Eurovision Song Contest 2014

Teamshadowclan

Teamshadowclan wrote: »

Its weird though; we see it as a competition big acts should want to avoid cause it could damage their reputation.

Other countries send their biggest acts because they don't see it that way. It's that attitude I think we'll need to change before we actually do well again.

This - absolutely.

As for trying to 'tick all the boxes' to appeal to a certain type of audience, that's exactly what we shouldn't be doing. The Netherlands sent something different which we've never seen the likes of in Eurovision before and they came second.

Austria didn't just win because they sent a drag act with a beard, they won because Conchita's performance was outstanding. She wasn't expected to win at all until people saw her performance in the semi final on Thursday.

Lord TSC

Welsh Megaman wrote: »

Really enjoyed the show last night, one of the best in recent memory

Tips for Ireland next year...

1. No mentors
2. No cultural stereotypes
3. Select a young act and let them write their own song without any outside interference, or influence from Lulu Walsh

Job done

An excellent plan.







The plan is fail to qualify again, right?

Galwayguy35

Hazel Kaneswaren was giving out in yesterdays paper about acts who have "their boobs out" getting through while Ireland didn't qualify.

Sounds like sour grapes to me, and in fairness there was a fair bit of boobage on display from the Irish singer as well.

hotmail.com

Welsh Megaman wrote: »

Really enjoyed the show last night, one of the best in recent memory

Tips for Ireland next year...

1. No mentors
2. No cultural stereotypes
3. Select a young act and let them write their own song without any outside interference, or influence from Lulu Walsh

Job done

4. No RTE interference.

Mr.Nice Guy

5. A broad range of choice. Instead of the usual shortlist of five, follow the lead of Norway and others and have a shortlist of at least ten songs.

mikaela89

Hi everyone. As a Swedish person I know very little about your national selections, but it seems you had too few to choose from. Here in Sweden the competition goes on for 4 weeks, with 8 new songs every week, and then 2 entries every week qualifying for the grand final where we choose the Swedish entry for Eurovision. I'm not saying this is the ideal format, but it does give you more than lets say 5 songs to vote for.

This year's entry from Ireland just wasn't catchy enough. It was too midtempo and forgettable. Also, Kasey seemed very uncomfortable on stage. I loved Jedward 2011 and I think thats the type of music you need to go for. Whatever you do - DON'T send Johnny Logan. It won't work. (Look what happened with Dana international 2012, or Charlotte Nilsson 2008. People don't want old.)
Best of luck for 2015!

DubVelo

Remember that songwriting competition TV show on RTE last year? That was great, if they can make that why are the Eurovision efforts so sh1t?

gavmcg92

Welsh Megaman wrote: »

Really enjoyed the show last night, one of the best in recent memory

Tips for Ireland next year...

1. No mentors
2. No cultural stereotypes
3. Select a young act and let them write their own song without any outside interference, or influence from Lulu Walsh

Job done

and something for us...

This process is going to take time. Look at Austria. This is their first win since 1966. These things take time and a lot of luck. There's a win for us in the distant future no doubt.

Greenmachine

sunbabe08 wrote: »

ohhh booing russia it's not their faults with whats going on

Go away out of that, we should raise civil sanction against russia across the board refuse to recognize their nations status. Refuse them entry in any kind of international competition. At the end of the day they were representing the country. Why people feel up in arms because they "were only 17" I will never know. Would it have been okay if they were 37.

Mr.Nice Guy

Greenmachine wrote: »

Go away out of that, we should raise civil sanction against russia across the board refuse to recognize their nations status. Refuse them entry in any kind of international competition. At the end of the day they were representing the country. Why people feel up in arms because they "were only 17" I will never know. Would it have been okay if they were 37.

What a load of rubbish. Israel have done far worse than Russia the past decade and haven't faced this kind of criticism.

The booing was petty and unnecessary. As if Putin gives a toss. The ones it upset the most were the two teenagers.

fryup

was the skit with graham norton and the presenters pre-planned?

XxMCRxBabyxX

fryup wrote: »

was the skit with graham norton and the presenters pre-planned?

I read somewhere (possibly here!) that he knew about the camera but not the confetti.

Greenmachine

Mr.Nice Guy wrote: »

What a load of rubbish. Israel have done far worse than Russia the past decade and haven't faced this kind of criticism.

The booing was petty and unnecessary. As if Putin gives a toss. The ones it upset the most were the two teenagers.

We are talking about right now. People get booed all the time have you ever watch a poor performance. The motivation for the booing is irrelevant.

Mr.Nice Guy

Greenmachine wrote: »

We are talking about right now. People get booed all the time have you ever watch a poor performance. The motivation for the booing is irrelevant.

