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Friday, 19 May, 2000, 08:33 GMT 09:33 UK
Eurovision: Is it time to switch the contest off?
The Eurovision Song Contest has reached its customary climax once again.Disclaimer: The BBC will put up as many of your comments as possible but we cannot guarantee that all e-mails will be published. The BBC reserves the right to edit comments that are published.
Denmark's greying Olsen Brothers' soaring anthem, Fly On The Wings Of Love, consigned the usual mix of the mad, the bad and the plain old sad to aural obscurity.
This year's hosts, Sweden, had the honour of taking the contest into a new millennium, but is it now time to consign the show we love to hate to the 20th Century?
Is Europe - famous for its culture, art and fine food - ready for life without the now kitsch Eurovision?
For some the competition has become a cult camp festival not to be missed, for others it is just too awful for words. Is it time to give it a rest?
Eurovision is a highlight of my television year. It is pure entertainment enjoyed by millions across the whole continent and beyond. It continues to go from strength to strength and I hope it will prosper for many years to come. Far from dumping it from the schedules, the BBC should give it a higher profile.
Jonathan King, UK
Whenever the UK does badly this same question pops up from the BBC. What bad losers we must appear to be in the eyes of the other European nationals who have read this page. Had Nikki French won on Saturday night this web page would be asking people where we should stage the contest in 2001. It is not time to scrap the contest but time for the BBC to sort out the pre-selection procedures it currently operates.
Chris Melville, United Kingdom
The ESC is still a great laugh, especially as most of the entries are now earnest and sincere (e.g. Ireland's entry), although I sorely miss the Binga-Banga-Bong type of songs. My own particular favourites were Latvia (a sort of Beck and Jarvis Cocker crossed with Jim Carrey) and the gold lame' Glitter Band with James Whale on rapping duty (I think it was Netherlands or some Scandinavian country). Terrific!
Mike Lander, England
No-one is forcing people to watch it, should there be a similar poll to see if we should axe Eastenders because personally I hate it? I think there will not be - so as the audience figures remain high it should remain (and when not moved to BBC2)!
Sing in your own native language so that
the ESC gets something of its charm back.
Erm, isn't the EUROPEAN aspect meant to mean that it covers Europe? Last I checked Russian and Israel were a little outside Europe. Why not add a few African countries, and America, Australia is keen I hear. I'm sure no one will notice. Nil Points till then!
#Ding-a-dong every hour/When you pick a flower/Even when your lover is gone, gone, gone/Sing Ding-ding-dong#
The Eurovision Song Contest is a farce. All those countries taking part have different cultures and obviously have different tastes in music.
Keep the Eurovision Contest I say! But I do feel that the rules are rather dated, and that they need to look at the way the scoring is done. Countries should not be allowed to give high scores to neighbouring countries. Maybe, just maybe then we could all sit back and enjoy the contest for what it is really meant to signify.
Ollie B is deluded if he thinks that the nation that gave the world The Sun, the Daily Sport, Eastenders, the Spice Girls and the Millennium Dome are culturally superior to anybody, let alone the rest of Europe. However, the Eurovision Song Contest has precious little to do with culture. It's tacky entertainment at its finest, and is 'mostly harmless'.
I think that Eurovision has been a farce for a good while now, I mean come off it Israel is not even in Europe! Israel's participation should not be allowed on the grounds that they are not Europeans, supposedly.
The Eurovision song contest is and will always remain a politically driven entertainment event. Though I find I am most outraged that a small but always fair country like Macedonia has become a victim of Euro-politics, and more obviously the Macedonian and Greek conflict...
Pande Bozinovski, Republic of Macedonia
I completely agree with what Tom from Northern Ireland said earlier. At least the songs involved in the ESC are original, with those involved not interested in commercial gain, unlike most of the dross inflicted on an unwilling public by a music industry incredibly bereft of ideas, regurgitating packaged boy-bands, girl-bands, covers groups, sampling etc.... It's the same old tune being such by the UK media and Anglophile Irish press every year. Scrap the ESC? Scrap the charts more like!
