Eurovision Belgrad 2008

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2008-03-14T06:56:00.001-07:00

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2008-03-14T06:53:00.001-07:00

Eurovision 2008 - Albania

2008-03-03T07:02:00.000-08:00

Zemrën lamë peng
Olta Boka

Music: Adrian Hila
Lyrics: Pandi Laco

History (1956 to 2007):

Albania's previous appearances: 4 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 2004-
Best result: 7th (2004)

Albania entered Eurovision for the first time in 2004, and defied the sceptics by doing much better than many had expected. Anjeza Shahini and her song of 'The image of you' finished an impressive 4th in the Semi Final, easily qualifying for the Final where it finished 7th. As a result, Albania enjoyed the advantage of a guaranteed place in the Final for 2005. Sticking to what seemed like a winning formula, Albania chose another shouty woman (Ledino Celo) singing an energetic song in English ('Tomorrow I go'). The resulting 16th place with 53 points (including what risks becoming a customary exchange of high marks with Greece and Macedonia) was no disgrace, but it lacked the sweet charm of Anjeza's effort the year before. The result saw Albania having to take part in the 2006 Semi Final, where hopes rested on the 20-year-old Luiz Ejlli and the song 'Zjarr e ftohtë'. However, Luiz's decent performance and 14th place was not enough, meaning that Albania must once again take part in the Semi Final in 2007.

In 2007 Albania was represented by Frederik Ndoci and his wife Aida.

This year's entry:

My prediction & opinioin:

This year’s entry from Albania is a beautiful ballad, that reminds of Molitva, and it will remind the Romanians of Shine (2nd place in their NF). The vocal is strong, and with all the comedy in the night it can go all the way.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 1st to 3rd
My prediction for the Final: Definite qualifier; 1st to 4th, possible winner

Eurovision 2008 - Andorra

2008-03-03T07:01:00.001-08:00

Casanova
Gisela

History (1956 to 2007):

Andorra's previous appearances: 4 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 2004-
Best result: 12th in Semi (2007)

A tiny principality tucked between France and Spain in the Pyrenees, Andorra made its first ever appearance at Eurovision in 2004. As a new entrant, Andorra had to participate in the Semi Final; unfortunately, Marta Roure feel well short, only mustering 18th place in the Semi Final for her song 'Jugarem a estimar-nos'. Indeed, had it not been for 12 points from Spain, Andorra would have had the ignominy of scoring nothing at all.

Nevertheless, Andorra came back for another go in 2005, this time aiming to secure points from the Netherlands as well by sending the Dutch-born singer, Marian van de Wal. Her song, 'La mirada interieur', was very good, and benefited from a strong performance, but it was still not enough to secure more than 27 points and 23rd place, despite predictable support from the Spanish and Dutch televoters. Normal service resumed in 2006, with Jenny's 'Sense tu' managing to pick up 8 points from Spain but nothing from anybody else. After a dismal record so far, but plenty of plucky enthusiam, Andorra will assume its customary place in the 2007 Semi Final.

In 2007 Andorra was represented by the group Anonymous, finishinging 14th in the Semi Final.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

This year Andorra will be represented by Gisela who is far the most beautiful girl in the contest. This song is my favorite, I’ll vote for it in the Semi Final, and I hope in the Final as well. Overall, I don’t see it winning.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 8th to 12th
My prediction for the Final: Possible qualifier; 10th to 12th

Eurovision 2008 - Armenia

2008-03-03T07:00:00.001-08:00

Qele Qele
Sirusho

Music: Sirusho
Lyrics: Sirusho

History (1956 to 2007):

Armenia's previous appearances: 2 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 2006-
Best result: 8th (2006, 2007)

Armenia made its first appearance at Eurovision in 2006, where Andre's 'Without your love' successfully negotiated the Semi Final before settling in an impressive 8th place in the Final. As a result, Armenia finds itself directly qualified for the Final in 2007.

In 2007 Armenia was represented by Hayko finising 8th again.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

This year Armenia sends an oriental-folk catchy song. I don’t know what to say about this entry. I like the song and Sirusho is hot.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 8th to 12th
My prediction for the Final: Likely qualifier; 8th to 12th

Eurovision 2008 - Azerbaidjan

2008-03-03T06:30:00.000-08:00

Day after day
Elnur Hüseynov & Samir Javadzadeh

History (1956 to 2007):

Azerbaidjan's previous appearances: 0 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: None
Best result: N/A

Following in the footsteps of its Caucasian neighbours Armenia and Georgia, Azerbaidjan makes its first Eurovision appearance in 2008.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

Azerbaidjan makes its debut in Eurovision, sending a song that looks more like a theatre act than a song. Three angels and three devils will be performing on stage; more talking than singing (I blame it again on those Lithuanians from 2006).

My prediction for the Semi Final: 14th to 18th
My prediction for the Final: Will not qualify

Eurovision 2008 - Belarus

2008-03-02T10:08:00.000-08:00

Hasta la vista
Ruslan Alekhno

History (1956 to 2007):

Belarus's previous appearances: 4 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 2004-
Best result: 6th (2007)

Belarus was one of four countries participating for the first time in 2004, but while some of the newcomers did very well (Serbia & Montenegro in 2nd, Albania in 7th), Belarus unfortunately did very badly, 'My Galileo' finishing 19th in the Semi Final with just 10 points.

Undeterred, the country came back for another go in 2005, its entry one of the big stories of that year's Contest. To start with, the Belarussian broadcaster caused a bit of a stir by ditching the song that televoters had chosen, having been alarmed at the critical reaction to the song - 'Boys and girls', performed by Angelica Agurbash - among fans. It thus went ahead and commisioned a new song for Angelica, 'Love me tonight', from the team responsible for Sakis' 'Shake it' in 2004 - the Greek duo Nikos Terzis and Nektarios Tyrakis. With a promotional budget that allowed Angelica to visit an incredible 16 countries prior to the Contest, the Belarussian's clearly thought that their qualification to the Final was sewn up. Unfortunately, Belarus' 2005 experience proved that vast amounts of promotion and hype are of little value if your chosen performer is unable to carry a tune. Despite one of the campest performances Eurovision had ever seen, the televoters were generally unimpressed, 67 points and 13th place falling some way short of what was required.

Undeterred, the enthusiastic Belarussians came back for another go in 2006, where - unusually - Polina Smolova got to perform the song that she had actually won the national final with, though only after its title had morphed from 'Mama' to 'Ma' and finally to 'Mum'. However, 'Pah!' might have been a more apt ode to European sentiment, with all but Russia, Moldova and Ukraine ignoring the song completely. Marooned in the Semi Final for the fourth successive year in 2007, Belarus will be hoping that some of its success in the Junior Eurovision (Kseniya winning it in 2005 and 2007) can finally rub off on the adults.

Last year Belarus got 4 the 1st time in the final finishing 6th with Koldun.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

It’s a good entry for Belarus, but comparing to last year I don’t think it would do much.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 8th to 11th
My prediction for the Final: Possible qualifier; 14th to 16th

Eurovision 2008 - Belgium

2008-03-02T10:04:00.000-08:00

O julissi na jalini
Ishtar

Music: Michel Vangheluwe
Lyrics: Micel Vangheluwe

History (1956 to 2007):

Belgium's previous appearances: 49 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1956-1993; 1995-1996; 1998-2000; 2002-
Best result: 1st (1986)

One of the original Eurovision entrants, Belgium had to wait thirty years before scoring its first victory in 1986. It did so with probably the most nauseating Eurovision winner ever, 'J'aime la vie', performed with horrific gusto by 13-year-old Sandra Kim. Watching the 1986 Contest as a 12-year-old, I was staggered that what I felt was the weakest song in the whole show had triumphed, beating superior efforts by Switzerland's Daniella Simons and the fabulous Doris Dragović for Yugoslavia - two decades later, my feelings haven't changed. Fortunately, the EBU has since decreed that all Eurovision entrants must be aged 16 or over, while those who are underage now have their own Junior Eurovision to take part in.

Looking at Belgium's record since 1986, the country may have to wait another thirty years before its next victory. Following its Eurovision win, no further top ten places were forthcoming until 1998, when Melanie Cohl managed 6th place with the likeable 'Dis oui'. However, this flash of success was not sustained, with Vanessa Chinitor only managing a mid-table 12th in 1999. The following year, Natalie Sorce sang the unfortunately titled 'Envie de vivre', or 'Desire to live'; the song wasn't that terrible, but by the end of her performance most of Europe had certainly lost the 'Envie de vivre', and it finished last with just 2 points. 2001's song, 'Sister', did better, but even that stalled in 13th place. Urban Trad's excellent result with 'Sanomi' in 2003 certainly gave Belgium a welcome boost, not only coming within a whisker of winning, but also affording the country its first top five placing since Sandra Kim's 1986 victory. It was seemingly a blip, however, with the highly-tipped Xandee and '1 life' - directly qualified for the Final - causing one of the shocks of 2004 by finishing 22nd with just 7 points. Nevertheless, it was the year's bestselling song in Flanders (and a hit elsewhere in Europe), once again proving the 'Gina G rule' that a chart hit does not necessarily translate into Eurovision glory.

Unfortunately for Belgium, Xandee's poor result meant that the country had to compete in the 2005 Semi Final to stand a chance of appearing in Saturday's Contest proper. Its chosen song, 'Le grand soir' by Nuno Resende, was an old-fashioned French ballad that most people wrote off from the start. Sadly, the lack of enthusiasm for the song was well-placed, Nuno limping to 22nd place despite a stunning vocal performance on the night.

Of course, Belgium is unusual in that two separate broadcasters have responsibility for choosing the country's Eurovision entries, with French-language RTBF and Flemish VRT taking part in alternate years. Though Belgium's overall record is not terribly impressive, it does disguise the contrasting success of RTBF and VRT, with the former being responsible for almost all the country's best results, including 'J'aime la vie', 'Dis oui' and 'Sanomi'. Indeed, you have to go back to 1977 to find the last occasion that a Flemish entry finished in the top ten at Eurovision. 2006 was VRT's turn, yet there was much optimism that Kate Ryan - riding high in the fan polls - could deliver a great result with 'Je t'adore'. It was a strong song, but sadly Kate fell at the first hurdle, failing to make it out of the Semi Final thanks to a combination of poor vocals, overelaborate choreography and ropey camerawork. As a result, Belgium must once again try and secure that elusive top ten Semi Final placing if it is to progress any further.

In 2007 Belgium was represented by The KMG's failing to qualifi to the Final.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

No, Belgium. It won’t work the 2nd time. In 2003 you where represented by Urban Trad singing a song in an imaginary language, and you got 2nd place. This year you are sending another song in an imaginary language.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 17th to 19th
My prediction for the Final: Will not qualify

Eurovision 2008 - Bosnia & Herzegovina

2008-03-02T10:02:00.000-08:00

Pokušaj
Elvir Laković Laka

History (1956 to 2007):

Bosnia-Herzegovina's previous appearances: 13 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1993-1997; 1999; 2001-
Best result: 3rd (2006)

While its ex-Yugoslav neighbours, Croatia and Slovenia, have regularly finished in the top ten at Eurovision, Bosnia's record has tended to be less impressive; however, given the country's conflict, still ongoing at the time of Bosnia's first appearance in 1993, its very participation was poignant and welcome.

Bosnia was marooned in the mid-teens for much of the 90s - 16th in 1993, 15th in 1994, 14th in 1995 and 13th in 1996, before falling back again to 22nd in 1997. Missing 1998 through relegation, the country did surprisingly well in 1999 when Dino and Beatrice hit the heights of 7th place with 'Putnici', performed in a combination of Bosnian and French. Unfortunately, the system of calculating each country's five year average meant that Bosnia had to miss 2000's contest, before resuming normal service with a 14th place in 2001, 13th in 2002, and 16th in 2003.

With the fabulous Deen and 'In the disco' finishing an impressive 9th in 2004, Bosnia deservedly found itself directly qualified for the 2005 Final, where Feminnem's 14th place for 'Call me' signalled a return to the usual form. In 2006, however, Hari Mata Hari sailed through the Semi Final with ease, his beuatiful song 'Lejla' finishing up with 229 points and 3rd place in the Final - Bosnia's best ever placing. Needless to say, the country is now directly qualified for the 2007 Final.

In 2007 Bosnia & Herzegovina was represented by Marija Šestić, finishing 11th.

This year's entry:

My prediction & opinion:

This entry is strange; it reminds me of the Romanian singer Ada Milea.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 18th to 20th
My prediction for the Final: Will not qualify

Eurovision 2008 - Bulgaria

2008-03-02T09:48:00.000-08:00

DJ, Take me away
Deep Zone & Balthazar

History (1956 to 2007):

Bulgaria's previous appearances: 3 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 2005-
Best result: 5th (2007)

Bulgaria made its first appearance at Eurovision in 2005, with Kaffe's song 'Lorrain' failing to make much of an impression. Nevertheless, having languished at the wrong end of most fan polls, the song came over surprisingly strongly live, and its 49 points and 19th place in the Semi Final was better than many had expected. There was some speculation that the poor result might dissuade Bulgaria from taking part again, but happily the country came back for another go in 2006, with the beautiful Mariana Popova singing 'Let me cry'. The song was stunning, and Mariana gave a powerful vocal performance. However, 17th place, though an improvement on the year before, was still not enough to secure a place in the Final. As a result, Bulgaria finds itself in the Semi Final for the third successive year.

