Eurovision 2019

I think it's an interesting idea to have a "duels" format, as well as moving it into a studio (albeit a fairly large one I understand.)

Great news that Mans is returning to host; it does stamp a bit of gravitas on proceedings. Does anybody know if Edward Af Silen will be writing the script again? That was probably the biggest improvement of all the changes for Brighton 2018.

There’s probably two ideas at work here. The duel format on Andra Chansen works well at Melodifestivalen. It generates a lot of votes as voters get quite invested in the songs.

The other idea is probably harking back 10 years to the ALW series and how in the final “It’s My Time” was performed by three different acts in three individual styles. Voters were then able to select the style they liked best. Perhaps that’s the idea?

If anyone has watched the German national final in recent years they will know that it gets very boring hearing the same song sang repeatedly in different styles therefore I fear this format really is a hiding to nothing. It does beggars belief that the BBC have announced that the new format offers the viewer “more choice” despite there being half the songs on offer!

I imagine their other issue is the songs they are getting submitted are, by and large, crap. The six songs on offer in Brighton were very vanilla. If they were the best then I'd gate to hear the worst!

I think that’s probably true. Although remember that for the previous 3 years not a single song in You Decide came from the public and open submissions. All the songs were supplied by record labels. Which is even more worrying.

But a poor song can be transformed by a performance. ‘Fuego’ as a ballad would be awful but as it was presented last year it was sensational.

I think they need to dispense with the crowdsourcing facade totally.

The new format sounds crap - I get the impression from the announcement that the BBC are reducing their budget and interest in the contest again.

The budget is already rock bottom. More likely they’re trying to whip up a bit of interest in a national final that has very poor ratings for the last two years.

Why would they want to put money into something that gives them no reward?

You get out what you put in. It's evident the BBC don't care about Eurovision, nor is there anyone in the Corporation who cares about Eurovision.

- No promo for the National Final
- National Final on a minority channel in a poor timeslot
- National Final songs poor
- National Final production values low (no Spidercam or Steadicam, no pyro etc)
- Minimal promo for the contest
- Minimal promo for the song
- Semi Finals on a minority channel and heavily edited

I understand it fills a Saturday night on BBC One for relatively little outlay but should the BBC be using public money for Eurovision if they are going to continue to mistreat it?

You look at what our colleagues in Europe do and we are light years behind the curve. And I'm not just talking about Sweden. France's NF was excellent for example.

I wouldn't call a 90 minute weekday peak slot on BBC Two, being 'thrown away' on a minotiry channel.
Two years ago it was on BBC Four - next year (and earlier this) is arguably a 100% improvement on that.

I like how you've also conviently ignored how the most listened to daytime radio programme in Ken Bruce on Radio Two, will be giving the national heats plenty of promotion in the week leading up to the final.

I think there are plenty of people in the corporation as you put it who care a great deal about Eurovision. The fact that the BBC has resurrected a national song selection process at all is testament to the fact that there are people who care. It’s a far cry from just revealing a star from yesteryear as a done deal on the Ken Bruce Show.

It may take some years to reignite interest. It might, in this non linear age, be too late. But then again that’s the same for all competing countries.

I still firmly believe with the right, world class song, any country can win - and that includes the U.K.

There can be as much moaning as anyone likes about a lack of ‘effort’ but there is a fundamental fact- the majority of a mainstream U.K. audience have no interest in Eurovision outside of the final.

The clearest example of this is ‘Eurovisions’s Greatest Hits’ - heavily promoted and put on at 9pm on a Bank Holiday- it bombed in the ratings. We aren’t Sweden, the general public, for whatever reason, isn’t interested outside of the final itself. Maybe one day they will be, you can argue about the historic reasons that have lead to this, but that’s the fact right now.

The BBC don’t ‘mistreat’ Eurovision, they give it as much time (and therefore money) they feel they can justify. It costs less and rates better than what would otherwise be shown on a Saturday night. Beyond that it’s a specialist audience on TV, as Hatton Cross and deejay pointed out, the songs get a lot of promotion on a hugely popular radio show. They’re now back to a public selection show, it would have been cheaper to carry on as they were but they’ve put some effort in to try something different. There seems to be a problem that it’s not The X Factor or Melodifestivalen.

If spending on Eurovision is being cut then it’s not being singled out, just about everything at the BBC has or is being cut- like my colleagues who were told this week their jobs were being made redundant.