Wouldn't our lives be duller without it?
I've only read in the news about the Russian entry, but I was embarrassed: that performer is horrible! It's a good thing I didn't get to actually see the contest - I would have been even more ashamed for my country than I was during the Ice Hockey World Championships.
Eurovision may be tacky and a bit boring at times but lets face it there's nothing else like it anywhere in the world. So long live Eurovision! If anything the event is in danger of becoming hijacked by wanna-be boy and girl bands if this year was anything to go by.
Eurovision is wonderful! The "voting for your neighbour", the hosts' impatience with the juries, the contest to be this year "nil points" turkey, the handmade costumes, Ireland trying hard not to win and still getting votes, it's all too good to ever be canned. We look forward to our annual Eurovision party for months beforehand. What's the EU's new motto? Unity through Diversity, amen to that!
Eurovision has nothing to do with the promotion of European culture. The quality of the songs are very poor and, generally, do not reflect local European music. I see it as one big circus that helps bring attention to the host country and to the various hand-picked artists.
I agree with Rachel from Israel. Let's ditch the music, and just score the other countries on what we think of them as countries! That would be much more entertaining.
What a gloriously silly contest! Long may it live on! Terry Wogan's caustic humour is worth the 3 hours alone!
Kenneth Jorgensen, UK
I can't believe there is even a debate on this. The Eurovision Song Contest is remarkably popular for some reason and although extremely naff should continue provided it can achieve suitable audiences. Personally I wish it didn't but what can you do.
Of course most of the songs are rubbish but then so are
most of the "songs" on TOTP - lighten up, it's only once a year
The Eurovision Song Contest is quite unique. On the one hand it can be tacky but more importantly it is musical "talent" on a European scale. Although we are all becoming encased in a "global", idealistic world, music remains refreshingly diverse - and long may that continue.
I think that we should keep it. It's more fun than a whole season of cricket and football.
But if people are unhappy with the music chosen to represent our countries, why don't the organisers open up the competition, and give the whole European public the chance to write something for the competition?
It time to end Eurovision song contest since it was obvious on Saturday that politics is involved in voting.
As someone that was actually IN THE HALL let me point out the following:
1) There were NO BAD performances. Songs have a right to be there.. Anyone who knocks performers evidently have never entered the thing!!
2) 150 Million People watched this show. Therefore are they all mad??
3) 535,000 People telephoned their votes in to the BBC. Dispelling the theory that it is becoming LESS popular.
4) How can people say that the "young" Generation has no Interest. Look at the Latvians (Who WILL go well around Europe!) And the Russians, and several others will have hits out of this.
5) The EBU who run the Eurovision will NOT stop it.. As there are 35 countries trying to fill 23 places each year.. and more on the way!!! It must be popular for them to release an Album with all of the songs on it ( A very VERY rare event)
So Finally to all those narrow minded, bigoted, people who THINK they know what the contest is about my answer is simple. You have no clue! It's popular and gaining popularity and will go from strength to strength.
Please keep Eurovision - it serves as an annual reminder of how amusing facial hair can be, and also reminds us that the rest of Europe is just as bigoted as us - Thank you EBU.
Jenny Ashton, Britain
Why bother sending Terry Wogan there - his attitude and jokes were even worse than Swedish ones!
Scrap the Eurovision Song Contest?! Hey, you are just cross because Britain never wins.
As long as Terry Wogan gives his tongue in cheek narration it will be worth watching. If anyone took it too seriously then it would lose all its charm.
Stijn de Jong, Netherlands
Ciaran Smith, Northern Ireland
I think the Eurovision Song Contest is not only boring, it is tacky as well. I watched it last year for my sins and it made me cringe. The songs were awful and coupled with the delays, obvious swapping of marks amongst friendly countries made the whole event a joke.
