Eurovision final: 10 things to look out for

The expansive last of the Eurovision Song Contest kicks disconnected successful Liverpool tonight, with Sweden and Finland among the favourites to win.

The amusement volition bespeak the civilization some of its big metropolis and past year's winner, Ukraine, who could not signifier the amusement owed to Russia's invasion.

Ukraine's 2016 victor Jamala, 2007 entrant Verka Serduchka and the UK's Sam Ryder volition besides perform.

The UK volition beryllium represented by Mae Muller, whose way I Wrote A Song volition beryllium the past introduction performed earlier the nationalist ballot opens.

"When I locomotion connected stage, I'm going to person to instrumentality a 2nd to truly centre myself due to the fact that those 3 minutes spell truly fast," she told the BBC.

The amusement volition beryllium presented again by Alesha Dixon, Hannah Waddingham and Ukrainian vocalist Julia Sanina, with Graham Norton joining them during the voting stage.

Along the way, we'll spot a Vogue dancer dressed arsenic a cat, a antheral escaping from a packing case, and tons of women writhing connected the level (it's a thing, for immoderate reason).

The interval volition showcase the "Liverpool songbook" with tracks by John Lennon, Melanie C and Gerry and the Pacemakers performed by erstwhile Eurovision contestants.

And for the archetypal time, countries that don't vie volition beryllium fixed a accidental successful the results - with viewers from the US, India and elsewhere contributing a "rest of the world" vote.

Here's what other to look retired for connected the night.

Austria's Teya & Salena are the archetypal enactment connected stage, with a opus astir being possessed by the tone of American writer Edgar Allen Poe, who compels them to constitute a deed opus that earns them a declaration with Universal records.

Underneath that, the song's truly a commentary connected the euphony industry's mistreatment of songwriters, At 1 point, the duo chant "zero dot zero zero three", successful notation to Spotify's paltry royalty rate. "Give maine 2 years and your meal volition beryllium free," they deadpan.

It's each wrapped up successful a slick electropop bundle that features the chorus, "Poe, Poe, Poe, Poe, Poe, Poe". Which successful German translates arsenic "bum, bum, bum, bum, bum, bum." Objectively amazing.

Not to beryllium mistaken for Jim Carrey successful Dumb and Dumber, Finnish rapper Käärijä has delivered 1 of this year's astir audacious Eurovision songs.

Cha Cha Cha is an unhinged premix of concern metal, punishing techno and a happycore video crippled soundtrack, that talks astir the spiritual fulfilment of getting unsighted drunk and dancing similar an idiot.

He illustrates this by dancing similar an idiot, successful a costume that screams "the Incredible Hulk got stuck mid-transformation".

Speaking to the BBC earlier this week, helium revealed that his lime greenish bolero sleeves person been nicknamed "the cabbage worm", successful honour of a concatenation of Finnish enactment shops.

Naturally, this is 1 of the favourites to win.

Rumours person been swirling each week that a enigma impermanent volition marque an quality during the expansive final. Some accidental it volition beryllium section leader Paul McCartney, others deliberation it's Princess Kate. The lone happening we cognize is that we don't know.

"I thought it was going to beryllium Charles and Camilla giving retired the points, but seemingly it's Catherine Tate," joked Radio 2's Eurovision commentator, Rylan Clark.

"There has been immoderate worldly happening successful rehearsals wherever it's been a wholly closed set," divulged his co-host and Eurovision hubby Scott Mills. "There's a batch of secrecy and no-one volition archer america what's going on."

"But," Rylan added, "give maine 2 drinks and I'll archer you everything."

For months now, Swedish prima Loreen has been the bookmakers' favourite to triumph Eurovision.

She's already Eurovision royalty, having won the contention successful 2012, and her latest introduction is simply a precision-tooled earworm called Tattoo.

The lyrics are astir a emotion truthful heavy its engraved connected your bosom (like a tattoo, bash you see?) but the full thing's conscionable an excuse to amusement disconnected Loreen's powerhouse vocals, including an fantabulous "you-hoo-hoo" spot successful the chorus.

She sings it portion squashed betwixt 2 elephantine LED screens - fundamentally a space-age toasted sandwich shaper - and portion she's usually enactment perfect, she went a small off-piste successful 1 of this week's rehearsals.

Asked astir it successful a property conference, the diva smiled and dilatory laughed earlier replying: "Wasn't transportation perfect, darling? What are you talking about?" What a legend.

Mae Muller isn't the lone UK hopeful successful this year's contest. Nicola Lambrianos - an Adele impersonator from Essex - is singing backing vocals for Lithuania's entrant, Monika Linkyė. What's more, she inspired Monika to instrumentality part.

The 2 performers met successful a barroom past twelvemonth and, aft striking up a speech astir music, Monika revealed she'd sung astatine Eurovision successful 2015 (she placed 18th with the opus This Time).

"I was beside myself due to the fact that I'm obsessed with Eurovision," Nicola told the BBC. "So I said to her, 'Do you cognize anyone that could get maine a ticket?'"

"I made a committedness to get her a ticket," said Monika, "then I went backmost to Lithuania and wrote the opus successful 1 evening."

A mates of weeks later, she invited Nicola to Lithuania to sing successful the country's enactment process... and they won.

"I saw each this confetti travel down, and I looked implicit astatine her and said, 'Did we not conscionable gag astir this 4 weeks ago?'" said Nicola. "And present I'm doing Eurovision - a imagination I never, ever thought was possible."

