Summary

  • Eurovision favourites Ukraine win after a resounding lead from the public vote

  • Their folk-rap group Kalush Orchestra asks for help for Ukrainian forces in besieged Mariupol, at the end of their song

  • The UK's Sam Ryder comes second in the contest - our highest position in over 20 years

  • Ukraine had been the favourite to win the contest, although the UK was in the lead after the jury vote

  • Some fans have been saying online they wanted to see fewer ballads and more bangers among the 25 entries

  • Switzerland gets zero votes from the public vote, but 78 from the jury

  1. It's getting livelypublished at 21:42 British Summer Time 14 May 2022

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  2. Graham Norton says 'the ballads are done...published at 21:41 British Summer Time 14 May 2022

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    Writer and columnist Tracy King will be delighted.

  3. Moldova - Zdob și Zdub and Advahov Brothers: Trenulețulpublished at 21:40 British Summer Time 14 May 2022

    Mark Savage
    Music correspondent, BBC News

    Zdob si Zdub and Advahov BrothersImage source, Getty Images

    I’m so sorry for what’s about to happen.

    Moldova’s song, which describes a train ride between the capitals of Moldova and Romania, is totally loco.

    It takes the “Hey ho, let’s go,” refrain of Blitzkreig Bop and grafts it onto something that sounds suspiciously like Cotton Eye Joe. It’s basically a Hoedown Ramones, as unlikely as that sounds.

    That said, Zdob si Zdub’s brand of folk-punk has a proven track record at Eurovision. They’ve represented Moldova twice before - coming sixth in 2005 and 12th in 2011.

  4. Iceland - Systur: Með Hækkandi Sólpublished at 21:37 British Summer Time 14 May 2022

    Mark Savage
    Music correspondent, BBC News

    SysturImage source, Getty Images

    Like Haim or Cleopatra, Systur are a group formed by three sisters - in this case Sigríður, Elísabet and Elín Eyþórsdóttir. Their brother also plays drums, but he doesn’t get to be part of the band name. Families, eh?

    Their song, already a number one hit in Iceland, is about surviving life’s tribulations.

    “In Iceland we have darkness and long winters; then, with the rising sun, there’s hope of better days and a brighter future,” they told Eurovision.tv. “You can translate it into whatever bad situation you face.”

    It is what your mum would call “a proper song”.

  5. Are there too many ballads?published at 21:34 British Summer Time 14 May 2022

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    We do love a ballad, but keep the bangers coming... Cassie on Twitter would like a limit on the slower songs...

  6. Greece - Amanda Tenfjord: Die Togetherpublished at 21:32 British Summer Time 14 May 2022

    Mark Savage
    Music correspondent, BBC News

    Amanda TenfjordImage source, Getty Images

    Amanda’s stage set is strewn with broken blue plastic chairs, like the aftermath of a work away day that went very, very wrong.

    I’m not quite sure what this has to do with her song, which is about the final moments of a doomed romance (“If we die together now/We will always have each other”).

    When she’s not singing, the Greek-Norwegian performer can be found with a stethoscope around her neck, as she completes her sixth year of medical school. She even has a student band called The Flu Fighters, which is objectively amazing.

  7. 'Eurovision lit a fire inside me as a gay boy'published at 21:26 British Summer Time 14 May 2022

    Nicky BrownImage source, Nicky Brown

    Cocktails are flowing at Nicky's Eurovision watch party in London.

    The superfan first got into Eurovision watching Conchita Wurst clinch the Eurovision crown in 2013.

    He tells us: "I’ve been into Eurovision since watching Conchita Wurst as a closeted gay boy.

    "I think it lit a fire in me seeing someone so open and queer on an international stage be revered and accepted.

    "Ever since then I’ve tuned in and embraced the Eurovision spirit of fun and unity."

    Speaking on his favourite performance so far, he adds: "We love Spain. Chanel is so fierce."

  8. Belgium - Jérémie Makiese: Miss Youpublished at 21:25 British Summer Time 14 May 2022

    Mark Savage
    Music correspondent, BBC News

    Jeremie MakieseImage source, Getty Images

    Up next is Belgium’s Jérémie Makiese – who nearly didn’t make it to Turin.

