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Iconic Moments from Eurovision 2022

Blog by Sianna Madigan | Student Engagement Coordinator 

As you may know, over the weekend 25 countries competed at the Eurovision Grand Final in Turin, Italy. However, if you don’t enjoy a 5 AM wake-up on Sunday mornings, then you may have missed some of these iconic moments.

1. France singing in Breton and being absolutely robbed in the results

Audience response to the entry from France was wildly positive, so it was especially surprising when they placed second last (seriously, how did that happen??)! Aside from the performance being genuinely amazing (which it was), one of the widely appreciated aspects of the song contest, is its revival, and centring of traditional languages on a global stage.

The choice of Alvan & Ahez to sing a ‘celtic EDM’ song in Breton was incredibly well-received by the public, so hopefully the results aren’t discouraging to future acts seeking to branch out.

2. Will somebody please give that wolf a banana already?

What screams Eurovision more than morph suits, backup dancers dressed vaguely like minions and feeding wolves named Keith a banana? According to Norway, not much.

As soon as ‘Subwoolfer’ (yep, that’s really their name) hit the stage, Europe was instantly obsessed with the mythos of the wolf masks. Although, only time will tell if the performance is capable of reaching the heights of beloved Eurovision fan favourites like Verka Serduchka and Buranovskiye Babushki.

3. Moldova. Need I say more?

Eurovision ’22 can safely be considered the year of the ballad, much to the dismay of fans online, who were waiting (somewhat impatiently) on something upbeat and quirky to take the stage.

Moldova didn’t keep them waiting too long, however, exploding onto stage with their energetic performance of ‘Trenulețul’.

Ultimately, they came in seventh place, but they’ll always be number one in our hearts.

4.The return of Måneskin

Last year’s winners, and global sensation, Måneskin, returned to the Eurovision stage to perform their new single ‘Supermodel’.

https://twitter.com/thisismaneskin/status/1525814104283291651?s=20&t=b4titYkssnftJukoU9O0fg

5. WE GOT POINTS! 

The UK’s Sam Ryder chanting, “we got points!”, quickly began trending on Twitter as it was televised, with fans from over the world equal parts surprised and amused.

 

The UK is notorious for performing poorly when it comes to points at Eurovision, just last year receiving a total of zero points overall. This year, however, was a completely different story. Not only did they place second (!!!), but they also received more points than their last 11 (yes, 11) entries combined. Following on from Sam’s success, perhaps we can expect to see more TikTok stars hitting the Eurovision stage in the future.

6. How do I vote for Mika?

This year, popular hitmaker, Mika, was one of three Eurovision hosts. His enigmatic personality, awkward jokes, confusion about the difference between Holland and Poland, and glittering performance earned him a place as one of the evenings highlights, leaving many viewers asking: how do I vote for Mika?

7. UKRAINE’S VICTORY!

From folk music, to rap verses, to pink bucket hats, to break dancing and frequent flute solo’s, this year the Ukrainian group the Kalush Orchestra, broke records to achieve a VERY worthy victory with their song ‘Stefania’.

https://twitter.com/Eurovision/status/1524110612883775494?s=20&t=z8Afc3fuVTT-D5VOmzGq-g

 

After the jury voting catapulted the UK to first place, it was a nail biting wait as audience votes were announced. Ultimately, the Kalush Orchestra received a record-setting 438 public votes, leaving them with a combined total of 631 (the second highest vote total in Eurovision history).

With Eurovision ’22 done and dusted, you now have a whole year to prepare for 2023, and what will probably be another very early wake up call.

 

 

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