Eurovision in Nottingham would be 'boost for city'

The UK's Sam Ryder was pictured in a pink Kalush Orchestra hat, in a nod to this year's Ukrainian winners

Councillors could submit a formal bid to host Eurovision in Nottingham after it was revealed the contest will be held in the UK.

The show will be hosted by the BBC in 2023 after organisers decided it could not be held in winning country Ukraine due to the ongoing war.

Nottingham City Council has now announced it will consider formally applying to host the show.

But it will wait to see the bidding criteria before appplying.

Traditionally, the country which wins usually stages the following year's competition.

One of the venues that could host the contest is the Motorpoint Arena

But show organisers the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) opened talks with the BBC last month after assessing the situation following Russia's invasion.

Glasgow, Manchester, Leeds and Liverpool have already expressed an interest in hosting the contest.

A city council spokesperson said: "Nottingham has great credentials to host a prestigious and internationally popular show like the Eurovision Song Contest.

"It would be a fantastic honour and boost for the city, placing Nottingham on the world stage as the televised broadcast reaches over 180 million viewers.

"The city is perfect for visitors with plenty of things to see and do, is compact with a superb green travel network and has great transport links for national and international visitors.

Ukraine's Kalush Orchestra went on to play at Glastonbury last month

"We look forward to the publication of the detailed bidding criteria and process to then consider whether we will be able to formally apply to be the host city."

Oleh Psiuk, the lead singer of 2022 winners Kalush Orchestra, expressed his gratitude to the UK for holding the event "in support of our country".

He said he was "very sad" that Ukraine could not host the contest but said he hoped it would "celebrate our beautiful, unique culture".