Eurovision Song Contest - Belgrade 2008

Of course one of the Big Money western teams in the final is owned by a Russian Businessman.

The amusing part of that article is the BBC spokesman explaining the horror that would ensue at being contractually obliged to broadcast 3 hours of Eurovision in primetime on BBC One if we weren't in the final.

I'm asuming he's apoplectic at the mis-use of dozens of hours of primetime wasted on Euro 2008 when we aren't even in the competition, never mind the final!

Didn't have you down as a Mirror reader.

Jim Shelley is just like his paper - full of attention grabbing, rhetoric-laden, ill informed crap.

Slightly different kettle of fish - as many of the players who ARE in Euro 2008 play for UK football teams and have supporters in the UK. That said - I think both the BBC and ITV are not throwing quite so much at the coverage as they would have done if England/Scotland/Ireland or Wales had made the tournament.

Totally agree...Football is playing on the pitch and if you have quality that should give you results...Here on ESC no metter how quality song do you have it can be blown away by some political reasons...Are you sure that UK would have some better chances to win on ESC if for example Robbie Williams compete with some song like Angels?I don't think so,maybe he could be in top 5 but to win,no,only coz of political voting...

I think Robbie Williams probably would win if he entered, given his massive following across the world.

There's no doubt in my mind that there is bias in the voting; but equally I was not blown away by our song or singer.

You can't blame it all on either of those factors.

They are Eurovision mad here in Serbia. I was told today that from the moment the country's entry is decided, the song receives saturation coverage on all the radio stations, and other media. The same applies to the neighbouring countries, so by the time the ESC occurs, everyone is totally familar with their own, and the surrounding countries entries.

Compare with the UK. Radio 1 and ILR turn their noses up at the whole thing, and Radio 2 ignore it until the day itself (albeit some coverage on Wogan's programme)

You're in Serbia?

Yes, for a couple of days, visiting RTS.

Ooh.

And tell me... you're not the Marky Mark I used to have on a poster in my bedroom are you?

I can understnd the BBC's dilemma that will face them should they fail to produce a semi-final qualifying song. Why would they want to screen a 3 hour show that no one will watch? I suspect it would be an "alternative schedule" situation whereas the corporation would screen it if we were in on BBC1 but hastily shift it to BBC3 if we weren't and risk getting a rollicking from the EBU. With the exception of the ESC, the EUROVISION DANCE CONTEST (which incidentally had the same Scandinavian countries for each other) and the Popes Easter Message, what do we use the EBU for? can anyone enlighten me? Seems pointless worrying about the EBU when we hardly ever use it. I was in Malta recently and their TV is ****! The Europeans are so different to us (although the Maltese are actually bloody good people with morals, courtesy and a sense of "just getting on with my life" attitude) so with this in mind perhaps creating our own Commonwealth Song Contest might be an option.

A huge amount of the news pictures you see everyday on BBC News come from EVN (the news part of the EBU).