In 2007 Bulgaria got its best result in the ESC, 5th place with Elitsa & Stoyan, singing a fresh song called ,,Wather”.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

Yes! Somebody broke the ice and sent a fresh house - elektro song. This song is one of my favorites and I’m almost sure It’s going to win the ESC. I think we should buy tickets for Sofia next year.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 1st to 2nd
My prediction for the Final: Definite qualifier; 1st to 2nd, possible winner

Eurovision 2008 - Croatia

2008-03-02T08:45:00.000-08:00

Romanca
Kraveli Ulice & 75 cents

History (1956 to 2007):

Croatia's previous appearances: 15 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1993-
Best result: 4th (1996, 1999)

While never challenging for victory as an independent nation, Croatia is a consistently solid performer at Eurovision - it is the only one of the east European newcomers not to miss a contest due to relegation, managing a continuous run of entries from 1993 to date. Furthermore, Yugoslavia's 1989 winners, Riva, hailed from what is now Croatia, with the 1990 contest held in Zagreb's Vatroslav Lisinki Hall - perhaps we will return there if Croatia ever wins Eurovision under its own flag.

After a dodgy start to its Eurovision career in 1993, Croatia has been in the top ten more often than not, finishing 6th in 1995, 4th in 1996 (after an early lead in the voting), 5th in 1998, 4th in 1999 with the statuesque Doris (though points were retrospectively deducted for using recorded backing vocals), 9th in 2000, and 10th in 2001 - 1997's disappointing 17th place was the only blip in Croatia's form.

The country has slipped a little in the last few years, managing 11th in 2002, 15th in 2003, 13th in 2004 and 11th again in 2005. Nevertheless, the results of the last two years were better than many had expected prior to the Contest.

In 2004, few people rated Ivan Mikulić's chances in the run-up to the Semi Final; consequently, securing a place in the Final, ahead of the more highly fancied Denmark and Finland, was one of the night's big surprises. Indeed, Ivan's 13th place in the Contest proper with 'You are the only one' was nearly good enough to secure direct entry to the 2005 Final; unfortunately, tying on points with Malta with only one place in the Final left, Malta went through by virtue of gaining points from a greater number of countries.

As a result, Croatia once again found itself participating in the Semi Final in 2005, this time with Boris Novković's 'Vukovi umiru sami'; and once again, the country did much better than expected, easily qualifying for the Semi Final with 169 points and 4th place, including high scores from places as unlikely as Austria, Switzerland and Sweden. Unfortunately, despite an enthusiastic performance, Boris was unable to maintain this momentum in the Final, falling behind many of the other qualifying Semi Finalists to finish with 115 points and 11th place. Frustratingly, this meant that for the second year in succession, Croatia fell one place short of directly qualifying for the next year's Final, and was therefore expecting to participate in the Semi Final in 2006. However, with Serbia & Montenegro's late withdrawal freeing up a space in Saturday's show, Croatia benefits from its neighbour's discomfort and secures direct entry to the Final after all - a deserved reward after missing out so narrowly twice in a row.

In 2006 Croatia was reprsented by the folk singer Severina (the one with the sex-tape scandal), and in 2007 by Dragonfly & Dado Topic.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

What? A romance sanged by an old man? I don’t like this song, I thought Croatia takes Eurovision seriously, but now I changed my opinion.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 16th to 20th
My prediction for the Final: Will not qualify

Eurovision 2008 - Cyprus

2008-03-02T08:29:00.000-08:00

Femme fatale
Evdokia Kadi

History (1956 to 2007):

Cyprus's previous appearances: 25 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1981-1987; 1989-2000; 2002-
Best result: 5th (1982, 1997, 2004)

Cyprus has a mixed record at Eurovision - most entries have either done very well (top ten) or very badly (the bottom few places), with little in between. The televoting era has not been particularly kind to Cyprus, with 6th place in 2002 and 5th in 2004 the only rewards among generally unimpressive results - 11th in 1998, 22nd in 1999, 21st in 2000, 20th in 2003 and 18th in 2005. 1999's result was made worse by the fact that Marlain's 'Tha nai erotas' was one of the pre-contest favourites - indeed, with a strong, modern song and good performance I'm still puzzled at why it did quite so badly. Unfortunately for Cyprus, Greece was absent that year; otherwise, 'Tha nai erotas' would have gained a slightly better 14 points, instead of the 2 it actually got. In 2003, Stelios Konstantas might have been 'Feeling alive', but most of Europe wasn't by the end of his performance. He mustered only 15 points, 12 of those from Greece and 2 from Malta, who can always be guaranteed to vote strangely.

Fortunately, Lisa Andreas brought some class to the proceedings in 2004 with her beautiful ballad, 'Stronger every minute' - though its 5th place was an excellent result, it was perhaps less than it truly deserved, the outstanding song and performance surely representing Cyprus' strongest ever contender. Nevertheless, it was quite enough to secure Cyprus a place in the 2005 Final, where Eurovision veteran Constantinos sought to better his already impressive tally of 8th and 6th places in 1996 and 2002 respectively (the latter as a member of the group One). However, it was not to be - despite an energetic performance by Constantinos and the presence of Elina Konstantopoulou (GR 1995) as guest vocalist, 'Ela ela' could only manage 18th place, meaning that Cyprus must participate in the Semi Final in 2006.

In 2006 Cyprus was represented by Annette Artani, while in 2007 Evridiki got the ticket to
Helsinki.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

It’s hard to say what will happen, it’s not a good song, but not even a bad song, is somewhere in the middle.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 10th to 12th
My prediction for the Final: Unlikely to qualify; 18th to 20th

Eurovision 2008 - Czech Republic

2008-03-02T08:09:00.000-08:00

Have some fun
Tereza Kerndlová

Music: Gordon Pogoda, Stano Simor
Lyrics: Gordon Pogoda, Stano Simor

History (1956 to 2007):

Czech Republic's previous appearances: 1 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 2007
Best result: 28th in Semi (2007)

Czech Republic was reprsented by the rock band Kabát, finishing last in theSemi Final and getting only one point

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

Yes, Czech Republic, thank you for sending a good summer song after last year’s failure. The song is good, catchy, a summer heat that you would hear on the beach, not a winner but can get Czech Republic for the 1st time in the Final. I hope next year you’ll send the fabulous Vera Spinarova.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 9th to 12th
My prediction for the Final: Possible qualifier; 11th to 14

Eurovision 2008 - Denmark

2008-03-02T07:52:00.001-08:00

All night long
Simon Mathew

Music: Jacob Launbjerg, Svend Gudiksen, Nis Bogvad
Lyrics: Jacob Launbjerg, Svend Gudiksen, Nis Bogvad

History (1956 to 2007):

Denmark's previous appearances: 36 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1957-1966; 1978-1993; 1995; 1997; 1999-2002; 2004-
Best result: 1st (1963, 2000)

With a 37 year gap between its wins in 1963 and 2000, Denmark holds the record for the longest period between successive Eurovision victories. Austria will manage to take the record if it ever wins again, though the prospects of that happening are fairly remote now that broadcaster ORF has withdrawn from the Contest all together.

Since televoting, Denmark has seen highs and lows. The country missed the 1998 contest due to relegation, but did better than it deserved with the painful 'This time I mean it' in 1999, which finished 8th. In 2000, Denmark strolled to a surprising victory with the Olsen Brothers' 'Fly on the wings of love'. As usual, the single was a hit everywhere apart from the UK, though ironically, XTM's dance cover was a UK smash in 2003 - purists might not have liked it, but it was a great example of a cover version managing to do something completely different to the original. Denmark almost won again in 2001, with the enjoyable 'Never ever let you go', but it was down to earth with a bump in 2002 when Malene and 'Tell me who you are' finished last. Needless to say, Malta - always good at spotting an underdog - was among the few countries who gave it any points at all. To be fair, the song wasn't too bad, but Malene gave a tuneless, uncomfortable performance, proving just how much this can matter on the night. After that there was little for Denmark to cheer about - having had to miss 2003 through relegation, the country competed in the Semi Final in 2004, where Tomas Thordarson - widely regarded as having one of the year's better songs in 'Shame on you' - could only finish 13th, missing out on a place in the Contest proper.

With Denmark having to take part in the Semi Final in 2005, few people had high expectations for Jacob Sveistrup and his song 'Talking to you', with the bookies initially rating his chances of victory as 66-1, while voters in the Soult.com Eurovision Poll 2005 placed it 35th out of 39 songs. However, Denmark pulled off one of the year's surprises, a strong vocal performance from Jacob propelling his song to 3rd place in the Semi Final, and 10th in the Final - just enough to secure direct qualification to the 2006 Final.

In 2006 Denmark was represented by Sidsel Ben Semmane, and in 2007 by a drag queen called DQ.

This year's entry:

My prediction & opinion:

This year Denmark is sending a pop-folk song, the clothing of the singer is old-fashioned and the song is boring.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 14th to 16th
My prediction for the Final: Will not qualify

Eurovision 2008 - Estonia

2008-03-02T07:30:00.001-08:00

Leto svet
Kreisiraadio

History (1956 to 2007):

Estonia's previous appearances: 13 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1994; 1996-
Best result: 1st (2001)

Estonia has one of the best records of any of the east European newcomers that have appeared at Eurovision since 1993 - indeed, only Estonia (in 2001), Latvia (in 2002) and Ukraine (in 2004) have so far managed to win. Estonia got off to a terrible start when it scored just 2 points in 1994, spared last place only because Lithuania's début scored nothing at all. After missing the following year's contest due to relegation, Estonia bounced back in 1996 with a much improved 5th place, the start of a rather impressive run of results. With an 8th place in 1997, 12th in 1998 and 6th in 1999, it was surely only a matter of time before Estonia won the contest. Ines, with 'Once in a lifetime', was tipped for success in 2000, but had to be content with 4th.

When Estonia did win it caught everyone by surprise, the energetic 'Everybody', by Tanel Padar and Dave Benton, storming to a shock victory in 2001. Estonia came close to winning again the following year, but had to settle for 3rd with Sahlene's 'Runaway'.

Since 2003, however, Estonia has had a terrible run of form. A disappointing 21st place for Ruffus and 'Eighties coming back' in 2003 provoked much consternation and gnashing of teeth. In truth, it was a fantastic song, and while Estonia's Baltic neighbours gave it short shrift, the UK (3 points) and Ireland (8 points) gave it the appreciation it deserved. Perhaps Ruffus, with their retro outfits and sharp lyrics, were just too ironic for most Eurovision televoters. Whatever the reason, Estonia found itself in the Semi Final in 2004, where the unusual 'Tii' - performed in an obscure Estonian dialect by a sackcloth-clad, Baltic version of Girls Aloud - finished a tantalising 12th. Subsequent efforts - Suntribe's 'Let's get loud' in 2005 and Sandra Oxenryd's 'Through my window' in 2006 - both failed to appeal to the televoters, ensuring that Estonia must once again participate in the Semi Final in 2007. The fact that Estonia is one of only six countries - the others being perennial under-achievers Andorra, Belarus, Monaco, Portugal and Slovenia - to have failed to qualify from any of the three Semi Finals held so far, is a sad reflection of how much the country's Eurovision star has waned.

In 2007 Estonia was represented by Gerli Padar, the sister of the 2001 winner Tanel.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

Another comedy act, how many of this can Europe support in one night?; and all this is happening because of those stupid Lithuanians (Lithuania – 2006). This song has the bad luck of entering in the same Semi Final with Dustin the Turkey, so it won’t do much. The lyrics in Serbian (that mean nothing) where seen as a sign of goodwill towards the host country, whereas others have seen it as disrespectful.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 18th to 20th
My prediction for the Final: Will not qualify

Eurovision 2008 - Finland

2008-03-02T05:48:00.000-08:00

Missä miehet ratsastaa
Teräsbetoni

Finland's previous appearances: 41 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1961-1969; 1971-1994; 1996; 1998; 2000; 2002; 2004-
Best result: 1st (2006)

For a country that's participated in Eurovision quite so many times, Finland really does have a dismal record. It has only once reached the heights of 6th place (even then over 30 years ago, in 1973, with the rather silly 'Tom tom tom'), and last managed a top ten placing in 1989. Worse, between 1994 and 2002, Finland had the distinction of only participating in the even-numbered years (94, 96, 98, 00, 02), having managed to get relegated on every occasion, with its 'highlight' being a 15th place in 1998.

Having missed 2003 through relegation, the Semi Final fomat introduced in 2004 has at least allowed Finland to take part every year, though not yet with much success to show for it. In 2004, the country could only manage 14th place with Jari Sillanpää and his disturbing dance moves, despite 'Takes 2 to tango' being quite highly rated prior to the Contest. Participating in the Semi Final again in 2005, Geir Rönning gave a classy performance of 'Why', but once again it was not enough to gain Finland that elusive place in the Final, meaning that the Semi Final beckons once again in 2006.

My opinion & prediction:

In 2006, Finland finally won the ESC, by sending Lordi.

In 2007 Finland was represented by Hanna Pakarinen.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

No, Finland. It won’t work the 2nd time; this song is more Kabat (Czech Republic 2007) style, not Lordi. This entry is definitely one of the bottom favorites.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 18th to 20th
My prediction for the Final: Will not qualify

Eurovision 2008 - France

2008-03-02T05:46:00.000-08:00

Divine
Sébastien Tellier

Music: Guy-Manuel de Hommen Christo
Lyrics: Guy-Manuel de Hommen Christo

History (1956 to 2007):

France's previous appearances: 51 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1956-1981; 1983-
Best result: 1st (1958, 1960, 1962, 1969, 1977)

France is one of Eurovision's most successful nations, winning on five occasions and appearing in all but one of the 49 contests to date. However, these statistics hide a stark contrast between the country's early form (with five victories in a 20 year period between 1958 and 1977) and its more recent performance. It is now nearly thirty years since France's last Eurovision victory; perhaps, more worryingly, Celine Dion in 1988 was the last time an artist representing any country won Eurovision with a song performed in French.