I've heard of Eurovision before, but I didn't know it was still around. BBC World News reported it yesterday, so I decided to check out the site itself. There were only three songs on there that agreed with me but it would be nice to see the contest broadcast in the U.S. possibly by syndication (kind of like what they used to do with the Montereux Rock Festival). There is a lot of good music across the pond that we don't get to hear.
The songs get a bit tiresome so perhaps we could scrap them and just have an hour of exciting European scoring.
Eurovision is the best event to have a party to. I know, we did this a couple of years ago. It is the best time of year when having a barbecue beforehand
gets the atmosphere going. Then get everyone to 'be' a country and drink
according to the points you acquire. We had about thirty people cheering
in front of our humble little TV throughout the whole event, and it bolstered that brotherly European brotherhood too! It's cheesy, but it hits the spot. Long live Eurovision!
John Norgaard, Denmark
Eurovision is good fun. It may not be high brow but it certainly makes me laugh, and that can only be a good thing. There is only one step from the sublime to the ridiculous and Eurovision is glorious annual proof of this. Besides Britain couldn't withdraw even if they wanted to; they have to enter and have to screen! Hurrah!!
I wouldn't miss the Eurovision! Terry Wogan is wonderful, treating it all with the scepticism it deserves. As I write this we are half way through the voting (delayed telecast) and it is as eccentric as ever! Long may it last in all its kitsch glory.
The contest is in its forty-fifth year, and as long as I can remember, each year we get the same old "It's a load of old rubbish" or "It's about time we stopped taking part" comments. If the BBC took the contest a little more seriously and put a bit of effort into choosing a half decent song which represents British popular music, then the contest might regain just a hint of credibility with the general public. This year apparently was the worst ever result, for the UK, which is hardly surprising if you've heard the song. While they are at it, they would do well to get rid of that idiot Jonathon King who has done them no favours as "Eurovision consultant" over the past few years.
I think we should keep the Eurovision Song Contest just to remind me once a year why the UK should not be part of a "United
States of Europe!"
I am watching a delayed telecast of the contest right now. However I couldn't face the agonising voting process, so I have gone on the net get the result. Sweden singing about North American Indians? What's that all about? Keep the contest going, it's a bit of a laugh!
No, no, no. I wouldn't miss it for worlds. I have many happy memories of such things as the amazing Guildo Horn and his supremely terrible act, the glorious Dana International, and of course all those beautiful views of Ireland. When else do I ever get a chance to hear Finnish songs and Bosnian pop? This programme should be treasured.
Keep it going also looking forward to listen to the clever wit of Terry wogan at least once a year.
Keep it! But why sing in English when Europe has so many different and beautiful languages?
I think it's a great show, yes it's cheesy but its great entertainment on a Saturday night. Terry Wogans sarcasm is a joy to listen to. It should be kept, after all it is only once a year.
Rene Pedersen, Australia
Keep it! Better still, launch a Eurovision channel.
Greg Burton, USA
It's only a bit of fun, what's the problem with that! By the way, has anyone else noticed the resemblance between the opening line of the British entry and Father Dick Byrne's song from the "Song for Europe" episode of Father Ted?
The Eurovision is more to do with political correctness than the music itself. I appreciate the way the BBC air the spectacle but in all honesty, you can catch Terry on the radio now, thus there is little reason to endure the fiasco of European music, which lets face it often hits a bum note
Yes Yes Yes. The Eurovision should be scrapped. All the songs are rubbish, and not even we have a good one.
Steve Hanwell, England, U.K
Keep it! It is the most delightful tongue in cheek piece of kitsch you will ever get.
Me? I shall be down in the pub anyway!
I really hate the Eurovision song contest. The music makes me feel sick. I prefer the UK charts any day, but all these ear screeching songs are horrible and the coverage is annoying as it takes the place of better programs.
It's the biggest non-event of the year.
However, there is no point in axing it, just take it off our screens or consign it to channel 5.
Please BBC, let us have something worth watching on a Saturday evening.