    Two weeks ago, he developed a vocal infection that threatened to wipe out his voice. But after a spell of vocal rest, he’s back in full force for this syncopated slice of robo-R&B, that has distinct echoes of Justin Timberlake and Jason Derulo.

    But if the music career fails, Jérémie can fall back on his football career. He currently plays in the second division of Belgium’s football league and recently signed a one-year contract with Royal Excelsior Virton.

  9. Lyric of the night so far?published at 21:25 British Summer Time 14 May 2022

    Do you agree with TV critic Scott Bryan?

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  10. Azerbaijan - Nadir Rustamli: Fade To Blackpublished at 21:21 British Summer Time 14 May 2022

    Mark Savage
    Music correspondent, BBC News

    Nadir RustamliImage source, Getty Images

    There’s a moment during Azerbaijan’s performance where it looks like a dancer is about to leap off a staircase into Nadir Rustamli’s arms. Sadly, it never happens, but you can imagine it with me if you like.

    Nadir’s song is - contain your excitement - another dramatic piano ballad; but his ability to juxtapose a gruff baritone with more delicate falsetto really sells the song’s story of grieving at the end of a relationship.

    It would work well at the end of Act Two of a musical about a meteorologist, who's forced to face up to the storm that is actually inside his heart.

  11. Lithuania - Monika Liu: Sentimentaipublished at 21:17 British Summer Time 14 May 2022

    Mark Savage
    Music correspondent, BBC News

    Monika LiuImage source, Getty Images

    We’re past the half-way point, everyone! Only another 24 years to go!

    Sadly, we celebrate this milestone with one of the night’s most underwhelming songs, Sentimentai, which sounds like Shirley Bassey being swallowed by a drum machine.

    The most interesting fact about the song is that it’s the first Eurovision entry to be performed entirely in Lithuanian since Lopšinė Mylimai, the nation’s debut entry back in 1994.

    “It’s a small country and our language is not popular at all. Sometimes people today still think we speak Russian,” says Liu. “I really want to remind Europe that we have this beautiful, old, melodic language.”

    Despite my reservations about the song, Liu’s tactic worked: she's the first Lithuanian contestant to qualify for the final since 2016.

  12. Germany - Malik Harris: Rockstarspublished at 21:12 British Summer Time 14 May 2022

    Mark Savage
    Music correspondent, BBC News

    Malik HarrisImage source, Getty Images

    Brilliantly, Germany’s entry was inspired by the US version of The Office. More specifically, it’s based on a quote by Ed Helm’s character Andy Bernard: "I wish there was a way to know you’re in the Good Old Days – before you’ve actually left them."

    “That moment was so intense for me,” says Harris. ”I immediately started crying and, after wiping away my tears, wrote this song."

    The song is also reminiscent of Black Eyed Peas’ Where Is The Love, which you can sing over the top of Rockstars, thereby improving it 100%.

  13. 'Ukrainians can't feel the atmosphere of joy'published at 21:09 British Summer Time 14 May 2022

    Sophie Williams
    BBC News, Lviv, Ukraine

    Yura Solodzhuk helps run a Ukrainian fan page dedicated to Eurovision.

    He told me that this year feels different for Ukraine’s Eurovision fanbase.

    “Ukrainians can’t fully feel the atmosphere of joy and intrigue that they used to,” he said.

    “Can Ukraine win? Of course Ukraine has a high winning chance. However I think that whether Ukraine will win the competition or not, our country this year is represented by the song, which demonstrated to the whole world, our culture and identity,” he said.

    Solodzhuk, who was forced to flee the country, said that winning first place can help bring the world’s attention to the situation in Ukraine.

    “It’s important to remind the world about us again and again, about the fact that Ukrainian music and culture exists and our fight for survival together with the Ukrainian people”.

  14. Ukraine - Kalush Orchestra: Stefaniapublished at 21:08 British Summer Time 14 May 2022

    Mark Savage
    Music correspondent, BBC News

    Kalush OrchestraImage source, Getty Images

    Flanked by two human car washes, Ukraine’s Kalush Orchestra are the favourites to win… but you already knew that.

    Their song was written as a tribute to frontman Oleh Psiuk’s mother, but it has been re-purposed as a rallying cry for Ukraine amidst the Russian invasion. Lyrics about broken roads and fields turning grey seem oddly prescient given the country’s devastation.