Noa Kirel has been called Israel's Britney Spears - she's scored 4 fig 1 singles, won 5 MTV Awards and been a justice connected Israel's Got Talent, each portion serving a compulsory two-year stint successful the Israeli army.

She co-wrote her opus Unicorn with Doron Medalie, who composed Israel's 2018 Eurovision winner, Toy. But the existent item of her show is simply a breath-taking, 30-second creation breakdown.

"When I was 2 oregon 3 years old, I utilized to creation successful my surviving country successful beforehand of my household and I was like, 'Clap your hands astatine the extremity of the show'."

But though she's studied ballet, flamenco and hip-hop; and danced connected immoderate of the world's biggest stages, Eurovision has been haunting her dreams.

"I imagination astir the show each the time. Somebody is pushing maine to the signifier and I don't cognize what I'm going to bash and what I'm going to sing and the assemblage are each looking astatine me.

"To beryllium portion of it and to correspond your state connected 1 of the biggest stages successful the world, it's precise stressful."

You won't spot them but Eurovision's backstage squad are the existent heroes of the contest. They're successful complaint of 23,700 airy sources, 482 costumes, 150 microphones, 100 wigs, 3,000 constitution brushes - and making definite everything runs seamlessly.

Every enactment has their ain unsocial look. At assorted points, the signifier is adorned with a vintage Toyota MR2, a elephantine alien pod, a trampoline, and 2 atomic warheads (not existent ones, we're assured), And the stagehands person conscionable 53 seconds betwixt each show to wide the signifier and erect the adjacent props.

"The velocity is the hardest part, due to the fact that everybody's requests were beauteous acold retired there," says lighting manager Tim Routledge, "but we're present to marque their dreams travel true."

They've developed immoderate nifty tricks to marque it each happen. The signifier itself is really a elephantine LED screen, which turns into a "map" for each the props betwixt acts.

"We utilized to people the level up with tape, truthful it got beauteous messy," says signifier decorator Julio Himede. "Now it's virtually conscionable an relation with an iPad pushing a button."

"The creator adjacent gets a small 'T' people connected signifier to amusement them wherever to stand, and past we cognize the spotlight volition deed them exactly."

All week, French prima La Zarra has been carrying a replica of Mr Bean's acheronian brown, button-eyed teddy carnivore everyplace she goes.

"He is my mascot," she told the BBC. "Maybe helium volition beryllium appearing connected signifier with me. Maybe nether my dress."

There's surely plentifulness of country nether there. La Zarra performs connected a elephantine rising platform, with her formal billowing and cascading down to the floor. It makes her look similar 1 of those toilet rotation dolls your gran utilized to have, lone French and glamorous.

Already a immense prima successful France, La Zarra is hoping to beryllium the 1 to interruption the country's 45-year losing streak astatine Eurovision.

Her song, Evidemment is simply a chic fusion of Edith Piaf's sultry majesty and Daft Punk's filtered disco, that contains the night's champion lyric: "I'm looking for love, but I can't find anything, conscionable similar successful my purse."

Eurovision was conceived successful the 1950s with the imagination of uniting countries aft the war, truthful authorities has ever been kept astatine arm's length.

But portion Ukraine's President, Volodomyr Zelensky, has been denied the accidental to speak, the contention includes plentifulness of different nods to Russia's penetration of his country.

Croatia's Let 3! instrumentality to the signifier successful bloodstained overcoats, performing an anti-war opus that's a metaphor for the Russian Federation.

They mock dictators for being "childish" and "psychopaths", with peculiar accent connected Russian President, Vladimir Putin.

The "tractor" that's referenced respective times successful the lyrics is seemingly a notation to Belarusian President, Alexander Lukashenko, who has supported Russia successful the warfare and gave Putin a tractor for his 70th birthday.

Czechia's entrant, Vesna, sing parts of their song, My Sister's Crown, successful Ukrainian. "My sister won't basal successful the country / Nor volition she perceive to you," they chant. "We're with you successful our hearts."

Ukraine's ain entrant, Tvorchi, besides marque notation to the warfare successful their song, Heart of Steel. A juddering, disorientating portion of synthpop, it was inspired by the siege Azovstal, and the civilians who defended the town's alloy works.

For the past 8 years, Australia person been welcomed into the glitter-flecked arms of Eurovision arsenic honorary Europeans.

The country's affection for the contention goes each the mode backmost to Abba - a nationalist obsession down nether - and millions regularly get up astatine 5am to ticker the opus contention live.

In 2014, Darwin-born vocalist Jessica Mauboy was invited to execute successful the interval. The adjacent year, Australia was allowed to instrumentality portion arsenic a "wildcard" entrant.

Their woody runs retired this twelvemonth - but the Aussies are truly going for it. Prog metallic set Voyager get successful a blaze of pyrotechnics and keytar solos, with a opus that sounds similar a transverse betwixt Duran Duran and Panic At The Disco.

Lead vocalist Danny Estrin, who's an migration lawyer successful his mean life, says he's grasping the accidental with some hands.

"It's thing that I deliberation each creator should strive to bash due to the fact that it is truthful wonderful," helium told the BBC.

"And it besides gives radical an accidental to yet spot us, whether they similar it oregon not. They are forced to spot it. That vulnerability is truthful fantastic for a set that comes from a niche market.

"It's a large deal. It's the top amusement connected Earth."

A look backmost astatine must-see Eurovision history: scandals, juicy moments & controversy.

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