France ought to have won a deserved victory in 1991, when Amina performed the unusual and beautiful 'C'est le dernier qui a parlé qui a raison'. Unfortunately, France and Sweden were tied not only on points, but on the number of 'douze points' that both countries had received; in the end, Sweden's Carola clinched victory due to her entry receiving the highest number of second-placed 'dix points'. Today, the system is slightly different in that ties are resolved by counting the number of countries awarding an entry any points at all - interestingly, this rule would have delivered victory to France and Amina, given that her song received votes from 18 of the 21 other countries, compared to 17 for Sweden. Hindsight, I would suggest, has favoured France's entry; while Amina's song remains fresh and interesting, Carola's 'Fangad av en stormvind' sounds very much of its time.

Frustratingly, France has never come close to another victory, though it maintained an impressive run of top ten finishes in the early 1990s, before slumping to an undeserved 18th place for Dan Ar Braz's beautiful and unusual Breton-language 'Diwanit Bugale' in 1996. Subsequently, the country had to rely on its 'Big 4' status to avoid relegation, with poor results in 1998 (24th), 1999 (19th) and 2000 (23rd). More recently, France had a brief spell of doing well with Celine Dion-esque power ballads, finishing 4th in 2001 and 5th in 2002, though one senses that the country's dogged insistence on performing in French - beautiful language though it is - may not have helped its Eurovision prospects. The last four years have seen further disappointing results, with the pleasant but lightweight 'Monts et merveilles' finishing in 18th place in 2003; Jonatan Cerrada's 'A chaque pas' gaining a better 15th in 2004; Ortal's 'Chacun pense à soi' equalling the country's worst ever result by finishing 23rd with 11 points in 2005; and Virginie Pouchain's 'Il était temps' scoring even fewer points (5) but a marginally better placing (22nd) in 2006. Fortunately, being in the 'Big 4' means that France joins the UK, Germany and Spain - all under-achievers in both 2005 and 2006 - in qualifying for the Final anyway.

In 2007 France was represented by Les Fatals Picards.

This year's entry:

My prediction & opinion:

France is one of the countries with no worries; they will always be in the Final. This year’s entry makes me think about Bob Sinclair.

My prediction for the Semi Final: N/A
My prediction for the Final: 20th to 22th

Eurovision 2008 - Georgia

2008-03-02T05:21:00.000-08:00

Peace will come
Diana Gurtsyaka

Music: Kim Breidenburg, Karem Kavaliani
Lyrics: Kim Breidenburg, Karem Kavaliani

History (1956 to 2007):

Georgia's previous appearances: 1year(s) out of 51
Years participated: 2007-
Best result: 12th (2007)

Following in the footsteps of its Caucasian neighbours Armenia, Georgia makes its first Eurovision appearance in 2007, with Sopho Khalvashi singing ,,Visionary dream (My story)".

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

Georgia is sending a gentile ballad to Belgrad. The singer is BLIND but her vocals are strong.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 2nd to 5th
My prediction for the Final: Definite qualifier; 2nd to 5th, possible winner

Eurovision 2008 - Germany

2008-03-02T02:49:00.000-08:00

Disappear
No Angels

Music: Remee, Hanne Sorvaag, Thomas Troelsen
Lyrics: Remee, Hanne Sorvaag, Thomas Troelsen

History (1956 to 2007):

Germany's previous appearances: 51 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1956-1995; 1997-
Best result: 1st (1982)

Together with France, Germany has made more Eurovision appearances than any other country, participating in 49 of the 50 contests to date. The only gap is 1996, when the country failed to get through the pre-selection stage - the sole occasion that such a process has been used. Ironically, the intended German song was one of the best it has come up with in recent years, with Leon's hi-energy 'Planet of Blue' sounding modern and fresh compared to many of the German entries before or since. On the other hand, German displeasure at their unjust ejection helped precipitate the introduction of 'Big 4 ' status for Germany, France, Spain and the UK, thus preventing any of the 'big beast' Eurovision nations from missing out again.

Considering the number of occasions that Germany has appeared, its record of Eurovision success is unspectacular. The country has won just once, in 1982, but did so very easily with Nicole and her beautiful song 'Ein Bisschen Frieden'. As 'A Little Peace', the song went on to international success, including spending two weeks at No.1 in the UK. Scarily, that was the last time a Eurovision winner scored a UK No.1 - even Johnny Logan in 1987 and Katrina in 1997 had to make do with a No.2 and No.3 respectively.

Back to Germany, the country's recent record has been mixed. Returning in 1997 after its enforced absence the previous year, Bianca Shomburg's 'Zeit' was tipped to do well, but could only finish 18th. Trying something completely different, Germany sent Guildo Horn in 1998, memorable for him clambering all over the set if not for his singing talent. Still, it was great fun, and the televoters rewarded him with 7th place. Normal service resumed in 1999, with a song written by the prolific Ralph Siegel, the composer of Germany's winner in 1982, among many others. 'Reise nach Jerusalem' was sung in a mix of German, Turkish and English, and was probably the strongest German entry since Nicole; it came close to winning, but eventually had to be happy with 3rd place - not bad for a song that only got to represent its country when the original winner of the National Final (Corinna May's lovely 'Hör den kindern einfach zu') was disqualified as a result of being released by a different singer in 1997.

In 2000, Germany went for humour again, with Stefan Raab - who had written Guildo's song two years earlier - performing a song himself. Once again, it was well-rewarded, finishing 5th. Interestingly, Raab qualified for Eurovision ahead of Corinna May, back for another go with the powerful 'I believe in God', after her abortive effort the year before - however, finishing 2nd, she once again missed out on representing her country.

In 2001, Corinna May had a year off, and Germany sent Michelle, a helium-voiced singer who made 'Wer liebe lebt' sound like the theme from 'Alvin and the Chipmunks'. Still, someone must have liked it, as it finished 8th; perhaps it was a vote for originality, given the novelty of a song not written by Ralph Siegel or Stefan Raab?

After a good run of top ten places, hopes were high for victory in 2002, with Corinna May finally getting to go to Eurovision with an extremely strong song - 'I can't live without music' - once again written by Ralph Siegel. Though it was the pre-Contest favourite, the performance on the night just didn't work - it seemed awkward and stilted, and the song finished a very disappointing 21st. Never one to give up, Ralph Siegel came back in 2003, this time with the orange-haired, wide-mouthed Lou. It was debatable whether the song or Lou herself was most frightening, but the televoters were unimpressed and 'Let's get happy' ended up a relatively disappointing 11th. Deciding that enough was enough, Germany's 2004 national final was restricted to successful chart acts, with techno group Scooter among the popular names taking part. The eventual winner, Max, secured a massive hit in Germany with the soulful and fresh 'Can't wait until tonight', but had to be content with 8th place at Eurovision. Still, it was enough to qualify Germany for the 2005 Final on its own merits, rather than by virtue of its 'Big 4' status.

For 2005, Germany once again sought a credible, chart-worthy entry, the result being Gracia with her song 'Run and hide'. Sadly for Germany it proved an unfortunate choice. First, 'Run and hide' gained the unenviable distinction of being the most scandal-hit entry of 2005, with allegations of chart manipulation causing the song to be expelled from the German Top 40 - quite a rumpus ensued, given that the song's eligibility for the Eurovision selection was as a direct result of it being a Top 40 hit. Then, as if that wasn't enough, Gracia's performance in Kiev managed to pick up just 2 points each from Moldova and Monaco, her 24th (and last) place managing to rob Stone and Stone (1995) of their place in history as Germany's worst ever Eurovision placing. However, Germany's dismal result was perhaps mitigated by the fact that the four bottom placings were all occupied by 'Big 4' countries, making Germany's failure seem less remarkable in the light of similarly poor results for France, Spain and the UK. Of course, the 'Big 4' nations automatically gain a place in the following year's Final regardless of how they perform the year before, a rule that seems increasingly anachronistic now that all countries are guaranteed participation every year.

In 2007 Germany was represented by the Romanian-German jazz singer Roger Cicero.

This year's entry:

My prediction & opinion:

This year Germany is sending a summer song, like the one Spain sent in 2006, but a little better.

My prediction for the Semi Final: N/A
My prediction for the Final: 14th to 16th

Eurovision 2008 - Greece

2008-03-02T02:29:00.000-08:00

Secret combination
Kalomoira

Music: Konstantinos Pantzis
Lyrics: Poseidonas Giannopoulou

History (1956 to 2007):

Greece's previous appearances: 28 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1974; 1976-1981; 1983; 1985; 1987-1998; 2001-
Best result: 1st (2005)

Prior to the '00s, Greece had enjoyed a less than glorious record in Eurovision, never finishing higher than 5th between 1974 and 1998. After ending up a lowly 20th in 1998, the country missed the 1999 Contest through relegation, and declined to take part in 2000. However, since 2001, Greece has taken advantage of the free language rule to perform in English, at the same time as sending some of its most bankable stars to Eurovision. This seems to have done the trick, as with one or two exceptions, the last five years have seen a string of impressive Greek results.

Hopes were high in 2001, with Antique's song 'Die for you' one of the favourites prior to the Contest. In the end, it was never a real contender for victory in the final voting, but Antique's performance nevertheless provided Greece with an impressive 3rd place - up to then its best ever result. Unfortunately, the momentum was not maintained in 2002, with the ridiculous 'S'Agapo' finishing 17th (out of 24) - probably higher than it deserved. After the contest, Mihálís blamed sound problems for the poor result, though most viewers thought the song scored badly because it was rubbish.

2003 saw high expectations for Mando, an established and popular artist in Greece and beyond, with her song 'Never let you go'. Sadly, Mando went for the dominatrix vote with a face and outfit borrowed from Cher, and the song scored even fewer points than Mihálís the year before. However, seeking an uplift in their fortunes, the Greeks pulled out all the stops in 2004, combining one of the country's most popular stars - Sakis Rouvas - with a song written by Nikos Terzis, the composer of 'Die for you'. It very nearly worked - the clear favourite prior to the Contest, Sakis and 'Shake it' scored an impressive 252 points in the Final, and achieved the rare feat of gaining points from every other country, including five 12s. In the end, however, it was only enough to secure an Antique-equalling 3rd place, easily securing the Greeks' direct entry to the 2005 Final, but falling short of the elusive first victory that they had so craved.

After the disappointment of Sakis finishing so near yet so far, the Greeks could have been forgiven for coming back with a lacklustre Mihálís-style effort, but if anything, their second 3rd place in four years seemed to make them even more determined to win. The country got off to a good start by enlisting Helena Paparizou - half of the duo Antique, who secured 2001's 3rd place - in its bid for Eurovision glory, going on to select a strong and contemporary song in the shape of 'My number one'. It proved an irresistible combination - the runaway favourite prior to the Contest, Helena's decisive victory surprised neither the fans nor the bookmakers, finally bringing victory to Greece after 26 attempts. Her tally of 230 points, while notably lower than the total amassed by Sakis a year earlier, was 38 more than second-placed Malta, and included the maximum 'douze points' from countries as diverse as Albania, Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany and the United Kingdom. As a result, Greece obviously finds itself directly qualified for the 2006 Final, but the country will surely need a killer song from a great performer if it is to maintain the level of success that it has attained in recent years.

In 2006 Greece was represented by Anna Vissi, and in 2007 by Sarbel.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

I could caracterise this entry as being lower than ,,My number one” and ,,Shake it”, but better than ,,Yassou Maria” and ,,Everything I am”. It’s a great song; the beats seem like the ones from ,,Give it to me” (Nelly Furtado, Timbaland & Justin Timberlake).

My prediction for the Semi Final: 2nd to 4th
My prediction for the Final: Definite qualifier; 2nd to 4th

Eurovision 2008 - Hungary

2008-03-02T02:12:00.000-08:00

Candlelight
Csézy

Music: Viktor Rakonczai
Lyrics: Imre Mózsik (copyed after Diggiloo Trash)

History (1956 to 2007):

Hungary's previous appearances: 6 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1994-1998; 2005; 2007-
Best result: 4th (1994)

Making its début in 1994, Hungary made an excellent first impression with the lovely 'Kinek mondjam el vetkeimet', performed by Friderika and finishing a deserved 4th. Subsequent efforts were less successful - 22nd in 1995, ejected in the preliminary qualifier in 1996, 12th in 1997and 23rd in 1998 - causing the country to disappear from the Contest until 2005. That year, hopes were high that Nox, performing 'Forogj világ', would deliver a strong result for Hungary, with the entry ranked among the pre-Contest favourites. A 5th place in the Semi Final ensured that Hungary eased into Saturday's show, but a poor draw and below-par vocal performance in the Final meant that the song ended in a relatively disappointing 12th, thereby missing out on direct entry to the 2006 Final. Having sat out 2006 due to broadcaster MTV's reported financial troubles, Hungary now makes another welcome return in 2007; hopefully this time the country will stick around for a bit longer.

In 2007 Hungary was reprsented by Magdi Rúzsa, with a song in Celine Dion style. After finishin 2nd in the Semi Final, It was seen as a favourite, but in the Final got only 9th place.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

No, Hungary. If you had kept the first version of the song, you would have been one of the possible winners.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 4th to 8th
My prediction for the Final: Definite qualifier; 8th to 10th

Eurovision 2008 - Iceland

2008-03-02T01:57:00.001-08:00

This is my life
Eurobandið

History (1956 to 2007):

Iceland's previous appearances: 20year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1986-1997; 1999-2001; 2003-
Best result: 2nd (1999)

For many years, Iceland's record at Eurovision was unimpressive, 4th place in 1990 the best result from its twelve efforts between 1986 and 1997. The country's first enforced absence due to relegation, in 1998, appeared to give Iceland the boost it needed, charging back in 1999 with the catchy 'All out of luck'. Selma's 2nd place promptly gave Iceland its best ever result, beaten only by Sweden's Charlotte Nilsson with what was, arguably, a less impressive song. After that, Iceland stuck to powerful, uptempo songs, with variable results - while 2000's 'Tell me!' finished a mid-table 12th, 2001's 'Angel' inexplicably (I rather liked it) scored only 3 points and ended up last. After another relegation-enduced absence, Iceland bounced back with a slice of Selma-lite in 2003. Birgitta's energetic performance of 'Open your heart' was always likely to finish strongly; while its creditable 8th place was enough to secure Iceland's participation in the 2004 Final, the country's first victory remained elusive. in 2004, Jonsi's beautiful ballad - 'Heaven' - promised great things; however, a disappointing live performance on the night failed to do justice to a stunning song, its 19th place meaning that Iceland had to participate in the Semi Final in 2005.

