personal connection which has really hit home
today. I never met Terry, but I’ve been visibly moved by the news. I didn’t
listen to his BBC Radio 2 show very often, but his aura, bubbly persona and
commitment to broadcasting and charity work was admirable.
Sir Terry Wogan has left a legacy in broadcasting but also in the world of European music.
For decades, we’d hear his comforting tones as the acts
performed on European music’s big night – and he wasn’t afraid of speaking
his mind.
The costumes, the key change, the ‘nil pois’ – he’d give
unforgettable lines, at exactly the right time.
It’s commendable to see the reaction of the Eurovision
world. In his time as contest commentator and host of the shows to find the UK’s
act, he’d firmly placed himself as a member of the family.
Competition is forgotten at times like this, and as you have
may have seen on social media and in the news, the European community has
joined the line to pay tribute to a master of his trade.
Sir Terry Wogan has been a huge inspiration to me, and one I’ll
never forget. His work helped show me why I might like working in radio – and
he’s inspired many others too.
I’ve shared my thoughts, but we’d like to hear from you.
We’re
putting together a special tribute programme and we’d like to know your favourite
moments of Sir Terry’s from the Eurovision Song Contest – and beyond.
He’s
touched so many lives and I’m sure he’s brought a smile to your face on many
occasions.
You can share your memories on our Facebook or Twitter pages.
I’ll leave the final words of my tribute to Jeremy Vine, who
shared this amazing image today:
Last week we released the new episode of The Euro Trip. Don't miss out on your chance to listen to brand new music from great artists, including Serbian legend Zeljko Zoksimovic.
There's also the European Music Chart - and Eurovision National Final season is well underway!
This
weekend, the island of Malta hosted their annual competition to select their
entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2016. 20 songs made it to the live heats,
14 qualified for Saturday’s final, and after the 14 tracks and A LOT of adverts
(had a sudden craving for Greek yoghurt mid show because of it) Ira Losco and
her song “Chameleon” won and she will be flying the flag for Malta in Sweden,
just like she did in 2002.
Ira won with
68 out of a possible 72 points on offer from the televote and five juries, with
Brooke coming in second place with 58 points. Third place went to Franklin and
“Little Love” with 44 points, knocking other pre show favourite – Christabelle
and “Kingdom” down into fourth with only 38 points.
Ira has not
decided whether or not Chameleon will receive a revamp or a tweak before May,
but somehow would not be disregarded, a little power of explosion into the
chorus would be minor but translate and elevate the song so much higher. Despite
my favourite Christabelle failing to advance to Eurovision, I believe Ira Losco
is a good choice, even taking away her star name and power in Malta. The song
itself is still original and unique, she sings it well and is a seasoned
performer which will play to strengths.
Ira's latest album is out later this year.
I do not
however feel her being an ex-Eurovision entrant will bring any added advantage
in performance or voting, with Kalipoi (Macedonia) and Deen (Bosnia &
Herzegovina) already confirmed for a second go on the Eurovision merry go-round
and with Donny Montell currently competing in Lithuania's selection, Kailly
Saunders in Hungary and Greta Salome in Iceland’s she will be just one of a
list of ex competitors.
My favourite
of the entire selection was Kingdom, I love the beat, the melody and the power
of the song, I loved the energy and pure attack she gave and delivered in the
final, Christabelle was ready to fight for her spot and you could see that from
the way she moved on stage to her glaring facial expressions, it’s a shame she
did not walk away with the title this time but you never know – maybe 2017. On
a whole I think the standard of songs was good, everyone elevated and improved
for the final, making a good show to watch even from a neutrals point of view.
But now let us look at what Rob and Emily think about Ira Losco heading to
Stockholm for Malta.
Rob
“I hope Ira
sticks with Chameleon for Eurovision! It's such a great powerful song, and it'd
be great to see them in the final again”
Emily
“I think Ira
is a good choice for Malta. We know she's a talented performer, but we can't
rely on how well she did over 10 years ago to determine how well she'll do this
year. Chameleon has potential to be even bigger and better in my opinion”
So a lot of
hope and promise for the Maltese camp this year, will Ira succeed where Amber
failed and qualify for the grand final? Who knows? But we shall find out in a
few months’ time. But on a closing point I will say this
– Ira needs to enlist Brooke’s stylist for Stockholm, as the white cape and
hooded outfit was not a winner in my eyes.
Tonight sees Belarus select their entry for Stockholm. The eastern nation missed out on a place in last year's final, with the violin-tastic Uzari and Maimuna failing to qualify from the first semi-final.
This year ten acts will compete in the final, with only one winning the right to represent Belarus at Eurovision this year. Our Editor Rob Lilley has been listening to the songs, and below gives us his top ten;
Rankings
1) Kirill Yermanok - "Running to the Sun"
2) Napoli - "My Universe"
3) Alexey Gross - "Flame"
4) Band Navi - "This Land"
5) Valerie Sadovskaya - "Not Alone"
6) Anastasiya Malashkevic - "Pray for Love"
7) The Em - "Turn Around"
8) Sasha Sakharik - "Glory Night"
9) Radiovolna - "Don't Get Crazy"
10) Alexander Ivanov - "How to Fly"
"In all honestly, this is a really weak final. Only Napoli and Kirill stand a chance of potentially making the Grand Final, and even then I'd be fairly surprised if that happened. Come on Belarus, you've shown us in the past you can do much better than this." - Rob
On Sunday, after three long Sundays of “Eurosong” Belgium
finally selected their representative for Stockholm 2016. Miss Laura Tesoro
emerged victorious, edging out favourite (going by social media buzz) Tom
Franztis, and now I am here to dissect the good, the bad and the downright
bizzare of this year’s Eurosong.
