Eurovision 2009 - The Favourite to win - Norway

Alexander Rybak - Fairytale - This is the song the bookies are betting will win - Folky pop by a violinist boy from Belarus who now calls Norway home - Is this the winner?

RIP - Bea Arthur

Known best as 'Bossom Buddy' Vera Charles from Mame, '70's pro feminist' Maude from Maude and my favourite Dorothy from 'Golden Girls' - she will be greatly missed. Here singing ' "What'll I Do?" RIP Bea.

Eurovision 2009 Highlights continued - Sweden

Malena Ernman - La Voix - This is definately gets my vote for 80's DIVA award of Eurovision 2009 - Especially like ' Crazy Opera face' [3:05] similar vein to crazy choir face, but sung with operettas instead of choral music.

Eurovision 2009 Highlights - Hungary

Zoli Ádok - Dance With Me - is possibly the gayest song ever - but its a little catchy and yes I would dance to it at the Peel on a Friday night if the moment so takes me after bevies du jour...needless to say the filmclip is the second gayest thing ever (after the song)

Eurovision 2009 - 2nd Semi final

Well the Slavic countries are the highlight here esp Crazy 'Fro from Serbia however Norways Fairytale polks folk and those sad baby boomers clad in silver suits from Netherlands give the old east bloc a run for there money - Enjoy!

Eurovision 2009 - 1st Semi Final

Lordy a treat here for the 1st semi finalists - including A superhero from the Czech Rep. Elvis from Belgium and a fat Celine Dion from Malta - Enjoy!

Eurovision 2009

Well I'm back [from holidays] and so is Eurovision.

Ahh Eurovision - this is one of my many crap-tack-ular highlights of the year - never failing to please. Now I started to think that as this year it is held in Russia that all the old Balkan/East Bloc countries will just sing in Russian out of habit [or possibly fear of the old days] - I'm glad to say that's not the case. And whether the economic crisis is hitting the contest, or just tastes are changing [assuming you had taste to begin with] this year flavour has changed...to more subdued. Well for Eurovision it is.

Now there are still the pop songs and future [gay] dance floor hits - thanks to Finland, Greece & Montenegro [with the original lyric of Just get out of my head, just get out of my bed then repeat - Lennon would be envious !] - but this year there is definitely folky/slow and dramatic being theme dujour highlight. France, after entering the Charles Manson look alike DJ with his cutting edge song in '08 has gone for a dramatic SLOW love song in manner of Edith Piaff...Norway goes with 'Fairy tale' waltzy folk complete with a violinist singer...and there is a semi operetta from Sweden.

For me, however this year is all about looki-likeys or I should say ' Soundseelikey'. Germany offers its own Crooner [in manner of Michael Buble] with Miss Kiss Kiss Bang [ not of course too dissimilar to Dionne Warwick's MR kiss kiss bang bang but I digress] Switzerland gives its own version of the Coldplay [I didn't know they got franchised] A Danish back street boys, A Jimmy Sommerville like castrato from Bulgaria [thankfully sung in English] and Andorra offers it's Natalie Imbruglia [yes dear readers I had to google her to write her name correctly] - just to name a few.

I will [of course] be posting clips of the favourites before the big night in May.

Let Eurovision 2009 Begin! [Offical site belowif you need a bigger fix]

http://www.eurovision.tv/page/moscow2009