Well thought best to write something within 1 week of returning from Eurovision, rather than leaving it 1 year like last time though! You can see why it's tempting to leave it, though... it's such an intense week, micro-focusing on everything that's going on (and boy was there a lot of keep refreshing this week!), then a massive crescendo at pace on Saturday night, and you are spat out exhausted back into Gatwick by mid-afternoon Sunday. The only way to cope is to rapidly cut off the Eurovision oxygen supply!
However after a tough few days emotionally and physically, we're just about back on an even keel after an amazing week. It was a lot of fun - despite what social media may have you believe, there was joy and dancing and the usual enjoyment all around. Yes there were some weird undertones - and, guys, we found ourselves in the same hotel as Eden and the delegation for the first part of the week so we had it, guns and all! - but if you didn't let them get to you, or read Twitter too much (this was the year that the 'fandom' truly took leave of its senses) then it was fine. Of course the booing and the tension at times was real - it was always going to be - but at the end of the day Eurovision soldiered on, thanks of course to an amazing script by Edward af Sillen, brilliant hosting by Petra and Malin, and overall the solid SVT touch that kept the show on the road with laughter (lots of it - so many great sketches and skits!) and nostalgia. Tak!
What of the results? Probably don't have the energy for a lengthy exposition, but we will say that Switzerland was a great winner and watching Nemo sing their lungs out impeccably while jumping around that stage was quite the spectacle and deserving of all that jury love. We didn't necessarily go mad for the song on first listen, it was something of a grower, but it truly deserves its place in the illustrious hall of Eurovision fame.
As for the UK... well, a mixed bag. It certainly was a relief to see us creep into the left-hand-side from the Jury votes (at one point it felt like we were going nowhere, but some lovely juries put us top 3 - again, tak Sverige!). Given the massive excitement from people we speak to on Sunday who had seen the staging in the arena, and the talk of 'top 10' at that point... well, at least they weren't totally wrong that it had appeal! The televote result was a bit of a gut punch, though. This article has some thoughtful perspectives of perhaps why it didn't connect in the end. The key is we need to Keep Trying - we're not totally off-beam - we will find a way.
Was great to see France back in the top 5. Being as French as they can be seems to be their secret to success (cf. 2021). How can we be even more British? I mean Sam probably best typifies that sound, if we are to be cliched about it. What's the next version of that?
Right, as we continue to decompress and process the entire thing, we'll leave it here and look forward to speaking, no doubt in 11 months time, with our 2025 Top 10 before we step on a plane to Zurich/Basel/Geneva!
But to end: it was wonderful to be back in Sweden, and I hope it won't be long until they get their 8th win and we return to Stockholm. Marcus and Martinus executed the brief and got a creditable 9th as a result - we think our 'good luck' vibes helped!