Firstly let’s discussion the selection night itself, I felt
the show moved at an equal, smooth pace for the most part, the critique after
each song wasn’t too long winded or invalid and it totally had the Eurovision
feel to it. Secondly all the artists raised their game, not just in the sense
that full staging was allowed, but you could see this was their last chance to
impress and went full out to win those all important points for victory.
One point I got somewhat confused by was the following;
after each act finished we saw them leave the stage and sit back on the sofa
for them, however after the final act – Amaryllis performed, a flurry of
streamers and confetti fell down onto and around her, looking like she had won
almost and not just simply finished her and going back for a sit down.
Negatives have to be firstly the superfinal – there were so many holes in it
and it almost was pointless having it. After the initially voting, the top two
– Tom and Laura were brought on stage for the “Super Final” we knew the phone
lines would reopen, what we (or more so I) didn’t know it that it would be for
literally sixty seconds and the acts did not perform again.
I felt this gave no time for any fair result to reached, if
they were solely going to use the votes from the Super Final, or any chance for
the originally televote result to be overturned if they were still a factor,
also the speed of it, again a literally minute had passed since the lines
closed again and they had the result in their hand – does Belgium have a worlds
fastest super computer to tally and verify the votes and we don’t know it?
Now to go down one by one of each finalist and their
performance.
I felt Adil for opening the show did a good job, he sang
well, the smoke on the floor and the dark lighting gave it a nice atmosphere
and the camera angles were nice, I did however feel a little bored by the end
of it and I was more distracted by the dancers, covered head to toe in bright
neon coloured aluminous paint, it stood out but also became distracting which
made the song itself forgettable.
Laura was the clear winner on the night
Up next was Laura – who I think has been watching the
British X Factor and here’s why; take 2014 X Factor runner up Fleur East’s
performance of Uptown Funk, lower the budget on staging, the sex appeal and
power in the vocals and hey look! Laura’s song “What’s The Pressure” is left.
She performed her best and could see tried every trick and dance move she had,
but too me it came off at times desperate and too much.
Tom followed Laura, my personal favourite heading into the
night and I believe he still did a stellar job, he calmed down from the week
before, no big grinning or laughing this week and delivered a serious performance,
simplistic staging with just himself under a spotlight, a guitarist and
drummer, which after the bravado of the first two songs was welcomed.
Astrid was fourth on the night, and like Tom she sang very
well in my opinion, didn’t seem to miss any notes or have any trouble, however
the whole stage and performance seemed boring! Her dancers were on something
else with some of their dancing and she received the harshest comment of the
night when Christopher Bjorkmann referred it to an “Interval Act” and “being
missed in a contest of 43 songs” which I agree with, and judging by Astrid’s
face when the comments were made, she was not too pleased about that.
Finally Amaryllis closed the show, and boy, did they leave
the strangest to last! Her staging looked like she had decided it after
watching a Bates Motel marathon, from the old patterned styled dressed to the
old authentic looking chairs and lampsahdes surrounding, followed by a giant
spider web rising behind her, then the web dropping and lampshades swinging
around her! Yeah picture all that in three minutes. For me it was all too
distracting form a poor song actually sang incredibly well by a very good
singer. I hope Amaryllis does return next year with someone suited as a ballad
to showcase how amazing her voice is.
Overall I think Laura is a not a bad choice for Belgium,
she’s young and her youthful look and energy could do Belgium some good but I
do see this as a borderline qualifier in the semi-finals, but Belgium have
spoken and decided and now they, like us will have to wait and see what happens
in May.
So finally we have news! The BBC have announced that they'll be holding a National Final to select the UK's entry for Eurovision on 26th February. We've known since September that the public would have a say in the song representing us in Stockholm, but this is the first time we've known what form this would take.
There's loads of interesting stuff to talk about when it comes to the way the National Final, and even when it comes to Eurovision on the BBC as a whole. For example we now know that both the National Final and the Eurovision Semi-Finals will be shown on digital channel BBC Four. While former home BBC Three will no longer be on our televisions by then, this marks a stark change of pace when it comes to how the BBC choose to broadcast their Eurovision output.
Electro Velvet finished 24th in Vienna last year.
Known for documentaries and high brow programming, we will definitely have a new demographic having an influence on our choice of Eurovision entry. No bad thing in my opinion. For me it also gives hope that the UK will no longer portray Eurovision as some sort of cheesy joke. While the rest of Europe dismiss our attempts of Eurovision glory as nothing more than a weak gimmick, countries like Belgium (in 2015) have shown what is actually possible when thought and planning goes into an entry.
