United by Music

This year's Eurovision Song Contest is drawing ever closer, so it's time for me to put a few more of our competing entries under the spotlight. If you missed the first instalment in this series, you can catch up  here . Today, I'm discussing the songs from Germany, Italy, Malta, Romania and the United Kingdom. Germany: Sarah Engels – “Fire” Germany’s Eurovision track record over the last decade has been inconsistent, with only occasional highs surrounded by frequent lower finishes. As a member of the ‘Big Four’ (formerly the ‘Big Five’), the country automatically qualifies for the final, which removes the pressure of qualification but often exposes entries directly to the harshest competition. This year’s German entry, “Fire” by Sarah Engels, emerges from a revamped national selection process, which it won after impressing both an international jury and the German public. The song has a clear mission: deliver a polished, accessible pop anthem that can appeal broadly acr...

Welcome to the first batch of my Eurovision 2026 song reviews. If you haven't read any of last year's reviews, it's really quite self-explanatory. Each time, I will discuss a few of this year's competing entries: artists, songs, lyrics, live performances and anything else that catches my eye. Last year, I promised to keep predictions to a minimum, though I did find that quite difficult! Whilst I won't be making any concrete predictions here, I will also talk about my assessment of each song's chances in Vienna. So without any further ado, let's begin with entries from Albania, Azerbaijan, Croatia, Moldova and San Marino. Moldova: Satoshi – “Viva, Moldova!” Despite its small size, Moldova has largely been successful at Eurovision over the last two decades. The country is loved by fans for its attitude towards the contest and fun back catalogue of entries, which is why there was such disappointment last year when Moldova announced its withdrawal from the conte...

After earning its second Eurovision victory in three years, Dutch broadcaster NTS declined to stage the contest again, having done so in 1958. As the United Kingdom had finished second the previous year, hosting rights were passed to the BBC, who hosted the fifth Eurovision Song Contest on Tuesday 29 th March 1960 at the Royal Festival Hall in London. All eleven participating countries from the 1959 contest returned, and were joined by Luxembourg, returning after an absence of one year and Norway, appearing at the contest for the first time, bringing the number of entries to a record thirteen. The contest was presented by Katie Boyle (though she used the name Catherine Boyle at this point in time), marking her first of what would become four Eurovision appearances. Katie presents the show in English, which was helpful for me! For the first time, I was also able to find a video of the contest with English commentary. David Jacobs provided commentary for the BBC, and this was also bro...

Before you read this post about Eurovision 2026, I encourage you to have a look at my statement on this year’s contest. All of a sudden, the line-up for the Eurovision Song Contest 2026 is complete! After another crazy couple of weeks of national finals and internal selections, we now have our full cohort for Vienna and can finally start listening to the songs on repeat for the next couple of months. Before things get even busier in the world of Eurovision, let’s remind ourselves of everything that’s happened recently. Firstly, to Romania , where national final Selecția națională was held to choose the country’s first Eurovision act since 2023. Twelve acts competed, including 2022 Romanian representative Wrs, and the results were determined entirely by a panel of seven jurors. In the end, Alexandra Căpitănescu won her country’s ticket to Austria, where she will perform “Choke Me” in May. She will be hoping to bring Romania to the Eurovision final for the first time since 2022...

The Eurovision Song Contest 1959 was staged in France by host broadcaster RTF. After winning the contest the previous year, France was given right of first refusal to host the event, and elected to do so in Cannes, with the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès being chosen as the venue. The contest was held on Wednesday 11 th March. Eleven countries participated, with Monaco making its debut appearance at the contest, and the United Kingdom returning after its absence in 1958. For the first time, Luxembourg was not represented at Eurovision, after broadcaster CLT rejected the proposed entry without enough time to select a replacement. The stage included three revolving platforms, which were all partitioned into segments like a revolving door, with various scenic backdrops to represent the participating countries. Our presenter for the evening is the iconic Jacqueline Joubert, who does a much better job of managing proceedings than Hannie last year, and presents the show entirely in...