Jason, London, England
Completely agree with Tony in the UK - it's once a year and a good laugh. Why get so serious? Let's hope that Ireland don't win again, or else RTÉ (our national broadcaster) will try to put up our licence fees to pay for next year . My money is on Iceland or the Netherlands. I can't wait.
I find it amazing that no-one thought to comment on the fact that most Eurovision songs nowadays are sung in English. Kind of defeats the purpose!
Perhaps the contest should be
called "the new world order -vision"
The considerable cost to the participants and the host country would be much better spent on better programmes. Perhaps even more could be saved by pensioning off Wogan too!!
Absolutely not. Eurovision is one of the few opportunities left in this bland bureaucratic Europe for some irony and politically incorrect behaviour (the usual Greece-Cyrprus voting system for example!).
Not everybody likes football either but the cup final gets aired on TV.
We all meet up at one of our friends houses every year to watch the
Eurovision song contest and have a great laugh at some of the dreadful
songs that somehow manage to get through to the final. Somehow you
just get taken by the excitement of the evening... lets keep it on the box.
Yet again this same boring question comes up for
discussion. Give it a rest why don't you. The Contest
is three solid hours of harmless fun just once a year.
Is it not too much to ask for us fans to be able to
enjoy the Contest in peace ? Anyway I wonder how many
more programmes get higher ratings on the BBC? Not
that many. Enjoy the Contest and look forward to it
being staged in the UK in 2001, when doubtless this
stupid question will come up yet again.
In spite of the fact that the musical content of the
contest is sometimes poor, every year it produces its
high spots. This year, as an example, the overall
quality and especially the variety of the songs is
quite good - there are only a few really poor efforts
- and songs like the controversial Israeli and the
Latvian (almost Oasis-like) entry may do a lot to
promote the contest to a wider audience. Moreover,
many people love it BECAUSE of its eccentricity. And
at the end of the day, one can forgive the Contest for
all its "La La La"s and "Ding a Dongs" simply because
of "Waterloo" and the group that this spawned.
Leo Mahon, Ireland.
I'm just wondering where this talking point has come
from. Who raised it? Everyone I have spoken with about
Eurovision these past few days has been looking
forward to it. Surely the UK viewing figures alone
speak for themselves. It is such an unusual event. My
opinion is that people who have a bee in their bonnet
about ESC fail to see it for what it is - A naff
spectacle - but a spectacle nonetheless.
I've never seen such a loaded question in all my life.
"Is it enjoyably camp or just awful?" - for heaven's
sake! If people judged the contest as it is now rather than when they last watched it in 1973, then they might
have a different opinion of it. We're in for an excellent night on 13 May, and I hope a few people are prepared to listen without prejudice for some really high quality songs (and yes, a couple of utter stinkers - but it IS a contest!)
What's the point in axing it? If you don't like it,
nobody's forcing you to watch it!
In a nutshell - no.
The very fact that we're talking about it means that
it has a following and that people are interested.
Get rid of the Eurovision Song Contest? Never. This
is just about the only light relief emanating from
self-important Euroland. It's also soothing for we
Americans whom Europeans like to dismiss as cultural
wasters. One Eurovision evening makes us feel, well,
almost equal! We can appreciate the true meaning of that German adjective: kitsch. The great pity is that
they don't broadcast it on US network television,
possibly as revenge for some of the rubbish telly we
As someone hasn't lived in Britain for seven years, trust
me when I say: "You'll miss it when it's gone."
It's only an entertainment show that unites Europe. It's
Entertainment and you can take it too seriously. If UK don't wanna take part that's OK since there
are others who are willing to do so. Also it seems BBC
is not interested to promote the happening to achieve
maximum audience; BBC only makes jokes about it, like
this way: "Then again, you could always go down the pub instead" of watching ESC. What kind of promotion is
that? I hope to see UK in, unfortunately I already know
my county Finland won't take part next year: the reason
is there's not space for everyone and I am not happy.