Eurovision fans were delighted when it was announced that Selma would once again represent Iceland in 2005 - a chance for her to secure the victory that had so narrowly eluded her six years earlier. The choice of song also boded well, with 'If I had your love' coming across as a strong and very contemporary track, and most people assumed that Selma would qualify for the Final fairly easily. On the night, her vocal was good, certainly on a par with the one that secured her 2nd place in the 1999 Contest, and the visual presentation - if a little busy - seemed appropriate to the song. However, it was not enough - in one of the biggest shocks of the evening, Iceland ended the Semi Final in a disappointing 16th place with 52 points, and thus missed out on reaching the Final. In 2006, Iceland must therefore once again take part in the Semi Final if it is to stand a chance of progressing any further.

In 2006 Iceland was represented by Silvia Night and in 2007 by Eiríkur Hauksson.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

Oh, no Iceland. When will you understand that Europe wants to hear your language? STOP TRANSLATING YOUR SONGS IN ENGLISH! Overall I don’t think this song will do much.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 12th to 16th
My prediction for the Final: Will not qualify

Eurovision 2008 - Ireland

2008-03-02T01:36:00.001-08:00

Irelande douze pointe
Dustin the Turkey

Music: Darren Smith, Simon Fine
Lyrics: Johnny Morrison

History (1956 to 2007):

Ireland's previous appearances: 41 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1965-1982; 1984-2001; 2003-
Best result: 1st (1970, 1980, 1987, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996)

With 39 appearances, Ireland has appeared at Eurovision the same number of times as Portugal and Finland, but with a rather more impressive record to show for it. The country has won an incredible seven times, twice with entries performed by Johnny Logan - the only artist to have won Eurovision more than once. Unsurprisingly, Ireland's record is better than any other country - France, Luxembourg and the UK are the next best, with five victories each, none of which - on recent form - are likely to challenge Ireland's tally just yet.

Amazingly, Ireland won four contests in five years during the mid 1990s, with songs performed by Linda Martin ('Why me?', 92), Niamh Kavanagh ('In your eyes', 93), Paul Harrington and Charlie McGettigan ('Rock 'n' roll kids', 94), and most recently with Eimear Quinn and 'The voice' (96). While all secured easy victories at the time thanks to the votes of the national juries, none really appeared to command much support among the public or Eurovision fans - a situation that may well have precipitated the demise of the juries in favour of televoting since 1997. In hindsight, I still find 'Why me?' to be mawkish and old-fashioned, but 'In your eyes', 'Rock 'n' roll kids' and 'The voice' have stood the test of time well, and are maturing into Eurovision evergreens. Nevertheless, Dana's 'All kinds of everything' from 1970, and Johnny Logan's two songs from 1980 and 1987, 'What's another year' and 'Hold me now', probably remain Ireland's best known winners among the public at large.

Since its last win a decade ago, Ireland's fortunes have suffered a remarkable downturn similar to that of the UK. Though 1997's 'Mysterious Woman' came a clear second to Katrina and the Waves, 1998's entry by Dawn stalled in (what was in Irish terms) a disappointing 9th place, while 1999's song finished 17th, giving Ireland one of its lowest ever placings. 2000's 6th place provided a brief respite from the gloom, before 2001's entry, 'Without your love' scored a miserable 6 points - probably 6 more than it deserved - and 21st place. For the first time, Ireland suffered the indignation of being relegated and had to miss the 2002 contest all together. With a great deal of pride riding on 2003's comeback, Mickey Harte's 'We've got the world', finished 11th, just enough to secure Ireland's direct place in the 2004 Final, but a far cry from the country's success of old.

As Eurovision has embraced new countries and musical styles, some would claim that Ireland's recent entries have sounded increasingly old fashioned; equally, with the free language rule since 1999, Ireland seems to have suffered from no longer having the automatic advantage of performing in English. This was ably illustrated by the Irish entry in 2004, Chris Doran's dismal 'If my world stopped turning' only missing out on 'nul points' because the UK inexplicably awarded it 7. On the plus side, 2005's effort managed to score rather more points than that, with Donna and Joe giving a valiant performance of 'Love?' in the Semi Final. However, its 14th place was not good enough to gain Ireland a place in the Final, meaning that the country must once again take part in the Semi Final in 2006.

In 2006 Ireland was represented by Brian Kenedy and in 2007 by Dervish.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

Noooooooooo! ,,Eurovision died and Ireland shot the last bullet by sending the Turkey” (Johnny Logan). A comedy act, I think it’s the best comedy act from the night, with a turkey puppet singing repeatedly ,,Irelande douze pointe”. I don’t want to think about what will happen if Ireland wins the Eurovision this year.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 1st to 3th
My prediction for the Final: Definite qualifier; 1st to 2nd, possible winner

Eurovision 2008 - Israel

2008-03-02T01:19:00.001-08:00

Ke'ilo kan
Bo'az Ma'uda

Music: Dana International
Lyrics: Dana International, Shai Kerem

History (1956 to 2007):

Israel's previous appearances: 30 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1973-1979; 1981-1983; 1985-1993; 1995; 1998-
Best result: 1st (1978, 1979, 1998)

I've lost track of the number of times that bright sparks have said to me "Why is Israel in Eurovision? It's not even part of Europe!" Unfortunately, it's difficult to reply "It's a member of the European Broadcasting Union, so it doesn't actually matter where the country is" without sounding like a Eurogeek. Nevertheless, despite not being in Europe, Israel's record in the contest is rather good, winning three times - in 1978 ('A Ba Ni Bi'), 1979 ('Hallelujah') and 1998. The most recent of these victories was by the splendid Dana International, famed as much for being transexual (she used to be a man) as for her song 'Diva'. I'm sure women across Europe (and Israel) were wondering how a former man could look so darn good as a woman.

After a good 5th place at the Jerusalem contest in 1999, Israel struggled during the first half of the noughties, finishing 22nd in 2000 with the controversial (but ultimately not very good) 'Sa'me'akh', 16th in 2001, 12th in 2002, 19th in 2003, and 11th in the Semi Final in 2004. The 2004 entry - 'Le'ha'amin' by David d'Or - was probably the best of the lot. I thought it was rather beautiful, but David's castrato voice was evidently not to everyone's taste, hence its failure to secure a place in that year's Final.

After a string of disappointing results, some suggested that politics had played a part in Israel's lack of success - fortunately, the 2005 Israeli entry showed that if people love a particular song, they will vote for it regardless of any political judgment. Singing 'Hasheket shenish'ar', everything about Shiri Maimon's performance worked well, even (unusually) the switch into English halfway through. Having finished 7th in the Semi Final, Shiri did even better in the Final, ending up 4th and ensuring that Israel took part in the Final in 2006. Unfortunately, Eddie Butler's 'Together we are one' couldn't maintain the momentum, slumping to 23rd place with just 4 points. Israel must therefore take part in the Semi Final in 2007.

Israel was be represented by the group Teapacks in Helsinki with the song 'Push the button'. Rightly or wrongly, the song has attracted controversy for its lyrics.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

I don’t know what to say about this entry. It’s a bad entry, but can get a lot of points just because it’s composed by Dana International.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 8th to 12th
My prediction for the Final: Possible qualifier; 16th to 20th

Eurovision 2008 - Latvia

2008-03-02T00:58:00.000-08:00

Wolves of the sea
Pirates of the sea

History (1956 to 2007):

Latvia's previous appearances: 8 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 2000-
Best result: 1st (2002)

Latvia has had one of the best starts of any Eurovision country. It secured 3rd place at its first attempt in 2000, with Brainstorm's quirky 'My star', and won the contest with Marie N's 'I Wanna' in 2002 (the less said about the intervening 2001 entry by Arnis Mednis, the better). In 2003, however, Latvia came down to earth with a bump - despite being the host nation, 'Hello from Mars' by FLY could only muster 24th place and 5 points, all of those from neighbours Estonia. Perhaps it was the white suits and scary dancing that did it? In 2004, Latvia therefore found itself in the unusual position of having to qualify in order to reach the Eurovision Song Contest proper. Unfortunately, while it's contribution to the evening's entertainment - 'Dziesma par laimi' by Fomins & Kleins - was lively enough, 17th place was not good enough to qualify.

Fortunately, 2005 represented a return to form for Latvia. Though 'The war is not over' by Walters and Kazha almost missed out on a place in the Final, securing the tenth and last qualifying spot by a margin of just 4 points over 11th placed Poland, its support bloomed in the Final, ending up with 153 points and 5th place. As a result, Latvia found itself directly qualified for the 2006 Final, but - true to form - did its usual trick of following up an excellent result one year with an unimpressive one the next, Cosmos' a capella song 'I hear your heart' picking up just 30 points in 16th place. So, it's back to the Semi Final again for 2007...

Latvia's 2007 entry, 'Questa notte', was performed entirely in Italian in Helsinki by Bonaparti.lv

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

Oh, my Good, a comedy act. It seems last year Verka showed it was possible. You might recognise Roberto from last year Bonapart.lv entry. This song will remind the Romanians about ,,Imba – Yeke Yeke” (a song in their NF). This song is going to qualify, simply because it takes part in the second Semi Final, away from Dustin the Turkey.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 6th to 10th
My prediction for the Final: Definite qualifier; 14th to 16th

Eurovision 2008 - Lithuania

2008-03-02T00:30:00.000-08:00

Nomads in the night
Jeronimas Milius

History (1956 to 2007):

Lithuania's previous appearances: 8 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1994;1999; 2001-2002; 2004-
Best result: 6th (2006)

Lithuania must be wondering what it's doing wrong. While its Baltic neighbours Estonia and Latvia have each carried off a Eurovision victory (in 2001 and 2002 respectively), Lithuania's record in the contest is rather less impressive. Indeed, it hardly got off to a good start, with Lithuania's first entry in 1994, performed by Ovidijus Vysniauskas, scoring 'nul points'. Perhaps wisely, Lithuania waited until 1999 before trying again, when it gained 13 points, 20th place (out of 23) and relegation for its efforts. 2001 represented Lithuania's best performance so far, when Skamp managed a more 'impressive' 13th place with 'You Got Style'. More importantly, it meant that Lithuania finally scored highly enough to participate in the following year's contest; however, it was back to business as usual with Aivaras' 'Happy You' mustering just 12 points and 23rd place in 2002.

Having had to sit out 2003, the new format of Semi Final and Final, introduced in 2004, at least means that Lithuania can take part every year. However, even using this format, the chances of Lithuania ever reaching the Final don't seem good. In 2004's Semi Final, Linas and Simona mustered just 26 points and 16th place, while 2005's effort by Laura and the Lovers did even worse, finishing last, in 25th place, with 17 points. Consequently, it's yet another Semi Final for Lithuania in 2006.

In 2006 Lithuania was represented by LT United, a rubish song, performed by six men in suits and ties singing repeatetley ,,We are the winners of Eurovision”

In 2007 the Lithuanian entry wass 'Love or leave' performed by the band 4Fun. It was an appealing, inoffensive song, which reminded me a little of the Belgian group Vaya Con Dios.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

This year Lithuania sends Jeronimas Milius in Belgrad. The song, ,,Nomads in the night” is nice, but Jeronimas’s English is bad. I think he memorised the lyrics, without knowing what they mean, It seems It’s the same mistake Sanda (the Romanian 2004 representative) did with the beautiful song ,,I admit”.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 14th to 18th
My prediction for the Final: Will not qualify

Eurovision 2008 - Macedonia (FYR)

2008-03-01T07:36:00.000-08:00

Vo ime na ljubovta
Tamara, Vrcak & Adrian Gaxha

History (1956 to 2007):

Macedonia (FYR)'s previous appearances: 7 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1998; 2000; 2002; 2004-
Best result: 12th (2006)

My opinion & prediction:
The former Yugoslav republic of Macedonia has only appeared seven times before, but has not had a very strong start to its Eurovision career. Indeed, its first attempt at Eurovision participation - 1996's 'Samo ti' by the splendidly monickered Kaliopi Gril - ended in failure when the song failed to get through the qualifying round for that year's Contest in Oslo. Finally getting a chance to appear at Eurovision proper in 1998, Macedonia finished 19th; with a subsequent 15th place in 2000 and 19th again in 2002, the country managed to get relegated on every occasion. More recently, the new Semi Final system has at least given Macedonia the chance to participate every year, 2004 representing a new high. Sneaking into the Final (having finished 10th in the Semi), Tose Proeski's 14th place with 'Life is a book' was not enough to secure direct qualification to the 2005 Final, but at least gave his country its best result yet. 2005 saw a similar outcome, with Martin Vucic and 'Make my day' doing just enough to qualify for the Final, but then slumping to 52 points and 17th place on the Saturday night, ranking Macedonia last among the Semi Final qualifiers. This result means that Macedonia must take part in the Semi Final for the third successive year in 2006, despite managing to qualify for the Final on both occasions so far.