The motivation for the booing is relevant because they were booed to make a political point which they had nothing to do with whatsoever. They are just a couple of teenagers who were made into scapegoats by a petty crowd.

Hercule Poirot

Mr.Nice Guy wrote: »

The motivation for the booing is relevant because they were booed to make a political point which they had nothing to do with whatsoever. They are just a couple of teenagers who were made into scapegoats by a petty crowd.

Agree 100% - even the woman who announced Russia's results got booed, nothing to do with performance or any of that nonsense - and it was wrong, it's not as if the two girls are responsible for Russia's foreign policies, it was petty and uneccessary

emanresu esrever

ShaneMc2012 wrote: »

I thought that aswell but looking at the results from around Europe that's exactly what Belgium did. There is a massive Armenian diaspora in Belgium and in order to get rid of the diaspora vote the jury placed Armenia 2nd last.. As bad as Poland were I dont think Armenia was the 2nd worst song in the Final. If Belgium did it whats to stop Ireland?

http://www.eurovision.tv/page/results?event=1893&voter=BE

exactly what I said, I genuinely believe this is what happens. It is suspicious, unfortunate and a little bit scammy, but I prefer this than the alternative which is pure bloc voting.

Atlantic Dawn

My 7th k post in rough seas of a winter that hasn't yet died I am getting shook and aged below the water line. I'm not up to J Logans recovery but if he is doing lessons in old school recovery I am all in...

December2012

In all seriousness - do you think RTE actually want to win it? Would the cost of hosting be off putting?

Atlantic Dawn

December2012 wrote: »

In all seriousness - do you think RTE actually want to win it? Would the cost of hosting be off putting?

Your looking at much more costs for the provider than they will ever make back but for the host country it will make probably 10 times as much in tourism and tourism exposure.

Lord TSC

Atlantic Dawn wrote: »

Your looking at much more costs for the provider than they will ever make back but for the host country it will make probably 10 times as much in tourism and tourism exposure.

I vaguely remember reading that it actually usually costs the country a bomb; that despite what you'd think, the income doesn't outweigh the expenditure.

Will say i loved the interval videos last night; in recent times, I've become numb to 100 people dancing on stage. The funny videos were actually completely different and brilliant, and showed you don't need to spend a load of money to make a memorable interval act.

Been looking at the split televoting/jury results. For the third year in a row we did better with the televoters; Ireland came 9th with them and would have made the final instead of Malta had it been only the televoters deciding. The juries, however, ranked us last. LAST!
If it had all been juries then Macedonia would have made the final instead of Poland.

We finished in 12th, only one point behind Lithuania but there was a big gap (16 points) between them and Slovenia in 10th place. So we can't really say that we came close.

"Cake to Bake" fans will be happy to know that it finished 10th with the televoters in Semi Final One! :eek: Latvia and Portugal (who came 6th) would have made the final instead of Montenegro and (surprisingly) Azerbaijan if it was all televoting. The juries had ranked Estonia in the top ten at the expense of San Marino, which I found strange because I thought for sure that the juries were responsible for San Marino getting through. Goes to show how unpredictable this Eurovision lark can be!

December2012

Atlantic Dawn wrote: »

Your looking at much more costs for the provider than they will ever make back but for the host country it will make probably 10 times as much in tourism and tourism exposure.

Teamshadowclan wrote: »

I vaguely remember reading that it actually usually costs the country a bomb; that despite what you'd think, the income doesn't outweigh the expenditure.

So if it costs RTE €xxxxxxxxx to stage and host the Eurovision, but it's not RTE who get the profits (if any are made), then I'm guessing they don't want to win.

gavmcg92

Of course RTE want to win. I find it hard to believe that people think we don't want to. Why would we be consistently bidding for big sports events. Surely this is the same thing. You can't ask for a better platform to market the country. The financial cost is irrelevant. It would be a stripped back show but it's worth getting the credit card out for.

As for the talk about our position in the semis. After a couple of days to take it in, I think 12th position is pretty fair for our performance. As much as I hate the Belarusian entry, his vocals were better than Kaseys and so too was their staging. The only thing I can't get my head around for our semi was Israel's position as second last. That doesn't seen fair. It was my favourite song this year.

December2012

I'm guessing that hosting sporting events are costs of the sporting body and not the broadcaster?

Yeah I really don't know what's going on with Israel. Their entries for the past three years have all been pretty good, yet they never make the final anymore. Their participation next year is in doubt due to plans the Israeli government have to to shut down the national broadcaster.

There were a good few entries that I thought deserved better placings this year. France was a lot of fun and certainly didn't deserve the wooden spoon. I never thought I'd feel sorry for Azerbaijan given how they've been so overrated almost every year (and due to reports of vote fixing) but "Start a Fire" was one of their finest entries and I thought they deserved a higher placing this year. Same with Italy, it was my favourite Italian entry since their return to the contest and yet it's the first to have not finished in the top ten. I guess they're both songs that benefit from repeated listens and weren't quite instant enough to make an impact on the average Eurovision viewer.

