Eurovision is an annual international song contest in which participating countries from Europe (and in recent years, some countries outside of Europe) submit an original song to be performed live on television. The contest has been held since 1956 and is one of the longest-running television shows in the world.
Each country that participates in Eurovision selects a song and performer through a national competition or internal selection process. The countries then compete in two semi-finals, with the top performers from each semi-final advancing to the final. The final is broadcast live across Europe and in other parts of the world. During the final, each country casts votes to determine the winner, with a panel of judges and viewers at home each having 50% of the vote. The country with the most votes is declared the winner and gets to host the contest the following year.
Eurovision has become a cultural phenomenon and is known for its over-the-top performances, catchy tunes, and extravagant staging. It ranks among the world’s most watched non-sporting events every year. Last year’s edition of Eurovision reportedly attracted over 161 million viewers in 34 different markets.
Traditionally held in the country which won the preceding year's event, the contest provides an opportunity to promote the host country and city as a tourist destination. Thousands of spectators attend each year, and journalists are present to cover all aspects of the contest, including rehearsals in venues, press conferences with the competing acts, and other related events and performances in the host city.
This year will be the 67th edition of Eurovision. The 2022 winners Ukraine will not be hosting this year as the country has been ruled unsafe due to the ongoing conflict. Instead, the runners-up UK were given the responsibility which led to a fierce bidding war from many cities across the country all fighting for a chance to host this year's edition. But ultimately the city of Liverpool was victorious and means that The United Kingdom will host the Eurovision Song Contest for a record 9th time.
The main event of Eurovision - the grand final - will take place on Saturday 13 May, kicking off at 8pm. There will be two semi-finals in the run-up, one on Tuesday 9 May and one on Thursday 11 May. There will be a total of 37 countries participating in this year's Eurovision. Of the 37 nations taking part, 31 will compete in two Semi-Finals with 10 successful acts from each Semi-Final joining 4 of the Big 5 (France, Germany, Italy and Spain), hosts the United Kingdom and Ukraine in the Grand Final.
Mae Muller will be representing the UK. She will be performing “I wrote a track”, a song written about an ex-lover. But she is far from a novice in the music scene as having previously supported Little Mix on their tour in 2019 and has a US Top 10 with her platinum-selling single, “Better Days” released last year. Like last year's UK representative Sam Ryder, she brings to Eurovision an established following on social media with over 2 billion streams on YouTube and 6.7 million monthly listeners on Spotify.
Whilst the tickets for the final sold out in 36 minutes earlier this month, Eurovision will be broadcast live on BBC One for UK viewers. Viewers will also be able to watch the live shows on the official Eurovision YouTube channel.