Performing in 2006 Elena Risteska and her song 'Ninanajna' managed the best result for Macedonia in 2006.
In 2007 Macedonia was represented by the 2002 representant Karolina Goceva.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

It will be the first year without Macedonia in the Final. The song is boring, no way it will qualify.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 17th to 20th
My prediction for the Final: Will not qualify

Eurovision 2008 - Malta

2008-03-01T07:11:00.000-08:00

Vodka
Morena

Music: Philip Vella
Lyrics: Gerard James Borg

History (1956 to 2007):

Malta's previous appearances: 20year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1971-1972; 1975; 1991-
Best result: 2nd (2002, 2005)

Malta had a brief dalliance with Eurovision in the 1970s, taking part in 1971 (finishing last), 1972 (last again) and 1975 (a slightly better 12th). After that run of 'success', it's hardly surprising that Malta gave up, only returning in 1991. By this time, Malta had realised the advantage of singing in English, rather than the Maltese of its first two entries. Remember, from the late 1970s until 1999 only those countries with English as a native language - the UK, Ireland and Malta - could perform in English at Eurovision. Making its comeback in 1991, Malta used English to good effect, finishing in the top ten every year between until 1998, including two 3rd places (Mary Spiteri's 'Little child' in 1992, and Chiara's 'The one that I love' in 1998).

However, with the free language rule reintroduced in 1999, Malta seemed to suffer, its song 'Believe'n Peace' slumping to 15th. In truth, though, the song was weak, its poor result reflecting crimes against both spelling and singing. Indeed, it was back to normal after that, with an 8th place for Claudette Pace in 2000, 9th for Fabrizio Faniello in 2001, and a tantalising 2nd for Ira Losco's '7th Wonder' in 2002. Then, in 2003, Malta sent chirpy Lynn Chircop to Eurovision... Unfortunately, Lynn finished in 25th place with just 4 points (3 of those from Ireland), spared the indignity of coming last only because the UK's Jemini scored nothing at all. If Malta was hoping to win the contest, it had 'To dream again', as it were.

Since Malta takes Eurovision very seriously, heated debate ensued in the light of this shock result, slightly tempered by the fact that the new Semi Final system gave Malta a chance to participate in 2004 when previously it would have missed that year's contest through relegation. Luckily, Julie & Ludwig's 'On again, off again' restored some Maltese pride, qualifying for the Final with relative ease, and doing enough on the big night to finish 12th and - by the skin of their teeth - secure Malta's direct qualification to the Final in 2005.

2005 represented both the welcome return of an old face and a welcome return to form, with Chiara - seeking to better her 3rd place from 1998 - giving a stunning performance of her self-penned 'Angel'. It was enough to give Malta a well-deserved 192 points (including six 10s but only one 12) and 2nd place in the Final, beaten only by Greece's Helena Paparizou.

With a place in the 2006 Final in the bag, hopes were high that another Eurovision returner - this time Fabrizio Faniello - could deliver another strong result for Malta. Unfortunately, an off key vocal performance left Malta languishing at the bottom of the Eurovision scoreboard for the first time since 1972, a solitary point from Albania averting a 'nul points' disaster by the narrowest of margins. However, notwithstanding this poor result, Malta retains the best record of any country that has yet to actually win the Contest, having finished 2nd and 3rd on two occasions each. The Maltese will certainly be hoping that 2007 can restore the country's Eurovision pride.

I must confess to being rather pleased when I read that Olivia Lewis had won the right - by a landslide - to represent Malta in 2007.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

After last year’s beautiful entry, Malta decided to send a rhythmic folk song, a bad Ruslana imitation. It was rather odd, because the favorite of the public and the jury was Claudia Faniello (the sister of the 2001 and 2006 representant Fabrizzio), but she decided to send two songs to the Final, so the points where divided. Anyway this entry is weak, definitely not among the favorites.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 18th to 20th
My prediction for the Final: Will not qualify

Eurovision 2008 - Moldova

2008-03-01T06:21:00.000-08:00

A century of love
Geta Burlacu

History (1956 to 2007):

Moldova's previous appearances:3 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 2005-
Best result: 6th (2005)

Moldova participated at Eurovision for the first time in 2005, becoming one of the last east European nations to do so. Needless to say, Moldova had to take part in the Semi Final along with the other newcomers, but it proved little obstacle to Zdob si Zdub and their song 'Bunica bate toba'. Presenting an enjoyable song unlike any other in the Contest, coupled with a memorable gimmick in the form of the drumming granny in a rocking chair, Moldova gained an impressive 2nd place in the Semi Final, before going on to finish 6th in the Final. With direct entry to the 2006 Final secured, Moldova's hopes rested on former O-Zone singer Arsenium, assisted by the barely-dressed Natalie Gordienko. Their performance of 'Loca' failed to convince, however, meaning that Moldova finds itself back in the Semi Final for 2007.
Natalia Barbu represented Moldova in Helsinki, performing the song 'Fight'. It was a strong, credible song and Natalia has a good voice.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

Well, this year will be the first with Moldova not passing into the Final, and it’s a pity because they had two good songs in the Final: Alexa (the televoters favorite) and Olia Tira. The fact that Geta Burlacu won, should give Romanians and Moldavians to think very good, and ELIMINATE THE JURY from their national finals. Anyway, this song reminds me of last year’s German entry; though the vocal is strong Europe won’t understand this song.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 15th to 16th
My prediction for the Final: Will not qualify

Eurovision 2008 - Montenegro

2008-03-01T06:20:00.001-08:00

Zauvijek volim te
Stefan Filipović

Music: Grigor Korpov, Ognen Nedelkovski, Vladimir Dojcinovski
Lyrics: Grogor Korpov, Ognen Nedelkovski, Vladimir Dojcinovski

History (1956 to 2007):

Montenegro's previous appearances: 1 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 2007-
Best result: 23rd in Semi (2007)

2007 might mark Montenegro's first Eurovision appearance as an independent nation, but the country has a long history of participation - first, with Slovenia, Croatia, Macedonia, Bosnia and Serbia, as part of Yugoslavia (27 entries between 1961 and 1992), and more recently (2004 and 2005) under the flag of Serbia & Montenegro. Indeed, in terms of their Eurovision selection processes, independence has made little difference to either Montenegro or Serbia; broadcasters RTCG and RTS will still hold their Montevizija and Beovizija festivals respectively, but with the winner in each country now guaranteed a place in Helsinki rather than having to brave a combined - and usually controversial - Serbia & Montenegro final, Evropesma.

Serbia & Montenegro's Eurovision presence might have been shortlived, but it was certainly successful, being the only country other than Greece to manage top ten placings in both 2004 and 2005. In 2004, Željko Joksimović performed 'Lane moje', winning the Semi Final, but having to be content with the runner up's position in the Final.

2005 brought further success, with Montenegrin boyband No Name and 'Zauvijek moja' mustering 137 points, including three 12s, and a very respectable 7th place. However, the flaws in the Evropesma voting process were already beginning to show, with Montenegrin judges accused of favouring their own act at the expense of Serbia's Jelena Tomaševic. A year later, these rumblings came to a head at Serbia & Montenegro's 2006 Evropesma, held on 11 March. Technically, the competition - and a place in the Eurovision Final in Athens - was once again won by Montenegro's 'No Name', singing 'Moja ljubavi'. However, while the Montenegrin jurors gave no points at all to the Serbian acts, the Serbian jurors awarded just enough points to the Montenegrin acts to inadvertently scupper the chances of the Serbian favourites, Flamingosi. No Name's victory was therefore not recognised by Serbian broadcaster RTS, while Montenegro's RTCG refused to budge - No Name, it could be argued, won on the basis of the voting system that was set out, even if that system was inherently flawed and open to abuse. Sadly, with the two nations unable to agree on a winner, Serbia & Montenegro had no option but to withdraw from the 2006 Contest. Shortly afterwards, Montenegro's vote for independence ensured that there would never be another Serbia & Montenegro entry at Eurovision; however, we will never know to what extent the Eurovision furore contributed, as some have claimed, to Montenegro's narrow decision to go it alone. Nevertheless, despite their strained Eurovision history, it would be foolish to bet against Montenegro and Serbia exchanging 12 points with each other in the 2007 Semi Final.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

It will by another year without Montenegro in the Final. The song Is weak, same as the vocals.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 15th to 19th
My prediction for the Final: Will not qualify

Eurovision 2008 - Netherlands

2008-03-01T06:18:00.000-08:00

Your heart belongs to me
Hind

Music: Hind, Tjeerd van Zanen, Bas van den Heuvel
Lyrics: Hind, Tjeerd van Zanen, Bas van den Heuvel

History (1956 to 2007):

Netherlands's previous appearances: 48 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1956-1984; 1986-1990; 1992-1994; 1996-2001; 2003-
Best result: 1st (1957, 1959, 1969, 1975)

One of the original Eurovision countries, the Netherlands managed four victories in the first twenty years (such as Lenny Kuhr's forgettable 'De Troubadour' in 1969), but have had nothing since their last victory in 1975. Perhaps the country is being punished for inflicting Teach-In's 'Ding Dinge Dong' upon the rest of Europe?

The country's record since televoting has not given much hope of a fifth victory - the wonderful Edsilia Rombley came a creditable 4th in 1998, but since then it's been downhill all the way with 8th place in 1999, 13th in 2000 (despite being a favourite prior to the contest), and a dismal 18th in 2001.

Having to miss 2002 through relegation, the Netherlands returned in 2003. There were great hopes for the Dutch entry, Esther Hart's 'One more night', with many predicting its victory. In truth, it was a rather ordinary song that sounded very similar to 1999's 'One good reason'; being the first song after the advert break (when many televoters are still in the kitchen or bathroom) probably didn't help. Ending up a disappointing 13th, the Netherlands just missed out on an automatic Final place, and had to compete in the 2004 Semi Final. The country's song that year - 'Without you', performed by Re-union - did surprisingly well in the Semi Final by finishing 6th with 146 points, before slumping dramatically to 20th with 11 points in the Final - a most bizarre result, given that the order of the top ten songs in the Semi Final (1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10, obviously) was generally echoed in their Final placings (2-1-3-7-5-20-9-12-13-14). One can only assume that the Netherlands benefitted from performing last in the Semi Final, though this doesn't really account for - to give an example - Ireland awarding the Netherlands its 12 points in the Semi Final, but nothing at all three days later! Whatever the explanation, the Netherlands found itself in the Semi Final for the second successive year.

In 2005, hopes were high for Glennis Grace and ''My impossible dream', a stunning ballad recalling Whitney Houston circa 1992. Most people had assumed that Glennis would qualify for the Final failrly easily, and these expectations were reinforced by a great performance - Glennis looked stunning in a white dress, was strong vocally, and the whole act benefited from a simple presentation with just Glennis on the stage, and no unnecessary distractions in the form of dancers or backing singers. Sadly, it was not enough, 53 points securing a disappointing 15th place. Stuck in the Semi Final again in 2006, Treble's song 'Amanbanda' could hardly have been more different from Glennis', but despite a strong performance it could only manage 22 points and 20th place. The Dutch will therefore be hoping it's third time lucky in trying to clamber out of that Semi...

In 2007 Netherlands was represented by Edsilia Rombley.

This year's entry:

My prediction & opinion:

This year Netherlands will be represented by Hind singing a beautiful pop song.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 9th to 11th
My prediction for the Final: Likely qualifier; 10th to 12th

Eurovision 2008 - Norway

2008-03-01T05:51:00.001-08:00

Hold on be strong
Maria Haukaas Storeng

Music: Mira Craig
Lyrics: Mira Craig

History (1956 to 2007):

Norway's previous appearances: 4 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1960-1969; 1971-2001; 2003-
Best result: 1st (1985, 1995)

Norway is renowned for scoring 'nul points' - under the present voting system, introduced in 1975, it has achieved the feat three times (most recently in 1997), and finished last on a further three occasions. However, victories in 1985 with the dreadful 'La det swinge' and in 1995 with Secret Garden's beautiful 'Nocturne' have helped redress the balance. Certainly, Norway's two winners could hardly be more different - remarkable then that both were written by Rolf Lovland, composer of 'You raise me up' - originally recorded by Secret Garden themselves (with vocals by Brian Kennedy, Ireland's participant in 2006), but perhaps more famously covered by Josh Groban in 2003, and Westlife in 2005.

While neighbours Sweden have generally prospered under televoting, with a run of top ten finishes between 1998 and 2004, Norway's record has been patchy. After a respectable 8th place in 1998, the awful 'Living my life without you' finished an undeservedly high 14th in 1999. 2000 brought a catchy song in 'My heart goes boom', but a relatively disappointing 11th place. In 2001, Haldor performed 'On my own', what I thought was a rather attractive and powerful ballad. However, televoters were evidently distracted by Haldor's grimacing, and it scored just 3 points from Portugal for its efforts, finishing last. Following this poor result, some were wary when Norway came back in 2003 with another male-sung ballad. However, Jostein was cuter and more endearing than Haldor, and 'I'm not afraid to move on' finished a very respectable 4th.

As a result, the Norwegians found themselves directly qualified for the Final in 2004, and were probably confident about sending yet another male with a ballad - unfortunately, however, as far as the televoters were concerned, Knut Anders Sørum had more in common with Haldor than Jostein. Finishing last (again) with just 3 points, the title of Norway's song assumed an amusing irony, Knut's position being anything but 'High'.

Fortunately, 2005 brought better things for Norway, with Wig Wam's rock anthem, 'In my dreams', finishing a promising 6th in the Semi Final, before going on to secure 9th place in the Final. Guaranteed a place in the 2006 Final, hopes were high that Christine Guldbrandsen could gain another top ten placing with the lovely 'Alvedansen'. However, despite a good vocal and visually appealing performance, Christine's song failed to resonate with the voting public, picking up just 36 points in 14th place. Consequently, Norway must once again take part in the Semi Final in 2007.

