Eurovision.

[InsaneApache]

It's that most wonderful time of the year!

I'm going to get well and truly bladdered so I miss the show.

But wait, this is a catastroff...

Ireland will not appear in this year's Eurovision Song Contest final after its entrant, Dustin the Turkey, failed to qualify from the first semi-final.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7411958.stm

Blimey, a stroke of genius.

[edyzmedieval]

Dustin the Turkey?
Is he edible?

[scotchedpommes]

gobble?

[Big King Sanctaphrax]

Looking forward to it, although I only watch it for Wogan slamming the politicised voting blocks and getting progressively more insulting as the evening wears on.

There's also a Eurovision drinking game you can play which is good for a few laughs.

[Gaius Scribonius Curio]

I'm also looking forward to Wogan's antics.

There's also a Eurovision drinking game you can play which is good for a few laughs.

Details?

[InsaneApache]

Summat to do with national drinks IIRC.

IE; Vodka=Poland, Brandy=France, Whiskey=Ireland, Geneva=Netherlands, Raki=Greece.......etc etc.

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

Looking forward to it, although I only watch it for Wogan slamming the politicised voting blocks and getting progressively more insulting as the evening wears on.

That's nice. Our commentator in Germany is called Peter Urban and he finds everything fantastic. It's a real shame, the cowardly over-correct not-wanting-to-hurt-anybody idiocy.... I think I'll watch the final, but I will regret it I know, as the slavo-tartaric-scythic-communist block of fivehundred hundredthousand-inhabitant-countries will pass the points just between themselves. Same procedure as every year.

[cmacq]

Strange??? Dat bard dinna' luk na Polish?

[cegorach]

That's nice. Our commentator in Germany is called Peter Urban and he finds everything fantastic. It's a real shame, the cowardly over-correct not-wanting-to-hurt-anybody idiocy.... I think I'll watch the final, but I will regret it I know, as the slavo-tartaric-scythic-communist block of fivehundred hundredthousand-inhabitant-countries will pass the points just between themselves. Same procedure as every year.

OH no it is not. The single thing I like about this gross show is the voting - it is a quite good representation who likes who.

Poland for example traditionally votes for Italy, Hungary finishing with Ukraine which often gets 12 point, especially after 2004.
Recalling the 2005 voting I must say it is affected by political conflicts to a large degree - Ukraine which traditionally gets a decent number of votes from Russia got much less and it was boooed by the audience (the competition was in Ukraine).


And when it comes to your griefs, well... nobody really likes Germany, but at least you are not like the poor British who often end up only with some charity votes from Ireland and Malta.


Plus, you can rejoice this year since Poland with our American singer of Polish roots (she has a powerful voice, not such a terrible song and is orange) got to the finals and you already know you should vote for*.


For some reason the people we are sending to this nonsense competition are always getting a large number of votes from Germany - realy hard to understand that sometimes.

[PBI]

And when it comes to your griefs, well... nobody really likes Germany, but at least you are not like the poor British who often end up only with some charity votes from Ireland and Malta.

Indeed, although given some of the terrible songs we enter I would be ashamed if we were to do well. I was actually quite pleased the year we managed to get nil points, quite a hard achievement nowadays with so many countries in it.

I do think we should take a leaf out of Yugoslavia's book, however, and enter as the home nations (England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland), thus quadrupling our voting power overnight.

Regarding drinking games, last year we tried drinking every time a country gives points to a neighbouring country. This is not recommended.

But then again, I really wouldn't want to try and watch the thing sober.

[cegorach]

Indeed, although given some of the terrible songs we enter I would be ashamed if we were to do well. I was actually quite pleased the year we managed to get nil points, quite a hard achievement nowadays with so many countries in it.

I do think we should take a leaf out of Yugoslavia's book, however, and enter as the home nations (England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland), thus quadrupling our voting power overnight.

The problem is that if you are REALLY going to follow their example you would have to go through the entire war experience as well...
Celtic vs Rangers and similar clashes do not really count I am afraid.

[Andres]

The single thing I like about this gross show is the voting - it is a quite good representation who likes who.

Apparently, nobody likes Belgium

[cmacq]

The problem is that if you are REALLY going to follow their example you would have to go through the entire war experience as well...
Celtic vs Rangers and similar clashes do not really count I am afraid.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe they did go through the entire war experience thing; several hundred years of it? You know; to quell the savage Scots, wild Picts, warish Welshers, Billy-Wallace, Orange-Billy, the Jacobites, and all that sundry rubbish?

[Lt Nevermind]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe they did go through the entire war experience thing; several hundred years of it? You know; to quell the savage Scots, wild Picts, warish Welshers, Billy-Wallace, Orange-Billy, the Jacobites, and all that sundry rubbish?

Correct, but now they would apparently have to reverse this long process to get something alike with that in SE Europe, right?


Anyways, I find the contest more than enough entertaining, espescially if you compare it with the average reality-TV show on the next channel. What could be better than mostly rubbish music combined with sparsely dressed artists (ok, not ours for that sake...) with a nice who-likes-whom-and-who-has-the-most-neighbors voting session afterwards as saturday night entertainment? Nothing!

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

Strange??? Dat bard dinna' luk na Polish?

Woas redst doa, i hob nie wos gsagt...

The bad thing is that the only abroad-Germans are in Oberbayern (that Oberbayern on Mallorca I'm talking of), and so the only ones who vote for us are "the brave Spaniards".

