Eurovision 2013 - 14/16/18 May 2013

Eurovision.tv have revealed the stage design for this year.

http://www.eurovision.tv/page/multimedia/photos?gal=76423

http://www.eurovision.tv/save-files/resizes/80/04/16/47/aa/9b/87/fe/84/90/57/d8/50/f5/ed/ad/7_stage_b.jpg

The set doesn't seem as big as in previous years....

It reminds me of the Dublin 1997 stage.


Sweden could easily have done a massive show on the scale of Russia/Germany but the EBU wants to downscale.

It isn't.

The venue they have chosen in Malmö isn't huge by recent standards. Sweden could have gone a lot bigger and I suspect SVT would have done (as there are much larger venues in Stockholm) but the EBU are conscious that the contest has got too big, and got to the point where it would be impossible for a smaller (or even not so small) country to host on the same scale - particularly in the current climate of austerity across the continent.

SVT have therefore been tasked with both down-sizing the event (smaller stage, smaller venue) and reducing the costs of hosting AND attending (streamlining rehearsals so that the venue is required for less time and the delegations have to spend less time in the host country)

To be honest NRK did a good preliminary job on this - realising they couldn't match the insanely expensive set that Moscow had the year before they hosted - and instead going for a clever staging approach. Hopefully the years of a set that is just acres of flat LED screen are behind us.

Confirmation that Sarah Dawn Finer will have a part in the contest playing the "ah-mayzing" Lynda Woodruff

http://www.eurovision.tv/page/news?id=lynda_woodruff_part_of_eurovision_in_may

Sounds like the sort of thing that's perhaps going to be shown during the commercial breaks?

That's great news.

As long as BBC Three don't cut her off for some twaddle from Cox or Mills, I'll be happy.

Which they will.

Watch on the Eurovision website- it's a Cox and Mills free zone In fact isn't Ana Matronic of the Scissor Sisters replacing Cox? Could be an improvement?

Ana Matronic or Mills.

The running order for the semi-finals has now been announced

First Semi-Final
14th May
1. Austria
2. Estonia
3. Slovenia
4. Croatia
5. Denmark
6. Russia
7. Ukraine
8. The Netherlands
9. Montenegro
10. Lithuania
11. Belarus
12. Moldova
13. Ireland
14. Cyprus
15. Belgium
16. Serbia
Italy, Sweden and the United Kingdom vote in this semi-final

Second Semi-Final
16th May
1. Latvia
2. San Marino
3. F.Y.R. Macedonia
4. Azerbaijan
5. Finland
6. Malta
7. Bulgaria
8. Iceland
9. Greece
10. Israel
11. Armenia
12. Hungary
13. Norway
14. Albania
15. Georgia
16. Switzerland
17. Romania
Germany, France and Spain vote in this semi final.

No random draw this year except to determine which half of which semi final each country performs in, the producers decide the rest. As for the final, 10 songs from each semi progress to the final- meaning there will be a total of 26 in the final (20 qualifiers, the "Big Five" and hosts Sweden).

After each semi final there will be a draw as in previous years, but only to determine which half of the final each country performs in, once again the exact order is decided by the producers. Sweden as the hosts are the only country to have their position randomly drawn (16th in the final)

Also a preview of what I assume is the end of the country postcards, which are based around the butterfly theme:

Ah yes, those awkward moments with Coxy waiting for her cue as the arena is too loud then the issues with dialect.. it's becoming tradition!