In 2007 Norway was represented 45-year-old Guri Schanke emerging as the winner. I have a deep aversion to Scandinavians sending Latino-inspired songs to Eurovision - it just seems so very cheap, desperate and inauthentic - so Norway's entry being called 'Ven a bailar conmigo' was never going to be a good start.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

This year’s entry from Norway it’s a catchy pop-ballad singed by the beautiful Maria Haukaas Storeng. Her face will remind the Romanians, of the latino singer Elena Gheorghe. The song is Jennifer Lopez style, and who says that this song won’t reach the final, has nothing to do with Eurovision.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 4th to 8th
My prediction for the Final: Definite qualifier; 12th to 14th

Eurovision 2008 - Poland

2008-03-01T05:34:00.000-08:00

For life
Isis Gee

History (1956 to 2007):

Poland's previous appearances: 12 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1994-1999; 2001; 2003-
Best result: 2nd (1994)

Finishing 2nd with Edyta Gorniak's wonderful 'To nie ja!' in 1994, Poland had a fantastic start to its Eurovision career but has been trying to live up to it ever since. The country finished a disappointing 18th in 1995, 15th in 1996, 11th in 1997, 17th in 1998 and 18th in 1999, before having to miss 2000's contest due to its poor five-year average. Its return in 2001 was barely worth the effort, finishing a new low of 20th and being relegated again. Happily, 2003's contest proved much more fruitful, with Ich Troje and 'Keine grenzen - zadnych granic' finishing a very respectable 7th. Cannily, to appeal to as many countries as possible, the song was performed in a mix of Polish, German and Russian - Germany rewarded it with its 12 points, but Russia was unimpressed and gave it no points at all. It was a beautiful song, and with one of the best performances at the 2003 contest it really deserved to finish higher; nevertheless, 7th was quite enough to give Poland an automatic place in the following year's Final. Unfortunately, normal service promptly resumed in 2004, with Blue Cafe's 'Love song' finishing an unimpressive 17th.

Poland's subsequent Eurovision experiences have been deeply frustrating, finishing 11th in the Semi Final in both 2005 and 2006, and missing out on qualification by a mere handful of points - first with Ivan and Delfin's 'Czarna dziewczyna', and latterly with Ich Troje (back for another go) and 'Follow my heart'. Back in the Semi Final again in 2007, Poland will surely be hoping to finish anywhere but 11th.

The Jet Set represented Poland in Helsinki, singing 'Time to party'. The songwasis fresh, contemporary and catchy, and the poles deserve credit for sending something unashamedly modern to Eurovision.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

This year Poland will be represented by Isis Gee, singing a non-catchy ballad. The song is rather usual, weaker than Ich Troje, so I think It won’t do much.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 14th to 18th
My prediction for the Final: Will not qualify

Eurovision 2008 - Portugal

2008-03-01T05:32:00.001-08:00

Senhora do mar
Vânia Fernandes

History (1956 to 2007):

Portugal's previous appearances: 41 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1964-1969; 1971-1999; 2001; 2003-
Best result: 6th (1996)

Prior to 2006, Portugal's record at Eurovision was spookily similar to that of Finland, with the same number of entries (39) and the same of lack of success (never finishing higher than 6th place). However, Finland's storming victory in Athens - following first-time wins in previous years for oldtimers Turkey and Greece - has left Portugal as the most prominent country never to have won the Contest.

Indeed, Portugal has rarely even come close to winning, its high point being a strong 6th place in 1996 thanks to Lucia Moniz - better known today as Colin Firth's Portuguese maid in the film 'Love Actually'. Portugal had a flurry of good results in the early 1990s (8th in 1991 and 1994, 10th in 1993), brought only to a grinding halt by scoring nothing at all in 1997. After unremarkable results in 1998 and 1999, Portugal missed 2000's contest through relegation, and - after another poor result in 2001 (17th) - declined to take part in 2002. Interestingly, Portugal's absence gave a reprieve to the Latvians, who had finished one place below the Portuguese in 2001 and would otherwise have missed the 2002 contest. Marie N went on to represent Latvia that year, winning the contest for her country in the process.

Since coming back in 2003, Portugal's fortunes have been little better. Rita Guerra's beautiful ballad, 'Deixa-me sonhar' scraped an undeservedly low 22nd place, meaning that Portugal had to compete in the Semi Final in 2004. There, many online polls had tipped Sofia and her song 'Foi Magia' to come last, so in the circumstances, 15th place with 38 points - including 12 from all the ex-pats in Andorra - was quite impressive. In 2005, the Andorran votes were nowhere to be seen, but that was not enough to prevent 2B securing a decent 51 points for 'Amar', even if its 17th place was slightly down on the year before. However, it was downhill in terms of both points and placing in 2006, with 'Coisas de nada' mustering just 26 points (with 12 from Andorra again this time) and 19th place. This all means that Portugal is one of only six countries - the others being Andorra, Belarus, Estonia, Monaco and Slovenia - to have failed to qualify from any of the three Semi Finals held so far. Will 2007 finally bring Portugal success?

No. Sabrina got the 1st under the qualifing countries line.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

This year Portugal is sending a nice ballad, but I don’t think it would do much.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 12th to 14th
My prediction for the Final: Unlikely to qualify; 18th to 20th, if it does

Eurovision 2008 - Romania

2008-03-01T05:04:00.000-08:00

Pe-o margine de lume
Nico & Vlad Mirita

Music: Andrei Tudor
Lyrics: Andreea Andrei, Adina Şuteu

History (1956 to 2007):

Romania's previous appearances: 9 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1994; 1998; 2000; 2002-
Best result: 3rd (2005)

Romania made a rather inconspicuous start to its Eurovision career, finishing in 21st place in 1994. After that, the country appeared to give up on the contest, not returning until 1998, though that was partly due to its intended 1996 entry - 'Ruga pentru pacea lumii' by Monica Anghel and Sincron - failing to make it through that year's qualifying round. The Romanians might as well not have bothered to come back, their 1998 effort - Malina Olinescu's 'Eu cred' - scraping a meagre 6 points and 22nd place, despite being popular among Eurovision fans. Reappearing in 2000 for a third attempt, Taxi's gentle song 'The Moon' managed a slightly more impressive 17th, though it was not enough to prevent Romania missing out on the 2001 contest due to relegation.

Since 2002, however, Romania has slowly established itself in people's minds as a country that WILL win Eurovision one day in the near future. Romania's 2002 entry was what many thought was the worst song of the contest, the Disney-esque ballad 'Tell me why'. Despite being tipped as a likely candidate for 'nul points', Monica Anghel - finally getting her chance after the abortive 1996 effort - and Marcel Pavel gave one of the evening's most professional and powerful performances; in a notable north-south divide, the song was shunned in the voting by the UK, Scandinavia and the Baltic States, but picked up enough support from the Mediterranean countries (and Russia) to finish in 9th place with a healthy 71 points. 2003 represented the first time that Romania had appeared in two consecutive contests, this time with the unusual 'Don't break my heart', performed by Nicola. If the song was slightly strange, the stage performance - featuring giant compact discs and bright colours reminiscent of Teletubbyland - was even stranger. However, it evidently stuck in televoters' minds, as the song finished in 10th place, probably higher than it deserved.

As a result, the Romanians found themselves in the happy position of qualifying directly for the 2004 final. However, after two impressive results Romania's record had to slip sometime, Sanda Ladosi finishing a disappointing 18th with 18 points, and ensuring that Romania would have to take part in the Semi Final in 2005. Sanda's song, 'I admit', deserved better, but the performance was poor, and the singer looked like she had forgotten to finish dressing before going on stage. Still, the Spanish obviously approved, awarding Sanda's cleavage a perky 10 points.

Romania's national finals always seem to feature some very contemporary songs, and 2005 was no exception, with its winning entry - 'Let me try', by Luminita Anghel and Sistem - featuring a powerful vocal and oil drum-wielding percussionists over a thumping techno beat. With a spectacular stage performance, including the creative use of angle grinders, it proved a recipe for great success. Romania won the Semi Final by some margin (235 points, including the maximum 'douze points' from six countries), before going on to finish 3rd in the Final, easily the Romanians' best ever result at Eurovision. Qualified for the Final in 2006, many people believed that Mihai Traistariu was in with a chance of winning the whole thing, his uptempo 'Tornerò' topping many of the fan polls. Though falling short of victory, Mihai gave a vocal performance to be proud of, his deserved 4th place with 172 points ensuring that Romania was once again in the Final in 2007.

In 2007 Romania was represented by Todomondo with the catchy 'Liubi, liubi, I love you' - a world away from the contemporary pop-dance tracks that Romania has tended to favour in recent years.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

Well, If you want Eurovision scandal, you can watch ,,Selectia Nationala” from Romania. After last years disqualifiquasions & retirements, this year was the same. It started with the disqualification of Paradise and de retirements of 3 Sud Est and Maya. After the Semifinals, another retirements: Catalin, VH2, New Effect & Gentiana, Nico and Adrian Enache. Overall the Contest was won by Nico & Vlad Mirita singing a beautiful ballad called ,,Pe-o margine de lume” (On the edge of the world), they won by 3 points ahead of Biondo . The lyrics are in Romanian & Italian, and the vocals are strong, much better than last year. I voted in the final for ,,Seven days”, but when I saw they had no chance, I sent another vote for ,,Pe-o margine de lume”. This song is great, it reminds me of the 2002 Romanian entry ,,Tell me why” (the composer of ,,Pe-o margine de lume” is the son of the composer of ,,Tell me why”). After the song won the accuses of plagiarism appeared but nothing was proved.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 3th to 5th
My prediction for the Final: Definite qualifier; 2th to 4th, possible winner

Eurovision 2008 - Russia

2008-03-01T02:42:00.001-08:00

Beliving
Dima Bilan

Music: Timothy Z.Mosley (Timbaland)
Lyrics: Timothy Z.Mosley (Timbaland), Dima Bilan

History (1956 to 2007):

Russia's previous appearances: 11 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1994-1995; 1997; 2000-
Best result: 2nd (2000, 2006)

Russia made its Eurovision début in 1994, when Youddiph achieved a creditable 9th place. Subsequent entries were memorable - 1995's for its bizarre title, 'Lullaby for a volcano', and 1997's for Alla Pugacheva's unfeasibly big hair - but neither performed terribly well, finishing 17th and 15th respectively. Since 2000, Russia has recorded some much improved results, due to some strong songs and the decision to perform most of them in English. Alsou and her song 'Solo' finished a strong 2nd in 2000, followed by a reasonable 12th place in 2001 and 10th in 2002.

Russia had high hopes for victory in 2003, sending the controversial 'lesbian' duo t.A.T.u to Eurovision. Fresh from a massive international hit with 'All the things she said', it was inevitable that t.A.T.u's song, 'Ne ver', ne bojsia', would do well. However, like Baccara before them (whose 1978 Eurovision entry for Luxembourg - 'Parlez-vous français?' - followed their international hit 'Yes sir, I can boogie'), global success prior to Eurovision failed to translate into victory, and t.A.T.u had to be content with 3rd place. It was very close, though - t.A.T.u finished just one point behind 2nd-placed Belgium, and three behind Sertab's winning song for Turkey. Interestingly, the UK was one of only two countries (the other being Ireland) to give Russia no points at all, despite 'All the things she said' already topping the UK charts earlier in 2003 - points from either country would almost certainly have given t.A.T.u victory. To be fair, the studio recording of 'Ne ver', ne bojsia' is fantastic, but t.A.T.u's performance on the night was second only to Jemini's in terms of tunelessness; 3rd place was about as much as it deserved. Nevertheless, it was quite enough to secure Russia's place in the Final for 2004.

Following up t.A.T.u was always going to be difficult, but Russia had a good try by sending its own Avril Lavigne lookalike, Julia Savicheva. Delivering a tuneless performance worthy of her predecessors, Julia was the beneficiary of 2004's most localised voting - picking up at least 8 points for 'Believe me' from all the former Soviet countries (making up 48 of its total of 67), but only 19 from all the others put together. However, it was probably due - at least in part - to her existing popularity within the former Soviet nations than overtly political voting. Whatever the reasons, it was quite enough to propel her to 11th place, narrowly securing Russia's direct participation in the 2005 Final in the process.

For 2005, Russia opted for another angsty female performer, this time in the form of Natalia Podolskaya and the grammatically flawed 'Nobody hurt no one'. However, despite picking up a creditable 57 points - all from countries bordering Russia - 15th place fell well short of gaining Russia direct entry to the 2006 Final, and a place in the Semi Final now beckons.

In 2006 Russia was represented by Dima Bilan finishing 2nd, while in 2007 was represented by the girl band Serebro finishing 3rd with 207 points.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

Dima Bilan returns for Russia in 2008, after finishing 2nd in 2006, behind Lordi’s rock. He wants revenge and he might get it. The song is as beautiful as ,,Never let you go”, and it can go all the way.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 1st to 3rd
My prediction for the Final: Definite qualifier; 1st to 4th, possible winner

Eurovision 2008 - San Marino

2008-03-01T02:41:00.000-08:00

Complice
Miodio

History (1956 to 2007):

San Marino's previous appearances: 0 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: None
Best result: N/A

San Marino makes his Eurovision debut in 2008.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

For its first Eurovision appearance San Marino is sending a song most parted singed in Italian.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 13th to 16th
My prediction for the Final: Will not qualify

Eurovision 2008 - Serbia

2008-03-01T02:40:00.000-08:00

Oro
Jelena Tomašević

Music: Željko Joksimović
Lyrics: Dejan Ivanović

History (1956 to 2007):

Serbia's previous appearances: 1 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 2007-
Best result: 1st (2007)

2007 might mark Serbia's first Eurovision appearance as an independent nation, but the country has a long history of participation - first, with Slovenia, Croatia, Macedonia, Bosnia and Montenegro, as part of Yugoslavia (27 entries between 1961 and 1992), and more recently (2004 and 2005) under the flag of Serbia & Montenegro. Indeed, in terms of their Eurovision selection processes, independence has made little difference to either Montenegro or Serbia; broadcasters RTCG and RTS will still hold their Montevizija and Beovizija festivals respectively, but with the winner in each country now guaranteed a place in Helsinki rather than having to brave a combined - and usually controversial - Serbia & Montenegro final, Evropesma.