Another thing...where's Graham Norton? The supposed face of Eurovision on the BBC has been replaced as the host of the National Final by last year's semi final co-host Mel Giedroyc. She was a fan favourite during the broadcasts, and appears to have nudged ahead of Scott Mills when it comes to the first choice back up for Graham.
Giedroyc is know for hosting Great British Bake Off
The venue for the National Final is also something of interest. The artists competing to represent the UK will not be performing in a plain and characterless BBC studio, but interest find themselves in the much more intimate environment of The O2 Forum in London's Kentish Town. Another good decision for me, as we'll be able to get a good idea of how the competitors react to a live audience, something they'll definitely have to get used to if successful.
The stage is set for the United Kingdom to perform well in this year's contest. With hardcore Eurovision fans having already had a say in the shortlist for the final, we should have six high quality songs battling it out for the ticket to Stockholm.
Well done to the BBC, you've restored our faith in you.
Rob
UPDATE - Since publishing we know now that the six songs competing to represent the United Kingdom will be premiered on Ken Bruce's Radio 2 show on Monday 22nd February 2016.
Rob, Emily and Tom take a look ahead to this weekend's
Belgian Eurosong Final, as they declare who they'll be supporting on Sunday.
#TEAMADIL
ROB
While most people (as you'll see later in this post) are supporting Tom,
there's something about Adil and his song 'In Our Nature' which has won me
round. Firstly I think he has an excellent stage presence, and showed this
during last week's show. The way he interacts with the audience and reflects
the emotion of the song isn't a million miles away from Loic in 2015.
The there's the vocal...wow! His voice is haunting in its power, especially in
the opening few lines of the song. For me this song is Belgium's wildcard
choice, one which will either bomb in Stockholm, or continue their improved
form in the contest.
Tom is the easy choice, and for me it's Adil who deserves the ticket to
Eurovision.
#TEAMTOM
EMILY
From listening to the snippets and the full live songs over the weekend, I’d
love to see Tom win Eurosong. His song is very modern, gets stuck in my head
and personally I believe that the only competition he has is Laura, who has a
similar pop modern song, and although Laura won the pointless televote on the
last Eurosong show, I think Tom has a good chance of winning through the power
of his stage performance, and “I’m Not Lost” is vocally perfect on stage.
Comparing it to other National Finals, I think this is the same quality as
something you’d see on more “popular” shows such as Melodifestivalen as it’s a lovely
pop number. I’m Team Tom!
ELLIOT
This Saturday the Belgian national selection, Eurosong comes
to an end and at times it has felt like a very long three weeks, but with the
five competing songs fully released now, I have made a reason and justification
as for who in my mind should represent Belgium in Stockholm.
First and foremost following their high placing of 4th last
year, it is very unlikely any of the five acts will replicate that feat, I
however have got my winner of Eurosong locked in and who I will be rooting for
– Tom.
Being honest I thought after his first performance, he was
bottom and was curtains for Tom, but when he brought out his own song “I’m Not
Lost” he was the winner for me, no second guessing, so maybe yes maybe no.
The reason I love Tom and his song so much is everything works, from his look
on stage down to the melody of the song and the performance, it reminds a lot
of something One Republic would produce and release. The chorus is catchy and
sticks in my mind, for me it is the most memorable song from the selection and
for me if it goes to Stockholm. I can see this going to the final, maybe not
placing in top ten or top fifteen, but still in the final nonetheless.
Don't forget to let us know who you'll be supporting on Sunday, tweet us your favourite to @theeuro_trip.
After years of selecting their entry through a national final on the famous Late Late Show, Ireland have switched things up for 2016.
A series of poor results mean that Ireland have decided an internal selection is their best method by which to choose their entry for Stockholm, and the man they've decided holds their best hopes of Eurovision glory - ex Westlife singer Nicky Byrne.
His selection many not come as a surprise. We were one of a number of outlets to report that he may be the Irish entry as recently as last week, the decision making sense for both RTE and Nicky Bryne himself. The contest will be a great chance for him to launch a solo career across Europe, and he'll be hoping Eurovision can do for him what it did for the popularity of infamous twins Jedward.
But what do our 'experts' think of the song?
ROB:
"I'm really not sure how this one will be received by the rest of Europe. Don't get me wrong, it's a huge improvement on recent years, but the song is SO cheesy. We've seen over recent years that songs in the contest have got more complex and tasteful, just look at Belgium 2015 as an example. I think it'll qualify, but fail to impress in the final."
ELLIOT:
"Nicky is a fantastic choice. He's a world renowned performer and lover of Eurovision too, it's also a great song. It's very cheesy but that could work in his favour. We've seen people say that we need the cheese to come back to Eurovision!"
EMILY:
"A great performer, the song is cheesy but I love it!"
So what do you think? Tweet us now @theeuro_trip and let us know.
We're back for 2016, and with the usual mix of brand new music and Eurovision stuff. There's new music from Germany, Italy and Poland - plus the European Music Chart.
As ever there's plenty of Eurovision news to talk about, including Belgium's EuroSong, and the Maltese National Selection. Enjoy, and don't forget to find us on Twitter and Instagram too!