    The band have been given special permission to leave the country to perform tonight – although one member remains at home, fighting on the front line.

    Psiuk says their participation sends an important message. “For our country it is so important to have victories in all ways. So if we win, it will be another opportunity to show Ukraine to the world. To remind people about Ukraine. And to increase morale in the whole country.”

  15. The story of Ukrainepublished at 21:07 British Summer Time 14 May 2022

    Joe Inwood
    Ukraine correspondent

    KalushImage source, Getty Images

    This year's Eurovision is surely the most political in a long time.

    Russia has been banned. Ukraine is the runaway favourite to win, buoyed by a general sense of solidarity around the rest of the continent.

    But, this year’s event is political for other reasons too. The Kalush Orchestra, the act which will represent Ukraine tonight, was not the country’s original choice.

    That was Alina Pash, a 29-year-old rapper and former reality show contestant. But when it was alleged she had visited occupied Crimea, she was dropped amid public outcry.

    That is when the Kalush Orchestra, a folk rap group from Western Ukraine, got their chance.

    Dressed in traditional outfits and drawing on the country’s long but repressed musical traditions, they are an implicit rebuke to the suggestion, oft repeated by Vladimir Putin, that Ukraine is not a real country but merely Little Rus, a region that needs reintegration.

    But tonight, when the Kalush Orchestra take to the stage, they will be representing a nation that is increasingly confident in itself.

  16. Ukrainians set for Eurovisionpublished at 21:07 British Summer Time 14 May 2022

    Sophie Williams
    BBC News, Lviv, Ukraine

    Usually, as anywhere, many Ukrainians would watch the event in public places such as bars and restaurants.

    But with Ukrainian cities under various curfews, it's more likely that people will be watching from their homes.

    Despite this, the mood here is still very positive. There is a lot of hope that Ukraine will win the competition and also put the situation here in the spotlight.

    Support for the country's entry, performed by Kalush Orchestra, has swelled since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February.

    Russia is banned from performing this year following the invasion.

  17. Is Ukraine’s win inevitable?published at 21:04 British Summer Time 14 May 2022

    Lakush OrchestraImage source, Getty Images

    Ukraine have been the presumed favourites for months, with bookmakers giving them a 60% chance of winning tonight.

    Host Mika says that the surge of goodwill towards the country, and their act Lakush Orchestra, is almost guaranteed to translate into votes tonight.

    “I can’t deny that when Ukraine walked onto the stage in the semi-final, I had tears in my eyes, because the entire arena erupted,” he says.

    “No matter what flag people were holding, they stood up and gave them a standing ovation and the sound was just enormous.”

  18. Netherlands - S10: De Dieptepublished at 21:03 British Summer Time 14 May 2022

    Mark Savage
    Music correspondent, BBC News

    S10Image source, Getty Images

    S10 is the stage name of 21-year-old Stien den Hollander who, based on this song, spent a lot of lockdown listening to Taylor Swift’s folklore album.

    Her gentle, effective ballad reflects on the mental health problems she had as a teenager, and how she put them behind her. “Everyone experiences difficult times in their lives,” she says. “That’s something we all have in common and I hope you will feel less alone when you listen to the song.”

    Surprisingly, Stien is the first contestant from the Netherlands to perform in Dutch since 2010.

  19. Spain – Chanel: SloMopublished at 20:59 British Summer Time 14 May 2022

    Mark Savage
    Music correspondent, BBC News

    ChanelImage source, Getty Images

    The UK might feel hard-done by at Eurovision, but poor old Spain hasn’t won since 1969.

    Hoping to break that 52-year losing streak is Chanel, whose slinky pop song was originally written for Jennifer Lopez.

    Watch out for one of the night’s most exacting, exhausting dance routines. Chanel even breaks out a crab bend at one point. Simply stunning.

  20. And it's song nine...published at 20:58 British Summer Time 14 May 2022

    Sir Terry WoganImage source, Getty Images

    Every year, we all like to raise a glass to the late legend, Sir Terry Wogan, who was the UK's Eurovision commentator for nearly 40 years.

    Why during song nine? Graham Norton has said Sir Terry always advised him to have a drink early on in the show so he settled on song nine and now it's tradition.

    Cheers Sir Terry!