Serbia & Montenegro's Eurovision presence might have been shortlived, but it was certainly successful, being the only country other than Greece to manage top ten placings in both 2004 and 2005. In 2004, Željko Joksimović performed 'Lane moje', winning the Semi Final, but having to be content with the runner up's position in the Final.

2005 brought further success, with Montenegrin boyband No Name and 'Zauvijek moja' mustering 137 points, including three 12s, and a very respectable 7th place. However, the flaws in the Evropesma voting process were already beginning to show, with Montenegrin judges accused of favouring their own act at the expense of Serbia's Jelena Tomaševic. A year later, these rumblings came to a head at Serbia & Montenegro's 2006 Evropesma, held on 11 March. Technically, the competition - and a place in the Eurovision Final in Athens - was once again won by Montenegro's 'No Name', singing 'Moja ljubavi'. However, while the Montenegrin jurors gave no points at all to the Serbian acts, the Serbian jurors awarded just enough points to the Montenegrin acts to inadvertently scupper the chances of the Serbian favourites, Flamingosi. No Name's victory was therefore not recognised by Serbian broadcaster RTS, while Montenegro's RTCG refused to budge - No Name, it could be argued, won on the basis of the voting system that was set out, even if that system was inherently flawed and open to abuse. Sadly, with the two nations unable to agree on a winner, Serbia & Montenegro had no option but to withdraw from the 2006 Contest. Shortly afterwards, Montenegro's vote for independence ensured that there would never be another Serbia & Montenegro entry at Eurovision; however, we will never know to what extent the Eurovision furore contributed, as some have claimed, to Montenegro's narrow decision to go it alone. Nevertheless, despite their strained Eurovision history, it would be foolish to bet against Montenegro and Serbia exchanging 12 points with each other in the 2007 Semi Final.

In 2007 Serbia won the Eurovision Song Contest, with the song ,,Molitva".

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

Can Serbia do it again? Serbia is sending a ballad as nice as ,,Molitva” last year, and its composed by the 2004 Serbia & Montenegro representer who is also the presenter of the 2008 Contest.

My prediction for the Semi Final: N/A
My prediction for the Final: 2nd to 6th, possible winner

Eurovision 2008 - Slovenia

2008-03-01T02:25:00.000-08:00

Vrag naj vzame
Rebeka Dremelj

History (1956 to 2007):

Slovenia's previous appearances: 13 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1993; 1995-1999; 2001-
Best result: 7th (1995, 2001)

Making its début in 1993, Slovenia (along with Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina) was one of the first wave of east European countries to appear at Eurovision. Sadly, the country's record has been unremarkable, peaking with two 7th places in 1995 and 2001. Both of those were achieved by Slovene divas with big voices; Darja Švajger in 1995 (who returned in 1999 and came a respectable 11th) and the fantastic Nuša Derenda in 2001, whose song 'Energy' deserved to finish higher than it did. Slovenia has tended to do less well when it has sent men (1998, 2005, 2006), men dressed as women (2002's camptastic Sestre), or even one of each (2004). However, Slovenia has only missed 1994 and 2000 through relegation, which is a better record than many other countries.

Having used either 100% jury voting or 100% televoting to select its earlier entries, one of Slovenia's biggest problems since 1999 has been its insistence on using a 50/50 hybrid, causing havoc and incriminations when the jury and televoters disagree with one another. The weighting of votes meant that the jury's preference overrode the viewers' choice in both 1999 ('Zakaj' by Tinkara Kovac) and 2001 ('Ostani tu' by Karmen Stavec), though it didn't matter too much given that the winners both ended up doing quite well at Eurovision. 2002 was more controversial, however, with Sestre getting the Eurovision ticket despite Karmen Stavec - back for another go with 'Se in se' - winning the televote by a hefty margin (31,944 votes compared to just 8,454 for Sestre).

After the uproar of the year before, broadcaster RTVSLO twiddled the system for 2003, seemingly in the televoters' favour. Now, the winner would be selected via two rounds of voting: the first round would choose the top 3 songs using 50% televoting and 50% international jury; these top 3 songs would then be performed again, with the winner chosen wholly by televoting. Unfortunately, this system merely exposed the gulf in musical tastes between the televoters and the international jury. Despite getting nearly double the televotes of anyone else in the first round, the group Bepop (winners of Slovenia's Popstars show) received no points at all from the jury, who instead favoured Alenka Godec. Unfortunately for Bepop, this left them in overall 4th place, thus missing out on a place in the final runoff. With their overwhelming favourite knocked out, the televoters had little choice but to plump for their original second choice - the ubiquitous Karmen Stavec, this time singing the enjoyable 'Lep poletni dan' ('A beautiful summer day'). Though no-one could deny that Karmen deserved her shot at Eurovision after cruelly missing out for the last two years, it was hardly a satisfactory outcome, with neither the jury (who had originally ranked Karmen as 4th) nor the televoters ending up with their favourite. To compound one flawed decision with another, it was decided that Karmen would perform the song in English at Eurovision, the rather attractive 'Lep poletni dan' morphing into the excruciatingly banally-titled 'Na na na'. Even before the Contest, I felt that this was a classic example of a good foreign language song being ruined by a poor translation into English, and so it proved - Karmen, singing last on the night, finished a terribly disappointing 23rd with just 7 points. Indeed, had it not been for Slovenia's obliging neighbours - 4 points from Bosnia and 3 from Croatia - she would have scored nothing at all. To be fair, Karmen's pink make-up and dress was much scarier than her song; rather than disproving the theory that singing last is an advantage, Karmen reminded us that singing last might well be an advantage, but only if the song is actually any good.

Despite this disaster, the new format of the Contest gave Slovenia a chance to take part in the 2004 Semi Final. Unfortunately, the two-round voting system - unwisely being used for a second time - threw up an almost identitical fiasco to the year before, with the televoters' overwhelming favourite (Natalija Verboten's 'Cry on my shoulder') once again scoring nothing from the jury, who gave top marks to Rožmarinke's 'Kliše' instead. Just like Bepop in 2003, this meant that Natalija could only finish 4th overall, therefore failing to make the final runoff, and leaving the way clear for Platin - original 2nd choice of both the jury and the televoters - to win. By sending a male-female duo to Eurovision, Slovenia appeared to have embraced 2004's trend, with Malta, Lithuania and Belarus all going down the same route. However, Platin went further than most by kissing on stage during the performance of 'Stay forever'. This was not quite as dreadful as it sounds, given that Simon and Diana of the duo Platin had decided to make the most of their trip to Istanbul by arranging their wedding for the day after the Semi Final. Unfortunately, their onstage snogging - perhaps an effort to distract viewers' attention from the song - proved to be the kiss of death, with Slovenia mustering even fewer points than the year before (a measly 5) and once again having to rely on neighbourly contributions from Bosnia (1) and Croatia (3). This time Macedonia also joined in the act, but its 1 point was not enough to prevent Slovenia finishing second from bottom, the country's dignity only remaining intact because Switzerland's terrifying entry scored nothing at all.

Given the experiences of previous years, the decision to ditch the jury in 2005 and rely on 100% televoting was perhaps a sensible one - at least then the televoters could only blame themselves if Slovenia's entry did badly. Even with 100% televoting, however, the result was not clear cut, with Rebeka Dremelj's 'Pojdi z menoj' narrowly winning the first round televote ahead of Saša Lendero's 'Metulj', but with both losing out to Omar Naber and 'Stop' (only 3rd in the first round) in the final runoff of the top 3 songs. Unfortunately, Omar fell foul of the curse of Slovene men, his 12th place in the Semi Final better than many had expected, but not quite enough to qualify Slovenia for the Final.

For 2006, Slovenia inexplicably brought back its 'expert' jury, with the gulf between the jurors' and the public's taste contributing to possibly the most farcical EMA selection yet. The viewers' verdict was unequivocal, with Saša Lendero's 'Mandoline' and Atomik Harmonik's 'Polkaholik' picking up 12 points and 10 points respectively in both the SMS and telephone votes. Incredibly though, neither scored anything at all from the jury, leaving the way clear for Anžej Dežan (the jury's favourite) and Plan B (later translated into English as 'Mr Nobody') to sneak through with 26 points to Saša's 24. Due to Omar's result from the year before, Anžej had to first try and qualify from the Semi Final; it was always going to be a challenge, but his 16th place was still a little disappointing.

Last year’s song was FABULOUS! It wass everything a Slovene Eurovision entry should be, with an attractive female singer in a beautiful dress, well-toned male dancers, a wind machine, and an ear-shattering high note at the end.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

I can’t say much about this, until I hear the final version.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 12th to 14th
My prediction for the Final: Possible qualifier; 13th to 14th

Eurovision 2008 - Spain

2008-03-01T02:23:00.001-08:00

Baila el Chiki-chiki
Rodolfo Chikilicuatre

History (1956 to 2007):

Spain's previous appearances: 47 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1961-
Best result: 1st (1968, 1969)

Spain's level of success at Eurovision hardly befits its 'Big 4' status. It won the 1968 contest with the lyrically-challenged 'La La La' by Massiel, shared victory with three others in the infamous 1969 competition (the not very memorable 'Vivo cantando' by Salomé), and has avoided victory ever since. There have been a few close shaves - Mocadades' 'Eres tu', from 1973, is regarded as a Eurovision classic, but could only manage 2nd place, despite ending up as a massive worldwide hit. Further 2nds followed in 1979, with Betty Missiego's 'Su canción' natrrowly losing out to Israel's 'Hallelujah'; and in 1995 with the memorable 'Vuelve conmigo' by Anabel Condé. However, Spain struggled in the early years of televoting, and had to rely on its 'Big 4' status to avoid relegation - after finishing 16th in 1998, 23rd in 1999 and 18th in 2000, David Civera's 6th place in 2001 marked a welcome return to form. In 2002, Spain decided that a change of selection procedure was in order, and introduced the 'Operación Triunfo', Fame Academy-style format. Rosa's irritatingly upbeat 'Eu-ROPP's living a celebration' finished a very respectable 7th, while the same formula produced a solid 8th place for Beth's 'Dime' in 2003, and an unexpectedly high 10th place for Ramón in 2004. Though the 'Operación Triunfo' format failed to deliver a Spanish victory, it at least saw an improvement in the country's Eurovision fortunes. However, the 2004 season was much less successful in the TV ratings than its predecessors, resulting in Spain's decision to dispatch with the reality format for 2005.

After a rather underwhelming National Final, the winners were three ladies calling themselves Son de Sol, with a sound and image reminiscent of Baccara and Las Ketchup. However, a lively performance of their song 'Brujeria' was not enough to prevent Spain finishing with just 28 points and 21st place, the only consolation being that the other Big 4 countries (UK, France and Germany) achieved even worse results by ending up 22nd, 23rd and 24th respectively. In qualification terms, of course, none of this matters, given that Spain and its Big 4 colleagues are guaranteed places in the Final anyway. However, with the Big 4 status being seen as increasingly questionable (42% of Soult.com Eurovision voters saying that the Big 4 should now take part in the Semi Final if they fail to reach the Final on their own merits), Spain could really use a good result in 2006.
In 2006 Spain was represented by the girl band ,,Las Ketchup", while in 2007 the boys band ,,D'NASH" got the ticket for Helsinki.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

I can’t take it anymore. Another comedy act, the song attacks the politics in Venezuela so the lyrics have to be changed. Overall, this song along with the Turkey, are the best comedy acts of the night.

My prediction for the Semi Final: N/A
My prediction for the Final: 1st to 5th, possible winner

Eurovision 2008 - Sweden

2008-03-01T02:21:00.001-08:00

Hero
Charlotte Perrelli

Music: Bobby Ljunggren, Fredrik Kempe
Lyrics: Bobby Ljunggren, Fredrik Kempe

History (1956 to 2007):

Sweden's previous appearances: 47 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1958-1963; 1965-1969; 1971-1975; 1977-
Best result: 1st (1974, 1984, 1991, 1999)

Sweden is one of Eurovision's most successful and consistent performers. Making its first appearance in 1958, the country had to wait quite a while for its first victory. When Sweden did win, in 1974, it did so in style. The song 'Waterloo' launched ABBA to international stardom, and remains probably the most well-known and popular Eurovision winner. Since then, Sweden's record of success has been second only to Ireland, notching up further winners in 1984 (Herreys with 'Diggi Loo Diggi Ley'), 1991 (Carola) and 1999 (Charlotte Nilsson's 'Take me to your heaven'). All were irritatingly bouncy pop songs, though none have come close to matching the enduring appeal of 'Waterloo'.

In recent years, Sweden has seemed an excellent judge of televoters' taste, boasting a run of top ten finishes stretching from 1998 to 2004 - 6th in 2004, 5th in 2003, 8th in 2002, 5th in 2001, 7th in 2000, 1st in 1999 and 10th in 1998. With a record this consistent, Sweden is nearly always regarded as a serious contender at Eurovision, but a dismal 19th place for Martin Stenmarck's 'Las Vegas' in 2005 - the country had only once finished lower in its 44 previous appearances - meant that the Swedes faced the relative indignity of taking part in the 2006 Semi Final. Normal service soon resumed, however, with Carola - back for a third go - escaping the Semi Final with ease and managing an impressive 5th place for 'Invincible' in the Eurovision Final. As a result, Sweden is guaranteed a place in the 2007 Final.

