Eurovision 2023: John Lydon fails in bid to be Ireland's act for Liverpool

John Lydon, the erstwhile Sex Pistols frontman, has failed successful his bid to correspond Ireland astatine Eurovision.

The 67-year-old had hoped his opus Hawaii, astir his woman Nora who lives with Alzheimer's, would beryllium chosen "to bring awareness" to the disease.

Instead the set Wild Youth was chosen to alert the Irish emblem astatine the opus contention successful Liverpool successful May.

They're up against 14 different countries who'll beryllium chopped down to 10 successful a semi-final.

Despite its grounds 7 wins, Ireland has lone qualified for the expansive last doubly since 2013.

Speaking aft their triumph was announced, Wild Youth's vocalist Conor O'Donohoe said: "I'm shaking, we anticipation we tin bash the champion job".

The radical person antecedently supported Lewis Capaldi, Niall Horan and The Script connected circuit and person been tipped to beryllium the adjacent large set to interruption retired of Ireland for years.

The victor was selected by TV viewers, and nationalist and planetary juries made up of euphony experts.

In the end, the effect came down to the nationalist ballot arsenic Wild Youth were tied connected points with different act, each being backed by 1 of the juries, but the set edged up connected the nationalist vote.

Lydon's radical Public Image Ltd - which helium formed successful 1978 aft the Sex Pistols divided - was part of the six acts who performed connected Irish TV's the Late Late Show connected Friday night.

Host Ryan Tubridy told BBC News it was a "beautiful reason" Lydon hoped to correspond Ireland.

"We were talking astir however neurologically euphony tin trigger thing that allows radical to remember," helium said.

"He loves his woman and helium wants her to beryllium recognised and helium wants her illness to beryllium spoken astir and yet cured."

During rehearsals Lydon told the BBC helium was tense astir the imaginable of being selected to beryllium the Irish entry, due to the fact that it would mean much clip distant from Nora, who's being looked aft by household astatine location successful Los Angeles.

Alzheimer's affects astir 1 cardinal radical successful the UK and 55 cardinal worldwide. Numbers are expected to emergence importantly implicit the coming decades.

In 2022 the archetypal cause to dilatory down the information was described arsenic "momentous", though its interaction volition assistance aboriginal diagnosis alternatively than radical with the information now.

Dementia UK said: "By choosing to stock his acquisition done this contention and his opus Hawaii, much consciousness tin beryllium raised astir dementia."

The winners, Wild Youth, appeared shocked connected signifier arsenic their sanction was announced arsenic the Eurovision hopefuls.

"I conscionable wanted to bash this due to the fact that it was thing fresh," O'Donohoe told BBC News. "So galore radical ticker it now, it's an astonishing contention and it's fun."

The United Kingdom is hosting the contention connected behalf of Ukraine, who won successful 2022.

Wild Youth's We Are One joins a fistful of different songs already announced for the opus contention this year. In full 37 countries volition enactment and the broadcasters progressive person until precocious March to corroborate their acts.

Eurovisioncast is disposable connected BBC Sounds, oregon hunt wherever you get your podcasts from.