Milan Stanković may have finished a disappointing 13th in Oslo but he hasn’t come away empty-handed from Norway. The good folks at the House of Eurovision website ran a competition to find the worst dressed 2010 contestant. Milan claimed the victory ahead of competition from Albania, Moldova, Russia and Switzerland. He takes over the crown… Read more
The Norwegians are having a great time hosting this contest. Everything is running smoothly and there’s a great buzz around Oslo. There’s another thing the Norwegians are doing very well and that’s the preparation for their entry. The stage show remains the same apart from two things. The female backing vocalists are now wearing dark… Read more
Georgia had their second round of rehearsals this afternoon and while the phrase ‘throwing the kitchen sink at it’ has been used for several other countries already it’s probably best used for the Georgians. They are over-complicating a song that should stand on its own with a simple presentation. The main colours here are red… Read more
Ireland has been promising a lot for since their first rehearsal on Day 4. Today Niamh and her crew took their second rehearsal in the Telenor arena and were vocally spot on again. Niamh and her backing singers didn’t wear their stage outfits again today but they were shown to the cameras. She will wear… Read more
Norway got their chance to rehearse for the final. The arena was full of Norwegian visitors and they weren’t the only ones wowed by a solid performance from Didrik. They have the black drapes used by Latvia and Belarus and are lit to look golden. There are three female backing singers dressed in purple and… Read more
There’s very little pressure on the Netherlands to qualify or even do well. Sieneke seems to be enjoying herself but apart from the odd hardcore shclager fan not too many are enjoying this. The stage show is still the same. We have the organ and the two figurine style dancers in front of it. The… Read more
Denmark were one of the favourites going into this contest but it’s looking as if they’re struggling just a little bit to live up to that tag. Christina and Tomas were having more vocal problem today. Tomas is higher than she is and it sounds funny. The high notes at the end are causing an… Read more
Eva was on stage again this afternnon for her second rehearsal and everything went as smoothly as the first time. The entry is one of the few that almost everyone in the press centre is very happy with. Eva is now wearing her stage outfit which is a peach and white corset that flows to… Read more
Hera Bjork was polished and professional in her rehearsal today. It may not be everyone’s cup of tea but no one can deny that they know what they want and they’re getting it. Hera is still in the big red dress and her three female backing singers are also in red. The two male singers… Read more
Greece up next and this is going pretty well for Yiorgos and his friends. The stage act hasn’t changed at all, but there have been changes to the camerawork. I’m not sure that Yiorgos is wearing his full stage outfit yet as his white top have a Nike logo on it, which isn’t allowed. It… Read more
Finland belted through three goes of their song in the Telenor arena this afternoon. There’s not much to change here as it’s a pretty well rounded package. There is still the uneplained blob of ice cream on the stage though. The whole stage performance just flows. The stage is still in blue with hints of… Read more
Moldova was first up today and they ran though the motions three times. It was their last opputunity to perform without an audience present. They didn’t change the stage show much. Olia is now stands on a box at the beginning of the song as well as the male lead. She is wearing a tutu… Read more
Sofia had her first chance to run through her song today. Geogia were the second last country to get their first rehearsal out of the way. The stage is good and she is vocally superb but there are a things that need changing with choreography. Sofia was in fine voice today even though her dancers were throwing… Read more
Niamh Kavanagh was on stage in the Telenor Arena this afternoon to rehearse It’s for you. The rehearsal was well-attended and Niamh certainly didn’t let anyone down. Before I say anything else I’ll remind everyone that I’m Irish and this may be a little biased. Niamh only pushed herself vocally for the first two run-throughs… Read more
Everyone in the press centre was woken up to the sound of Sieneke belting through Sha-la-lie this morning at 9am Oslo time. It may not be the best song but it looks like it could well qualify from one of the most competitive semi finals ever. Sieneke was in fine form this morning as she… Read more
The bookies favourite was the second last to rehearse on this, the third day of rehearsals in the Telenor arena in Oslo. Safura’s voice was pretty good but there’s an accident waiting to happen with the props. Safura is joined on stage by four female backing singers and a male dancer. The four female singer… Read more
Tomas and Christina had their first shot at signing on the 2010 Eurovision stage this afternoon. The whole stage shows looks fantastic but there are a few problems that need sorting. The song sounds great in the arena and the vocals sound good there too, but on tv it’s a different story. Tomas is out… Read more
The Lithuanian delegation had great fun on stage in Oslo this morning, the sounded a start to the third full day of rehearsals in the Telenor arena. They managed to keep their pants on for most of their practice. The song is as presented at the national final with the five guys on stage and… Read more
3+2 had their first rehearsals this afternoon and there’s a lot going on. Belarus has several gimmicks and props that they plan to use. The only problem is that it’s all a bit much. There will be the five group members on stage and they’ll be joined by a pianist at a white grand piano.… Read more
Juliana Pasha got her chance to work out the kinks with the Albania stage show this afternoon in Oslo. There were several problems with steadicam shots and major work needs to be done to the camera work as a whole. Juliana is joined on stage by A violinist and three backing singers. The stage is… Read more
It’s proving very difficult for most countries to make the stage look different for their performances this year but Belgium has managed just that. Tom’s song shines in the Telenor arena with a very simple, but effective, set design. Tom stands alone on the catwalk on a very dark stage. He has his guitar, of… Read more
Bosnia-Herzegovina was the last country to take the stage in the Telenor arena in Oslo this afternoon. Thunder & Lightning certainly lived uo to its name when it came to the lighting. It’s very similar in style to Slovenia’s 2001 entry. Vukašin is joined by five backing singers on stage. Two male and three female.… Read more
Aisha had her first crack at singing on the Eurovision stage in Oslo this afternoon. The Latvian delegation had several goes to test out and improve their stage show. Aisha is front and center for this one, as you’d expect. The camera on the crane swoops in at the start of the song and she’s… Read more
Malcolm Lincoln took to the stage at about 11am Oslo time to get his first rehearsal under way. Onlookers were treated to what will be one of the quirkiest stage shows of the contest. Malcolm is joined on stage by a pianist and four backing singers called Manpower 4. Malcolm is wearing a black… Read more
Olia Tira and Sunstoke project started the rehearsals with a bang this morning in the Telenor Arena with Run Away. The managed to get in sound and lighting tests as well as full stage rehearsals. The song starts with the violinist on the walkway to the front of the stage. He is standing on a… Read more
There were a lot of things that people didn’t predict were going to happen before the curtain went up on the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest. Few thought Ireland would claim its third victory with the two rock’n’roll kids and nearly bankrupt RTÉ. And even fewer thought that Riverdance would become one of the biggest shows in… Read more