[cegorach]

If you are thinking that those people abroad have so much interest in Eurovision and in voting for their countries, I am afraid it is not really true.

Just think why Poland didn't qualify to the finals for last three years despite supposedly huge number of dedicated supporters abroad.

I cannot speak for other nations - but at least with us there was no difference seen of felt in any results, especially when the migration was at its peak - now it is no more so large.

Of course that just give some people another excuse to see a conspiracy and dirty tricks everywhere. I recall the rumours in Russia why Ukraine won some time ago - because Ukrainians abroad voted for their country - which proved, yet again to be completely not true.

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

I don't recall exactly the results of Poland, and I won't deny that the voting behaviour has at least something to do with the music. But I'll give the following hint: The biggest foreign communities in Germany are Turkish, then Russian and Polish. And Turkey always gets 12 points from Germany (wonder why the native Germans always like the Turkish songs best, hehe), followed by one or two of these nations, depending on which had the nicer song.

I think East Europe and West Europe should perhaps make each their own song contest. So each group could stick to its favourite style of music, the easterners to their polka / lonesome goat herder / steppe dance music, and the westerners to their usual poppy fancy dance übergay music. Not that I like either one these types.

[cegorach]

I think East Europe and West Europe should perhaps make each their own song contest. So each group could stick to its favourite style of music, the easterners to their polka / lonesome goat herder / steppe dance music, and the westerners to their usual poppy fancy dance übergay music. Not that I like either one these types.

I didn't knw there was any favourite style we could find - I believe that the poorest and most popular Czech music is equally popular in Germany and Austria so perhaps they also should make their own competition who sucks more ?


And where is the supposed border between both parts of Europe ?

Legacy of the Roman Empire includes half of former Yugoslavia, Bulgaria and Romania.

Christianity all except Turkey and Albania.

Catholic-Protestant area would exclude only the said two states + the orthodox countries.

Latin alphabet, renessaince, baroque, democratic traditions, political systems, free market economy, EU membership, NATO, Ottoman conquests, beer vs wine ?

In any of those something critical is missing.

Of course unless of course you are going to rebuild the Iron Curtain because what is exactly a difference between Irish sheep herders and Bulgarian sheep herders now - both sing equally badly after a couple of drinks whatever...





The show is bad and I have stopped watching it since the time English could be chosen as the singing language, but voting is still something I enjoy and you personally have a problem with ex-Yugoslavia voting for each other i suggest to split like they did.




I for once really enjoy Balcan folk music - when it appears I suppose it is a nice change from the generally poor show offered by virtually everyone in this competition.

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

I didn't knw there was any favourite style we could find - I believe that the poorest and most popular Czech music is equally popular in Germany and Austria so perhaps they also should make their own competition who sucks more ?

What czech music? I don't know anything specifically czech, really. The Czechs I saw yesterday made bad western-style disco song.

And where is the supposed border between both parts of Europe ?

[...]

Of course unless of course you are going to rebuild the Iron Curtain...

You gave yourself the answer, nothing more simple than that.

The show is bad and I have stopped watching it since the time English could be chosen as the singing language, but voting is still something I enjoy and you personally have a problem with ex-Yugoslavia voting for each other i suggest to split like they did.

Good idea, I maybe propose it (at least for Eurovision).

[Craterus]

We'd win if we entered this.

[Moros]

I'd actually vote that guy, if it weren't for Finland.

[InsaneApache]

We'd win if we entered this.

By gum that takes me back to my twenties. When I was in-between wives, I dated a loverly Irish gal who misheard his name on the radio. She thought he was called Rick Athlete. Always raises a smile when I see him and remember that.

[shlin28]

... and Russia won!

I liked the Greek one though.

[Craterus]

Eastern Europe/Asia will own the competition for a long time now. Huge voting bloc. Shame, Russia's entry was crap. Greece had it's merits

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

Congratulations Poland! The only Eastern European country stuck with the poor Westerners at the bottom... And congratulations Norway, your song was bad but hey, perhaps they just mixed up their results and the Polish results??

My favourite song was Croatia!! And France! And Armenia were my favourite legs!!!

[Lt Nevermind]

Sad that Russia won with that song, but I guess they would win eventually as they have chased victory so determined for the past years.


Would have preferred any of the runner-ups more, though my favorites were perhaps Albania and Turkey. Own language FTW! See you in Moscow, до свидания Дима.

[Sarmatian]

Ukraine, Greece and Bosnia were the best for me. Although I may be biased cause I'm officially in love with the Ukranian singer. And Albanian was nice, too. If she would agree to a night with me, I would be ready to change my view on Kosovo . I know, I'm weak, I can't help it...

On the subject of block voting, as Cegorach said, you just need to go through what we've gone through. You could even say that current Yugoslavia voting block is a direct result of foreign policies of those countries whose residents are now bitching because they have less votes. So, instead of several medium strong countries we now have dozens of micro-countries with barely sustainable economy doing bidding of more powerful countries in the west. But on the other hand, we get more votes in Eurovision. Lucky us! We really get all the breakes here...

[Justiciar]

Bill Bailey said previously that he'd shoot for a go..

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=59nfsS...eature=related

Bloody ejit went to Australia instead. Sod's law.

[Craterus]

Who saw the Swedish guy broadcasting the Swedish votes?

Hic?

[Tony Furze]

Bring back Michael Flatley!