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🇮🇪 Louis Walsh backing Brendan Murray on X Factor – but says he needs to be careful with song choice

IRELAND – Louis Walsh has given his backing to Irish X Factor contestant Brendan Murray and said he can “totally” make it all the way to the live shows.
Galway singer Brendan (21) has impressed the judges since his very first audition and is now through to the judges’ houses part of the competition.

Although Louis is not a judge on the series any more, he previously managed Brendan in the boyband Hometown and knows he has what it takes.

“Brendan has a really nice voice and he’s a really nice guy. He’s got an amazing voice,” he said.

Brendan is no stranger to performing in front of huge audiences, having represented Ireland at the Eurovision last year.

However, Louis said he should be careful in the selection of songs he chooses to perform for the judges.

In his first audition, Simon Cowell raised his hand and stopped him after only a few seconds as he disliked the song he was singing.

“They were trying to help him,” Louis told the Herald.

“Most people on these shows don’t sing the right songs. They always sing songs that are too big for them.

“Brendan has a very unique voice. That’s why I picked him for Eurovision.”

Brendan received a standing ovation after his most recent audition in which he sang REM’s Everybody Hurts.

Cowell said: “You don’t know how good you are.”

Judge Louis Tomlinson gave him the golden buzzer, sending him straight through to the judges’ houses.

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Switzerland 2019🇨🇭Review of Sebalter’s bid for Eurovision

SWITZERLAND – Sebalter is a Swiss singer, fiddler, and attorney who represented his country at the Eurovision Song Contest 2014 in Copenhagen. He performed the song “Hunter of Stars” in the final on 10 May 2014, finishing 13th with 64 points.

Sebalter was born in the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino. Prior to Eurovision he worked as a business lawyer, putting his law career on hold to focus on his music career.

It was announced, that Italian-Swiss broadcaster, nominated him as one of the 13 potential bids for the internal selection, which will be eventually made in the country, after all regional broadcasters submit their proposals.

He bids for Eurovision 2019, with the song, WE WILL CARRY THE LIGHT, a revolutionary song without a pompous sound. A modest tune with a message to spread. Europe needs change or even more personal, we need to change, as humans.

Of course like 2014, Europe will once again fall in love with his amazing voice and eyes and I believe no one will really care, even if he sings the… phonebook!

Listen to his song below and let us know in the poll of your thoughts about potential return to Eurovision.

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🇬🇧 London is getting an ABBA themed restaurant where singing along is encouraged

UNITED KINGDOM – ABBA fans, get ready for the ultimate Mamma Mia experience that will have you saying ‘thank you for the music’! That’s because Björn Ulvaeus is bringing his iconic MAMMA MIA! The Party experience to London. The name of the game? An ‘immersive theatrical dining experience’. Diners will sit in a recreation of a taverna on the island of Skopelos, where most of the first film was shot, and tuck into delicious Greek cuisine while a live immersive show plays out in front of them, chock block full of ABBA songs.

Nikos’ Taverna will consist of a courtyard with long tables to accommodate 500 guests, delicious Mediterranean food, and plenty of extra film set-worthy features including a fountain, olive trees and bougainvillea. Meanwhile, Nikos and his family will play out their story in song and dance, with some of your favourite hits on offer – and of course there’s plenty of chance to prove you are the Dancing Queen thanks to the immersive aspect.

Time to be a Super Trouper and get involved.
Coming to London’s The O2 in a specially adapted venue, the restaurant won’t open until spring 2019, but you may want to get your money, money, money ready as tickets go on sale on the website this autumn. Of course if you don’t snap one up you could always send out an SOS to your friends who have spare places. There’s already a MAMMA MIA! The Party experience in Stockholm, which first opened its doors in 2016 and has enjoyed three consecutive years of sold-out shows.

Björn Ulvaeus said of the new London venture: “We have long admired The O2 and the huge entertainment success it has become under the ownership and management of AEG: “We believe bringing MAMMA MIA! THE PARTY to The O2 will add to this already vibrant cultural destination and provide the perfect location for our exciting new show.”

John Langford, Vice President and General Manager of The O2, added: “To be hosting the MAMMA MIA! THE PARTY experience at The O2 is a real honour. It perfectly complements the outstanding live performances, events and the dynamic variety of entertainment all available under our world-famous roof.”

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Eurovision 2019 🇮🇱 Deri: show on shabbat is ok, open borders are not

ISRAEL – Interior Minister Arye Deri said on Wednesday that he will regretfully tolerate next year’s Eurovision song contest conducting activities on Shabbat. But he said in an interview with Ynet that the demand of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) to allow free entry to participants and visitors was more problematic.

The minister said the fact – despite his personal opposition – that “movie theaters and cafés and restaurants – and the Eurovision – operate on Shabbat hurts me as a Jew. But I know where I live.”

Deri also said allowing the competition to go forward – and to operate on Saturday – was not dependent on him. Pushed to elaborate by the interviewer, the minister said it wasn’t fair to compare the Eurovision with the construction of a bridge in Tel Aviv, which was postponed last month after outrage from haredi lawmakers about work done on Saturday.

“You can’t compare the bridge to Eurovision,” he said. “I’m not prepared for Shabbat to become a work day and a shopping day in Israel. The people who are hurt are the lowest classes in society, who have to work seven days a week and become servants.”