On the other hand, Ukraine and Denmark certainly did not deserve top ten finishes imo; I've always disliked the Swedish entry and was never mad about Russia or Spain but I can at least understand why they would appeal to some, and to be fair all three did have very good vocal performances. Ukraine and Denmark though....aside from the hamster wheel I fail to see anything redeeming about either of those two horrible entries. Sympathy votes and voting for the hosts, I guess?

dloob

Was having a look at some of the jury televote splits.
Funny to see Poland number 1 with the televote in the uk and Ireland but rated last by the juries.

Sam Kade

Damn, should have put a thousand on the bearded lady :mad:

aramush

I think I read somewhere after the 2011 contest RTE were "relieved" that they didn't win because they'd have to host it. As far as I can see, all RTE want is for the Irish entry to get into the final, boost ratings for the Saturday night and nothing more.

efb

@WillMcHoebag: Four countries are to withdraw from #Eurovision tomorrow. One is a "Big 5" nation. The others are rumoured to be Israel, Poland and Russia.

efb

Please let Azerbaijan be one, recon Italy is "Big 5" one

gavmcg92

December2012 wrote: »

I'm guessing that hosting sporting events are costs of the sporting body and not the broadcaster?

Not sure really. To be honest, if the government is willing to splash the cash for the gathering then I can't see why they wouldn't be willing to give rte a couple of million to host the event. I'm still not buying the "rte don't want the event" argument. I don't think it has any merit. On top of all this, the EBU is regularly having meetings with delegations and national broadcasters about the possibility of financial assistance if a smaller country was to win the competition.

gavmcg92

efb wrote: »

@WillMcHoebag: Four countries are to withdraw from #Eurovision tomorrow. One is a "Big 5" nation. The others are rumoured to be Israel, Poland and Russia.

I think it could be France... They don't get great ratings for the show like some of the other big 5. Although I wouldn't be surprised if it was Italy which is a shame. As for the others... Poland is a good bet. Can't imagine it will be Azerbaijan. They've more money than sense or maybe they were secretly told by the EBU to take a break for a few years xd. Maybe Ukraine with their current financial problems?

Just reading there on twitter that it's definitely not the UK. Some journalists are saying that they think it might be France with viewing figures for the first semi final possibly being as low as 20,000. That seems ridiculously low might not be true.

ItsChecoTime

Would it become a 'Big 4' then or would another country be promoted to being part of the Big 5?

yerwanthere123

ItsChecoTime wrote: »

Would it become a 'Big 4' then or would another country be promoted to being part of the Big 5?

Would likely stay a big 4.

If we have to lose one of the big 5 I'd want it to be France, they've been irrelevant in the competition for quite some time, and their refusal to sing in English means that it's unlikely they would ever win.

yerwanthere123

murpho999 wrote: »

How were The Netherlands robbed when the got less points by quite a margin?

In a week's time you won't even remember the Dutch song.

I can assure you that that's not true.

XxMCRxBabyxX

yerwanthere123 wrote: »

Would likely stay a big 4.

If we have to lose one of the big 5 I'd want it to be France, they've been irrelevant in the competition for quite some time, and their refusal to sing in English means that it's unlikely they would ever win.

I think that's what killed it for them this year. They had a fun quirky sing with a fun quirky story except the lyrics were in French so we didn't really get to hear that story and it lost that angle

Jesus Wept

Galwayguy35 wrote: »

Hazel Kaneswaren was giving out in yesterdays paper about acts who have "their boobs out" getting through while Ireland didn't qualify.

Sounds like sour grapes to me, and in fairness there was a fair bit of boobage on display from the Irish singer as well.

She talks utter nonsense and has never done anything musically successful in the slightest to justify having anything to do with it.

gavmcg92 wrote: »

Of course RTE want to win. I find it hard to believe that people think we don't want to. Why would we be consistently bidding for big sports events. Surely this is the same thing. You can't ask for a better platform to market the country. The financial cost is irrelevant. It would be a stripped back show but it's worth getting the credit card out for.

As for the talk about our position in the semis. After a couple of days to take it in, I think 12th position is pretty fair for our performance. As much as I hate the Belarusian entry, his vocals were better than Kaseys and so too was their staging. The only thing I can't get my head around for our semi was Israel's position as second last. That doesn't seen fair. It was my favourite song this year.

It's not RTE's mandate or benefit to promote the country, they aren't Failte Ireland.

yerwanthere123 wrote: »

Would likely stay a big 4.

