Ryan’s very Misérables start on his road to the Eurovision
AS IRELAND’S Ryan O’Shaughnessy lit up the Eurovision stage, the Irish Mail on Sunday can reveal his first ‘Misérables’ stage experience.
Irish entry Ryan O’Shaughnessy, 25, was an unlikely figure among the favourites to win the tournament before a note was sung last night in what has been a rollercoaster journey for the native of Skerries, Co. Dublin.
His former secondary school,
‘Ryan showed command of the stage at school’
Portmarnock Community School, tweeted its support for the past pupil along with pictures of him on stage in a school production of Les Misérables as well as pictures of him playing the saxophone and guitar in his school uniform during his time at the north Co. Dublin school.
‘Ryan showed his command of the stage in Portmarnock CS production of Les Mis. Make sure to vote early and often on Saturday,’ the school tweeted before the result last night.
The Irish entry was third last to take to the stage. It followed a bizarre interruption which saw a man climb onto the stage and momentarily grab the microphone from UK entry SuRie before he was removed by burly security men.
Scoring in the contest is a mixture of judges’ votes – which are cast during the dress performance on Friday night – and the public vote, with each country awarding a maximum of 12 points.
O’Shaughnessy was a 200/1 outsider with his song Together before the semi-final, but betting odds on the Dubliner were slashed to 8/1 following his performance on Tuesday night and an influx of cash was wagered on an Irish win. Controversially, Chinese TV censored part of his performance which showed a love story between two male dancers and rainbow flags on stage, leading to the European Union’s Broadcasting Union to ban China from airing the competition and in turn winning the Irish entry new-found fans.
Russian commentators described the performance as a great ‘male friendship’, leading O’Shaughnessy to tweet ‘#LoveIsLove’.
Among the notable entries in this year’s competition was Israel, with performer Netta performing what can only be described as a modern take on a chicken dance accompanied by dramatic facial expressions and clucking sounds.
It was tipped as one of the pre-contest favourites, which is surprising given that when Ireland went the poultry route and sent Dustin the Turkey to represent the nation at Eurovision in 2008 with his plucky tune Irelande Douze Pointe after he won the public vote to be sent.
The Israeli entry was the twentysecond to go on stage, two slots before Ireland, while the other favourite Cyprus performed immediately afterwards.
Ireland has won the Eurovision on seven occasions, with the most recent success 22 years ago when Eimear Quinn’s The Voice stole the show in Oslo.
Last year’s winner, Salvador Sobral, performed during the interval to his local crowd despite recently recovering from heart surgery.
The event is reported to cost in the region of €20m, with the fee picked up by the host broadcaster and the other participating broadcasters.
O’Shaughnessy is no stranger to Irish TV screens. The former Fair City actor previously made it to the finals of Britain’s Got Talent and also appeared on The Voice Of Ireland and RTÉ songwriting competition The Hit, having departed Carrickstown to peruse his musical career.
O’Shaughnessy made it into the final by the finest of margins, taking the final semi-final place.
It was the first time since 2013 that an Irish entry had made it into the final of the Eurovision – when Ryan Dolan represented Ireland but ultimately finished in last place of the 26 contestants.
Odds on the Dubliner were slashed to 8/1