IT’S GOING TO BE A DOUZE-Y!
It’s that time of year and even though Ireland hasn’t qualified – again! – you can still enjoy the mayhem with your own personal scorecard
WE have missed out yet again on a place on the big stage, as Brooke Scullion inexplicably failed to advance from the semi-final with her catchy pop tune That’s Rich. The Midas touch that made us the boss of Eurovision has deserted us.
We have qualified for the Grand Final just once in the last eight outings — and, hard though it is to believe, it is 26 years since we last won it.
That doesn’t mean we can’t sit back tonight and enjoy the madness of it all, as hosts Laura Pausini, Alessandro Cattelan and Mika take us through the 25 songs battling it out for the Grand Prix trophy in the PalaOlimpico in Turin, while on RTE One, Marty Whelan casts a sardonic eye on it all for the home audience.
Over the years, Eurovision has become a little too staid, so thank heaven for Norway singing about wolves eating bananas, the Spanish singer showing up in her pelt, Moldova bringing mad folk energy to it all and, much harder to understand, Serbia singing about washing our hands. Which, let’s be honest, probably is what Ireland should do now of the whole competition.
Anyway, sit back and relax, enjoy
your cuppa or your glass of wine, and use our guide to keep track of the 25 finalists, with all the hashtags for you to follow on social media, and handy boxes for you to score each entry.
Cheer for your favourite, feign a gasp when Greece awards its top points to Cyprus, laugh at every wardrobe malfunction, and clap when the all but inevitable result, a win for Ukraine, is announced. It’s time for Eurovision 2022!