Eurovision: My Countdown To Sweden 2013

Hello Europe!!! ... It's almost that time of year again! The Eurovision Song Contest 2013 will be hosted from Malmo, Sweden. So the countdown is well and truly on! I am extremely excited for this years contest, I won't lie I can't actually wait because I missed last years show due to being in America! Calling all my American friends! I love you all but you'll never know what it's like to miss watching the Eurovision Song Contest! So, who's going to be getting douze points and who's going to be losing with nil points! 

Eurovision was blessed with a spectacular and spicy Turkish Delight in the form of established Turkish pop singer 'Sertab Erener'. Debuting her song 'Everyway That I Can' at the Skonto Hall in Riga, Latvia this showcase happened to be on the night of my first Eurovision back in 2003. I have a great connection with Turkey and honestly thought that 'Sertab Erener' sang her heart out for her country! 'Everyway That I Can' encapsulated some authentic Turkish qualities such as; belly dancing in a fashion that appeared to be contemporary. I will be honest, I was rooting for Turkey more than for the United Kingdom.

Turkey has fared very well during their reign of Eurovision, this catchy Turkish anthem would do everything it could to get those douze points! Turkey performed quite early on during the show, with 'Sertab' singing 4th in the competition so she had a long time to wait till the results would be announced. 'Everyway That I Can' scored 167 points, coming first and winning the competition! I couldn't believe it, well I knew Turkey would be the winners! I just had a gut feeling! From that night onwards I would be a avid Eurovision fan, maybe one day I could be in the audience cheering along to the campery and fabulousness! So, it was set in stone that Turkey would host the 2004 Eurovision Song Contest in the city of Istanbul!

Rewinding back to a time where I didn't know about the Eurovision Song Contest a milestone was made in Birmingham at the 1998 contest. 'Dana International', the Israeli entry became the first ever openly 'transgender' performer in the history of the contest. Miss International sang 'Diva' a upbeat pop anthem, having pride in her Israeli nationality she sang the entire song in the Hebrew language. 'Dana' made it to the top spot with 172 votes beating the other twenty-four candidates in the competition. 

Looking back at footage from what I have seen of her performance I wish had watched that contest because her outfit was stunning! It's clear to see that the Eurovision Song Contest stands to be a very expecting competition, let's hope that 'Dana International' won't be the only transgender singer to ever perform at this contest! But, hang on! 2007 brought the fabulous performance by the Ukrainian entry. 'Verka Serduchka' drag superstar from Ukraine performed a camptastic spectacle, her song being 'Dancing Lasha Tumbai' whatever the song actually meant doesn't matter because the performance was out of this world! Let's never forget the ultimate 'Diva' will always be 'Dana International'. 

The Eurovision Song Contest is no stranger to a slice of political drama but 2007 brought a whole different story. Serbia made the brave decision to make its debut entry as an independent country, representing with a truly poignant song with a heartfelt message. 'Marija Serifovic' made her debut performance for her country with her song 'Molitva' which translates into to English as 'Destiny'. 'Marija' was accompanied by five president like 'glamazons'  that held the performance high, portraying strength and humility. 

I believe that Serbia's song was perfectly executed with an aire of power, 'Marija' certainly proved that it takes a great voice to sound like hers did live! It's no secret that this Balkan country of Serbia has been through unimaginable hardship over the last few years, progressing to become a free country away from Montenegro did this sway the voters at all? The continent of Europe took Serbia's debut entry to their hearts and showed their love by voting for 'Marija Serifovic' to push Serbia to first place! Winning with a staggering 268 points, Serbia broke the record for winning the contest when making it's debut. I truly believe that the Eurovision Song Contest would not be the same without a hint of political matter! Good on you Serbia! May your 'Destiny' be as positive as the song!

The Eurovision gimmick is the key to a memorable performance at this contest. It's no secret that the United Kingdom haven't done too fantastic over the last few years, but we are only a small island compared to the rest of Europe on the continent. 2007 brought the revival of early 00's bubblegum pop band 'Scooch', bringing the Eurovision gimmick to the forefront of their performance. Dressed as cabin crew 'Scooch' sang their song 'Flying The Flag For You! This pop-band pushed their trolleys and brought as many innuendos as possible to their performance.

'Scooch' used catchphrases like, 'Would you like something to suck on for landing, sir?' I found this performance to be very catchy, camp with a hint of harmless fun, campery is at the center of all things Eurovision! 'Scooch' only managed to score 19 points and ranked twenty-second on the leaderboard for the 2007 contest in Helsinki, Finland. It's quite unfortunate that the United Kingdom didn't score too well because their spirit was worth a few douze points from our immediate neighbours, well Ireland always comes up trumps with the twelve points for us anyway. I was certainly pleased that a song like this was 'Flying The Flag' for us! I could definitely see myself working it as camp as 'Scooch' did when I become a member of cabin crew in the near future! Well done team United Kingdom!!!

So, there are only 14 days remaining until the Eurovision Song Contest opens in Malmo, Sweden! I shall be featuring 2012's winner Loreen in the next Eurovision related blog publication! Hunties it's going to be access all areas! The Eurovision Song Contest Rules !!! Bring On Malmo 2013 !!! Loreen Will Reign Supreme !!!Joseph Harrison