In 2007 Sweden was represented by the rock band ,,The Ark" finishing 18th.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

This year Sweden is sending the 1999 ESC winner Charlotte Nilsson, meanwhile she got married and her new name is Charlotte Perrelli. The song is catchy, but not as good as ,,Take me to your heaven”.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 6th to 9th
My prediction for the Final: Definite qualifier; 12th to 15th

Eurovision 2008 - Switzerland

2008-03-01T02:04:00.000-08:00

Era stupendo
Paolo Meneguzzi

History (1956 to 2007):

Switzerland's previous appearances: 48 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1956-1994; 1996-1998; 2000; 2002; 2004-
Best result: 1st (1956, 1988)

The Swiss got off to a good start by winning the first ever contest in 1956, though with only 7 countries taking part it was a bit easier in those days. They then had to wait another 32 years, before the French Canadian Celine Dion, inexplicably singing for Switzerland, won it again in 1988 with 'Ne partez pas sans moi'. Celine's Eurovision performance, wearing a startlingly frilly white dress, is one of those moments that gets repeated on the various 'look at those ridiculous Eurovision outfits' programmes, though I doubt Celine minds too much - after all, she is probably the biggest international star to emerge from Eurovision since ABBA. Unhappily for Switzerland, subsequent efforts were less successful, Annie Cotton's 3rd place in 1993 representing the highlight in a string of dismal results. During the 90s and early 00s, Switzerland's record was nearly as bad as Finland's, participating in 94, 96, 97, 98 (nul points), 00 and 02, but missing 95, 99, 01 and 03 through relegation. As if this record of despair was inadequate humiliation, the Swiss plumbed new depths in 2004 by managing to score 'nul points' in the inagural Eurovision Semi Final, thus finishing 36th out of 36 entries. With so many countries taking part and voting in the Contest (including 33 voting in the 2004 Semi Final), finding a song that is so bad it gets no votes from any country is quite an impressive feat. However, that doesn't take into account the Swiss managing to find a singer as cheesy as Piero, or a song as horrific as 'Celebrate'.

Looking on the bright side, at least the Swiss could only improve in 2005, and improve they certainly did. Enlisting the talents of Estonian band Vanilla Ninja to perform the song 'Cool vibes', Switzerland gained 114 points and 8th place in the Semi Final, going on to secure 128 points and another 8th place in the Final; needless to say, Switzerland was the beneficiary of Estonia's 'douze points' on both occasions.

Thanks to its first top 10 placing in over a decade, Switzerland found itself directly qualified for the Final in 2006, where it adopted the seemingly clever ploy of creating Six4One, an act formed especially for Eurovision with singers from six different countries: 16-year-old Israeli star Liel; Alcazar member Andreas Lundstedt, from Sweden; Tinka Milinovic, runner-up to Feminnem in the 2005 Bosnian Eurovision heats; Keith Camilleri, performer of 'Tango 4 Two' at Maltasong 2004; Portuguese-born Marco Matias, runner-up (with Nicole Süßmilch) to Gracia in 2005's 'Germany 12 Points!' contest; and Claudia D'Addio, from the Swiss 'MusicStar' show. The idea worked to an extent, with Malta duly lavishing its 12 points on the Swiss entry; unfortunately, while the song picked up a total of 21 points from Israel, Bosnia, Malta and Portugal, it could only muster 9 from everyone else put together. The resulting 30 points and 17th place means that the Swiss find themselves back in the Semi Final in 2007.

Switzerland was represented by DJ BoBo in 2007, performing the song 'Vampires are alive'. A cheesy but fabulous Eurodance anthem, it was Aqua with a Swiss twist.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

This year Switzerland, finally understood that the voice counts not the name. When I first heard this song I thought at Eros Ramazzoti. This year Switzerland will be represented by the 30 years old Paolo Meneguzzi singing ,,Era stupendo”, a beautiful song, definitely on of my favorites. Even If it was accused of plagiarism nothing was proved.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 1st to 3th
My prediction for the Final: Definite qualifier; 1st to 3th, possible winner

Eurovision 2008 - Turkey

2008-03-01T01:50:00.001-08:00

Deli
Mor ve otessi

History (1956 to 2007):

Turkey's previous appearances: 2 9year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1975; 1978; 1980-1993; 1995-
Best result: 1st (2003)

Turkey's long-awaited victory in 2003 proved that persistence can finally pay off. Nearly thirty years after its first appearance in 1975, and with just three previous top ten finishes to show for its efforts (9th in 1986, 3rd in 1997 and 10th in 2000), Turkey finally made it. In one of the closest results ever, the winning song, Sertab Erener's 'Every way that I can', squeaked home with just 2 points more than Belgium, and 3 more than Russia. Cannily, Turkey managed to present a song that was unmistakably Turkish, while making the decision to perform in English - as Sertab herself has admitted, this was almost certainly a factor in securing its narrow victory. The elaborate and impressive dance routine didn't do any harm at all, either. As the previous year's winners, Turkey naturally found themselves qualified directly to the 2004 Final, where punk band Athena finished in an impressive 4th place with 195 points - on this run of form, maybe we could be forgiven for expecting another Turkish victory sooner rather than later.

The last three years, however, have seen Turkey narrowly miss out on top ten placings. In 2005, with Gülseren's 'Rim rimi ley' - a decent song, accompanied by a spectacular show - gained a respectable 92 points, including the maximum 'douze' from both France and the Netherlands, but could only finish 13th. In 2006, Sibel Tüzün's strong performance of ''Süper star' was enough to lift Turkey out of the Semi Final, but a tantalising 91 points and 11th place in the Final - just 2 points behind 10th-placed Ireland - meant that Turkey just missed out on qualifying directly for the Final in 2007.
Kenan Doğulu representedTurkey in Helsinki with the self-penned 'Shake it up shekerim'. On the plus side, the song's catchy and contemporary, and sounds like something you'd find on the latest Justin Timberlake album; on the minus side, it was very repetitive .

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

This the first year Turkey sends rock to Eurovision, it’s a song that I think Europe won’t understand, neither catchy, but nice.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 2th to 5th
My prediction for the final: Definite qualifier; 2th to 5th, possible winner

Lyrycs of the song:

Aranıyor sahibi ruhumun,
Tam yerine mi düştüm?
Direniyor faili tutkunun,
Kızmış ve küçülmüş.

Aranıyor sahibi ruhumun,
Tam yerine mi düştüm?
Direniyor, direniyor, direniyor…

Beni büyütün, ağlatmayın,
Sevginiz nerde, övündüğünüz?
Beni büyütün, ağlatmayın,
Sahte düşlerle oyalamayın.

Aranıyor sahibi ruhumun,
Tam yerine mi düştüm?
Direniyor faili tutkunun,
Kızmış ve küçülmüş.

Aranıyor sahibi ruhumun,
Tam yerine mi düştüm?
Direniyor, direniyor, direniyor…

Beni büyütün, ağlatmayın,
Sevginiz nerde, övündüğünüz?
Beni büyütün, aldatmayın,
Sahte düşlerle...

Bir yarım akıllı, bir yarım deli
Dört yanım akıllı, bir yanım deli
Herkes akıllı, bir ben deli
Bir ben deli, bir ben deli…

Beni büyütün, ağlatmayın,
Sevginiz nerde, övündüğünüz?
Beni büyütün, ağlatmayın,
Sahte düşlerle oyalamayın.

Eurovision 2008 - Ukraine

2008-03-01T01:14:00.001-08:00

Shady lady
Ani Lorak

Music: Philip Kirkorow
Lyrics: Karen Kavaleryan

History (1956 to 2007):

Ukraine's previous appearances: 5 year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 2003-
Best result: 1st (2004)

Ukraine has a short but eventful history at Eurovision, only entering for the first time in 2003 but winning the Contest on its second attempt in 2004. In 2003, Despite having a song written by Tzvika Pick (the man behind Dana International's 'Diva'), performed by the established Ukrainian artist, Olexandr Ponomaryov, and accompanied by dancing acrobats, 'Hasta la vista' managed a slightly disappointing 14th place. Perhaps Olexandr should have taken a leaf out of Dana's book, and worn a Jean Paul Gaultier dress instead of his luminous (and quite tight) white suit? As a result, Ukraine narrowly missed out on an automatic place in the 2004 Final, and had to participate in the Semi Final first. It hardly mattered, however... Ruslana's 'Wild Dances' breezed through the Semi Final before stomping to victory - with points from 34 of the 35 other countries - in the Final. In doing so, leather-clad Ruslana seemed to reinforce the experience of Sertab from the year before - that combining a great song with impressive choreography is the way to win Eurovision in this age of televoting.

Credit to Ukraine, then, for trying something completely different in 2005, opting for Greenjolly's anthemic chant 'Razom nas bahato, nas nye podolaty', the soundtrack to December 2004's Orange Revolution in Ukraine. With its blatantly political message and repeated references to Victor Yushchenko (the man later confirmed as the country's President in the Boxing Day rerun poll), drastic rewriting was required at the behest of the European Broadcasting Union. Despite these changes, Ukraine was never really likely to perform well with this song at Eurovision, and so it proved - picking up just 30 points to finish in 20th place, most countries gave the Ukrainian entry a wide berth, with only five giving it any points at all.

In 2006, however, Ukraine once again followed up a poor result with a very good one, Tina Karol's charm and extraordinary voice managing to lift 'Show me your love' to an impressive 7th place in both the Semi Final and the Final, much better than any of the pre-Contest polls had suggested. Consequently, Ukraine benefits from being directly qualified for the Final in 2007.

Ukraine joined the Eurovision comedy bandwagon in 2007, sending the drag act Verka Serduchka - the alter ego of 33-year-old Andrey Danilko - to Helsinki with the 'song' 'Dancing lasha tumbai'.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

Well, this song is something between pop & R&B, it reminds me of the
Macedonian entry in 2006, it’s catchy, but in comparation is lower than Wild dances, so I think it won’t do much. Also, I would like to thank Ukraine for sending a normal song, after last year’s comedy.

My prediction for the Semi Final: 8th to 12th
My prediction for the Final: Possible qualifier; 12th to 14th

Eurovision 2008 - United Kingdom

2008-03-01T00:36:00.000-08:00

Even If
Andy Abraham

Music: Andy Abraham, Andy Watkins, Paul Wilson
Lyrics: Andy Abraham, Andy Watkins, Paul Wilson

History (1956 to 2007):

United Kingdom's previous appearances: 50year(s) out of 52
Years participated: 1957; 1959-
Best result: 1st (1967, 1969, 1976, 1981, 1997)

The United Kingdom is historically one of Eurovision's most successful nations, with 5 wins (the last in 1997, with 'Love Shine a Light') and an extraordinary 15 2nd places, including - most famously - Cliff Richard and 'Congratulations'. Only Ireland, with 7 wins, has a better record. When all countries had to sing in their native language, the UK always had the advantage of singing in English; however, since the free language rule was introduced in 1999, the UK's fortunes seem to have taken a tumble, with the country managing to clock up its five worst ever performances in the course of the last six years.

In 1999, Precious (featuring a pre-Atomic Kitten Jenny Frost) finished a disappointing 12th with 'Say it again', though it was a rather tuneless performance and as much as it deserved. The following year, Nicki French sang 'Don't play that song again'; few people did, and it finished a lowly 16th, until then Britain's worst ever result. A year later, Lindsay D did little better, performing 'No dream impossible' - it finished 15th. It took Jessica Garlick's classy performance of 'Come back' in 2002 to restore some UK pride, gaining a well-earned 4th place.

As a finalist on the talent show 'Pop Idol', one of Jessica's big advantages was her proven ability to sing live in front of a TV audience, something the UK should have remembered in 2003. Instead, the country sent male-female duo Jemini with 'Cry Baby', who - as we all know - scored nothing at all. Still, on the plus side, it at least made Nicki French feel less bad. All kinds of conspiracy theories were produced for why the UK did so badly - there were sound problems on stage, the UK lost out because of the Iraq war, and so on. In truth, however, the UK finished last because the song was dreadful and Jemini gave a bad performance. Having said that, the song was so awful, singing it off key probably made little difference.

The one good thing to emerge from 2003's disaster was the fact that the BBC had little option but to try harder in 2004. Thus, the old-fashioned 'Song for Europe' was rebadged as 'Eurovision: Making Your Mind Up', an array of reality TV stars were wheeled out, most of whom could sing, and the selection show was screened at a time when people at home were actually watching. James Fox, who had finished 5th in the BBC's 'Fame Academy' competition, won easily, and hopes were high that he could restore some British pride. It was not to be, however - James' song, the slightly old-fashioned 'Hold on to our love', certainly did better than 'Cry Baby' the year before, but its 16th place still equalled Nicki French as the UK's second worst performance ever. To be fair to James though, he did the best he could with a pleasant but unremarkable song; it's just that pleasant and unremarkable don't win Eurovision any more, as Ireland has discovered to its cost.

Nevertheless, the BBC retained its faith in the MYMU format in 2005, with 'Popstars: The Rivals' reject Javine managing to see off a concerted challenge from the heavily pregnant glamour model Katie Price, aka Jordan. Unusually, Javine was the first UK Eurovision entrant since 2000 to have tasted chart success prior to the Contest, enjoying a number of hit singles such as 'Real Things' and 'Best of my Love'. However, despite her obvious experience, and a very contemporary-sounding song in the shape of 'Touch My Fire', Javine could only muster 18 points and 22nd place for the UK, causing many to question what exactly Britain needed to do to secure a respectable placing at Eurovision. Certainly it wasn't to send Daz Sampson, who - despite a spirited and enjoyable performance of 'Teenage life' - failed to score much more highly than Javine in 2006, his 19th place giving the UK its longest ever run of entries without a top ten finish.

With the UK's 'Big 4' status, none of this really matters... but In 2007, the UK will surely be aiming to secure a place in the 2008 Final on merit, rather than by the back door. To do that, however, we need to stop blaming politics and find a song that people across Europe are actually going to like.

In 2007 United Kingdom was represented by Scooch singing ,,Flying the flag (for you), even if Europe expected Cindy in Helsinki.

This year's entry:

My opinion & prediction:

This year the United Kingdom decided to send the 44 years old, Andy Abraham in Belgrad. The song is nice, catchy, but I can’t see doing more than last year Scooch.

My prediction for the Semi Final: N/A
My prediction for the Final: 20th to 23th