If we have to lose one of the big 5 I'd want it to be France, they've been irrelevant in the competition for quite some time, and their refusal to sing in English means that it's unlikely they would ever win.

They can sing in whatever language they wish, they were the only country that didn't give their vote in English which was pure ignorance.

Galwayguy35

I though the Italian song was the best to come out of there in years.

efb

yerwanthere123 wrote: »

I can assure you that that's not true.

Every breath you take, I'll be watching you...

efb

Our Year wrote: »

She talks utter nonsense and has never done anything musically successful in the slightest to justify having anything to do with it.



It's not RTE's mandate or benefit to promote the country, they aren't Failte Ireland.



They can sing in whatever language they wish, they were the only country that didn't give their vote in English which was pure ignorance.

French is an official language of the EBU

NipNip

Mr.Nice Guy wrote: »

The motivation for the booing is relevant because they were booed to make a political point which they had nothing to do with whatsoever. They are just a couple of teenagers who were made into scapegoats by a petty crowd.

It wasn't personal! I'm sure they were intelligent enough to figure that much out. Peaceful 'protesting' or expression of dissatisfaction with hostile behaviour and/or archaic brutal discrimination is fair game in my view. You have seen the youtube clip of what Russian military did to two peaceful protesters from Pussy Riot? If not, here you go:

WARNING: this video is extremely graphic and probably upsetting.

http://www.thejournal.ie/pussy-riot-sochi-1324316-Feb2014/

December2012

Ryan Tubridy on the radio now is just saying himself that the song selection process next year has to change and is wondering if "they" will keep it in the Late Late Show current format.

gavmcg92

Our Year wrote: »

It's not RTE's mandate or benefit to promote the country, they aren't Failte Ireland.

I think as the state broadcaster it is expected of them.

Amik

With Poland, do you think the Irish, UK and Dutch juries took into account the size of the Polish diaspora in their countries when voting to bring down the result? In each Poland was voted dead last but tops in televotes.

Ash.J.Williams

CountyHurler wrote: »

I'm not sure that there was a huge problem with the mentor system... The problems only occurred when the mentors shamelessly used the opportunity to promote themselves or their friends... Cormac Battle picking his own song?? The Roe woman picking her own sister? These people really should be ashamed of themselves

However if Cormac submitted a kerbdog song and performed it, we would have done a lot better!

gavmcg92

Amik wrote: »

With Poland, do you think the Irish, UK and Dutch juries took into account the size of the Polish diaspora in their countries when voting to bring down the result? In each Poland was voted dead last but tops in televotes.

I don't think so no but others would agree with you. I know if I was on a jury the polish entry would also have been down near the bottom of my list.

strandroad

Amik wrote: »

With Poland, do you think the Irish, UK and Dutch juries took into account the size of the Polish diaspora in their countries when voting to bring down the result? In each Poland was voted dead last but tops in televotes.

I think that juries were brought back to vote on merit specifically, as the pure televote solution turned out to be too political. Therefore the issues of conflicts (Ukraine-Russia), politics, diaspora influence etc can still have impact on the televote but the juries are supposed to ignore them all completely and only judge what they see on stage. Poland was somewhat entertaining but with all that porn circus going on it was not a serious attempt and was judged as such...

gavmcg92

mhge wrote: »

juries were brought back to vote on merit specifically... the juries are supposed to ignore them all completely and only judge what they see on stage...

That's the plan anyway. Doesn't always work out like that :P *cough* Armenia and Azerbaijan*cough*

NipNip

mhge wrote: »

I think that juries were brought back to vote on merit specifically, as the pure televote solution turned out to be too political. Therefore the issues of conflicts (Ukraine-Russia), politics, diaspora influence etc can still have impact on the televote but the juries are supposed to ignore them all completely and only judge what they see on stage. Poland was somewhat entertaining but with all that porn circus going on it was not a serious attempt and was judged as such...

Or men voting for women stroking a pole in a barrel!

yerwanthere123

yerwanthere123 wrote: »

Would likely stay a big 4.

If we have to lose one of the big 5 I'd want it to be France, they've been irrelevant in the competition for quite some time, and their refusal to sing in English means that it's unlikely they would ever win.

Aww I hope they don't, though I wouldn't blame them if they did. I usually like the French entries. "L'enfer et Moi" was in my top five last year and "Moustache" definitely did not deserve to finish last this year. Also I think it would be a shame to see one of the few countries that doesn't sing in English withdraw. I enjoy listening to songs that are not in English and the one thing I disliked about this year's Eurovision (which was one of the most exciting in ages) was the lack of entries in other languages. We should submit our entry next year as Gaeilge as some form of protest! :P

I always hate seeing any country withdraw; I'd love it if all eligible countries participated and we ended up with a contest with 50+ entries!!