The grand final of the 67th annual Eurovision Song Contest takes place in Liverpool tonight, May 13.
The first semi-final took place on Tuesday night, and saw Croatia, Czechia, Finland, Israel, Moldova, Norway, Portugal, Serbia Sweden, and Switzerland get through.
The second semi-final took place on Thursday night, and saw ten more countries – Albania, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Lithuania, Poland and Slovenia, through to the final.
‘The Big 5’ – France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom automatically qualified for tonight’s final along with last year’s winner: Ukraine.
Unfortunately, Irish entry Wild Youth missed out on a coveted place in the grand final.
During tonight’s Eurovision Flag Parade of all 26 grand finalists, viewers will be treated to a unique performance by some iconic past Ukrainian Eurovision contestants.
GO_A, Jamala, Tina Karol, and Verka Serduchka will take to the stage to perform a new twist on their Eurovision entries weaved with British classics when, and remind viewers why they became Eurovision favourites.
The first interval act will see last year’s runner-up Sam Ryder take to the stage.
The final interval act – ‘The Liverpool Songbook’, is a celebration of the host city’s incredible contribution to the world of pop music.
The BBC have brought together six iconic past Eurovision acts – Italy’s Mahmood, Israel’s Netta, Iceland’s Daði Freyr, Sweden’s Cornelia Jakobs, Duncan Laurence from the Netherlands – plus Liverpool’s very own Sonia.
Ahead of tonight’s performance, Eurovision 2022 winners Kalush Orchestra said: “We’ve been looking forward to performing in Liverpool ever since it was announced as host last year. The city has a world-renowned musical heritage and we’re delighted to finally be able to announce what an honour it will be for us to be there.”
“While we’re sad that we couldn’t bring the Eurovision Song Contest back to our home country, we’re really grateful to the UK for hosting this party on our behalf,” Kalush Orchestra continued.
“We will perform for everyone in Ukraine to remind us that better days and our country’s victory is ahead, as well as to show the world what Ukraine is fighting for.”
Meanwhile Eurovision 2022 runner-up Sam Ryder says: “What an honour to be invited back to the Eurovision stage for a second time!”
“I can’t wait to be back amongst the beautiful chaos of it all and to watch the incredible artists perform this time around, while bringing you a special performance of our own. Big love!”.