Steve Wilson, UK
Sums up everything about European integration - an out
of tune, hopelessly tacky, totally pointless, waste of
money, fuelled by bitter-enemies, cronyism completely
repulsive to the British Public.
Keep it! Where would we be without the likes of ABBA
and Bucks Fizz?
And while we're on the subject of Euro TV - bring back Jeux Sans Frontiers! That was one of the best TV
shows of all time.
Please, whatever the BBC does in the future, it
MUSTN'T lose interest in the Eurovision! Come on,
it's one night a year!!! How many endless
repeats/programmes do we have dedicated to sport?
There would, I feel, be a national outcry if you
scrapped support for the Eurovision. Don't even think about it!
I think that this show has been around long enough.
Does anybody even watch it? They never get the big
stars and the whole show is badly done.
It's great fun - just don't take it too seriously!
I've watched every year since Pearl Carr & Teddy
Johnson were our entrants. And I think Terry Wogan
strikes the right balance. It's fun - don't analyse -
Tarquin Farquar, UK
We love the Eurovision, it's the only competition the
UK finish in the top three year after year.
Scott, United Kingdom
I think that the festival has become an awful event
and fully agree that it is time to go for good.
The songs are awful (as all pop music is) but I always
enjoyed watching the scoreboard moving and cheering
for Turkey or Norway (who always got zero).
Mindless rubbish really.
This a great opportunity for Europe to get closer. There
is nothing wrong in it.
It is only naff to the older generation. Youngsters
can put up with it so why axe it?
Iwan Turzanski, Netherlands
Absolutement pas! Nein, nein, nein! Eurovision must
stay, if just for the superb Terry Wogan!
Nonsense! It's the very awfulness of the show that is so appealing. It provides an antidote, or a 'safe fix' for all our petty little bigotries and nationalisms. Nul Points, the final ignominy of the proud nation, causes few sleepless nights, little heart searching, and no real long term antagonism. Greece will give Cyprus 12 points, and vice versa, Spain and Portugal will share Iberian brotherhood, Britain will condescend to give Ireland a few points, which Ireland will wilfully refuse to reciprocate, and nobody will vote for the Germans, unless they send a post-pubescent nymphet, in which case they'll probably win. And Sweden will continue to produce Eurotrash classics that will always be a little kitschier yet classier than the perennial bridesmaid - the UK.
To remove this pageant because some people find it
awful, frankly that criteria would doom every show on
terrestrial, satellite and cable combined. Nothing can
be liked by everyone, but as usual I suspect the
Eurovision will pull in the armchair punters for many
years to come. Vive la difference!!
It's always a shame that is often "fashionable" to
knock Eurovision. The British will not only criticise
success, but we will also dismiss anything we don't
really understand. (The whole of Europe - and the
Eurovision area - knows that the anglophones are
traditionally not very good at other languages, so the
cultural attraction of linguistic diversity is sadly
lost on most BBC viewers. I sincerely hope - even in
these days of "any language goes" - that we continue
to maintain the Eurovision song contest for its
virtues. As a technical feat, it is virtually unmatched
by its achievements - so we should tolerate the
occasional glitch. There is still also a very real need
for the "old-fashioned" notion of unity that can be
brought about by the international language of
song. Life is too short to spend all of it complaining
- let's have fun! Ne partez pas sans moi!
I think that the Eurovision song contest is great - it
may be corny but does anyone not love it?
If the Eurovision song contest actually involved some
fairly decent music it would be OK. As far as I see
it, it is just an outdated boring event that is only
worth watching to see what Terry Wogan says about
You must be joking! There are Eurovision house
parties going on all over the country. I'm sad that
I'm far away and so will miss it this year. Awful
songs, political voting, Terry's light sarcasm, nil
points - this is fantastic stuff! Don't forget to turn
on subtitles for extra amusement.
It's an excuse to sit around the telly and ridicule
everything and everyone. Good family entertainment. We
should keep it as an annual reminder that maybe its
for the best that we should keep a distance from our
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