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Eurovision 2011: The Big Five.

Italy returns to Eurovision as one of the five nations guaranteed a place in next week's Final, while the UK sends reunited boyband Blue.

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Now the Logies are over it’s time to turn our attention to the next big event on the calendar, the Eurovision Song Contest.

It begins next week in Dusseldorf, Germany and the Final airs on SBS ONE on Sunday May 15th. The Semi-Finals can be seen on Friday 13th and 14th, and all three are hosted in Australia by Julia Zemiro and Sam Pang.

This year Italy returns to the contest after its last appearance in 1997. As one of the key contributors to the European Broadcasting Union it wins an automatic pass to the Final, joining the other “Big Four” nations.

So far, France is the favourite according to the bookies with this “popera” track, while the United Kingdom is sending reunited boyband Blue.

TV Tonight will feature more entries in the lead up to the big event.

A reminder that Part One of The Secret History of Eurovision airs at 7:30pm this Friday night on SBS ONE.

FRANCE:
“Sognu” performed by Amaury Vassili.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uEb7hRo-Qyk[/youtube]

ITALY:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tO0Ih3q4PSE[/youtube]

UNITED KINGDOM:
“I Can” by Blue
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRU31ieUhJM[/youtube]

GERMANY:
“Taken by a Stranger” by Lena
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=44ydDZlsruk[/youtube]

SPAIN:
“Que Me Quiten Lo Bailao” by Rafael Artesero.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IYzomDkiORw[/youtube]

David Knox blogs Eurovision at sbs.com.au

9 Responses

  1. This is the first year since I can remember that I’ve even purchased the UK song… good job .. I sincerely hope that they do well this year. Good luck UK….

  3. They are all terrible songs and won’t win. Going by the Eurovision site it’s down to a handfull of countries and none of the big five feature.

  4. @Craig H, it’s not so much who the UK sends. It’s the song choice.The last few years the UK has produced some great artists who have even managed to crack the US market. But for Eurovision they seem to pick songs that sound like a 14 year old has written in 15 minutes. It’s always simplistic and cliched songs. Why not get a singer/songwriter and get them to represent.

  5. @ JB – there are no rules about the artists previous career, the only stipulation is that the song has to be original. Anyone is able to enter. Dima Bilan who won for Russia in 2008 has been a huge popstar in Eastern Europe for years, and Patricia Kaas who represented France in 2009 has had a career going back 10 years or more. The UK haven’t sent anyone with any credibility before as there is a history of the UK performing poorly regardless of who they sent, things have improved on that front a bit though with changes to the voting a few years back. I hope Blue do well though, as if they bomb, it will be the first and last time that any established act will put it’s hand up to represent the UK and we will be back to shit acts dragged in off the street to represent them, Josh Dubovie who represented them last year and finished last is case in point.

  6. That Blue song is absolutely terrible. Blue are a good boyband and have some great songs, but that one is shite and sounds like they’ve tried to make it Eurovision sounding, in other words …lame. Maybe those nudie picks they did will help them cos the song won’t.

    What’s the rules for Eurovision? I thought it was a certain number of “hits” outside your own country. And t.A.T.u. only had the one hit when they entered. But Blue have been huge in Europe for years

  8. if that French dude can belt that song out as well on stage as he does in the studio then he will win it by a country mile, and deservedly so, his voice is amazing. The UK song by Blue is pretty good to though and expected to do well.

  9. I’ve been following this since Christmas as each entrant has been announced and I must say this is the best ‘Big 5’ group for a long while. Spain’s is a bit fruity but overall pretty damned good 🙂

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