Deri was reacting in part to reports this week of a letter sent by the EBU to the Israeli government with a list of conditions for next year’s competition. Among the conditions is a requirement to allow and support work on the competition all week long – including Saturday. The list also reportedly calls for the host country to allow entry to all participants and visitors regardless of their political opinions. The EBU said Tuesday that the missive was “a typical letter we send every year, regardless of country.”

But Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan said Tuesday that he would not tolerate “these ridiculous demands… those who seek to harm [us] – of course Israel won’t allow them in.” Erdan, who has worked in conjunction with Deri to ban BDS supporters from entering Israel, said he hopes “the prime minister will not accept these delusional conditions.”

Deri also expressed concern Wednesday about free entry to visitors and participants in the contest.

“The State of Israel – our doors are open, there are tons of people who come and go,” Deri told Ynet. “But regardless… if there are security reasons, or people who come to incite against the State of Israel or do things that will damage us – I will act like the most enlightened countries in the world [and not allow them in],” the interior minister said. “Have you ever tried to enter the United States? If there’s a problem, they’ll send you right back on a plane.”

The issue over Eurovision activity on Saturday is thought to be a significant factor in the decision on a host city for next year’s competition.

The EBU is slated to announce the host city this week, and is most likely to do so on Thursday. Holding the contest in Tel Aviv is expected to arouse less ultra-Orthodox opposition to activity and rehearsals held on Saturday.

Many also believe that holding the competition in Tel Aviv will be less politically divisive than in Jerusalem. However, a range of Israeli politicians have said the contest should and must be held in the country’s capital.

While several locations in Israel were discussed to host the 2019 competition, only Jerusalem and Tel Aviv remain in the running.

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Eurovision 2019 🇮🇱 EBU demands Israel host event without political, religious restrictions and addresses PM Netanyahu

ISRAEL – Organizers of the Eurovision Song Contest have reportedly sent a letter conditioning Israel’s hosting of the 2019 installment on a governmental guarantee that it will grant visas regardless of visitors’ political opinions and let contestants hold general rehearsals on Shabbat.

While the demands would seem standard and straightforward in the case of any other country, in Israel, they would force the government to change its current policies and possibly clash with ultra-Orthodox coalition members.

After representatives of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) toured the country last week for possible venues — naming Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, and Eilat as possibilities — its director sent an official letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with the list of demands, Hadashot TV news reported Monday.

A government representative, preferably Netanyahu himself, must formally declare that they will adhere to the demands, the EBU letter said.

Israel is required, according to the list, to grant visas and let visitors travel in Israel with no restrictions, regardless of their political leanings. The government must also grant absolute freedom of press and freedom of speech to all participants and all delegations during their visit, the letter said.

Israel last year passed a law enabling authorities to refuse access to supporters of boycotts against the Jewish state or of its West Bank settlements. It has since been making use of that law, and has detained many people at Ben Gurion Airport suspected of activism against Israeli actions, including prominent US journalist Peter Beinart, whose interrogation was criticized by Netanyahu as a mistake.

The EBU letter also demanded that Israel lift any religious restriction on holding events related to the contest on Shabbat, the Jewish day of rest, which begins Friday night and ends on Saturday evening.

Eurovision general rehearsals are usually held coinciding with the Jewish Sabbath, and ultra-Orthodox parties have previously demanded that they be rescheduled in Israel. They have threatened to call early elections over a number of issues, including railway works on Shabbat.

The letter also demanded that the Kan public broadcaster be given complete independence in holding the broadcast.

While the organizers said the demands were standard, an unnamed government source was quoted by Hadashot as saying that “it seems the organization is very suspicious,” and that there was a reason for the demand that a government official guarantee they will be fulfilled.

SOURCE: TIMES OF ISRAEL

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🇦🇹 Four years after her victory, Conchita gives a flashback interview

AUSTRIA – She stunned the world to take out the Eurovision song contest with a soaring power ballad in 2014. Conchita Wurst’s Rise Like A Phoenix earned Austria a whopping 290 points with its themes of transformation and rebirth, clocking up more than 13 million views on YouTube in the years since. Four years on, the “bearded lady” who is a stage persona of 29-year-old Austrian Tom Neuwirth, still feels the need to make it clear her performance is “no joke” after being forced to reveal her HIV status under threats of blackmail from an ex-partner.

“I feel I need to prove myself each and every time [because] I’m a drag act,” she told the BBC ahead of the 2018 Eurovision to be held this Saturday in Lisbon.

“It’s easy to say, ‘This is just a joke.’ You know, the bearded lady? And I feel the need to smash it with every performance just because I want to be clear this is not a joke.”

It’s a stark admission from the star who created her alter ego in 2006 as a way of projecting confidence on stage.

Last month, she was forced to use every ounce of it in a personal Instagram post disclosing she was HIV-positive and had been for many years, which she described as freeing her from the “sword of Damocles” above her head.

“This is actually irrelevant to the public, but an ex-boyfriend threatens me to go public with this private information, and I will not give anyone the right to frighten me and influence my life in the future,” she wrote, saying she has been in medical treatment and is unable to pass on the virus.

Conchita said she did not want to go public for fear of how it would impact her family and friends, believing that the information is only relevant to those “with whom sexual contact is an option”.

But she decided “coming out is better than being outed,” saying: “I hope to build up courage and take another step against the stigmatisation of people who have become infected by HIV, either through their own behaviour or through no fault of their own.”

READ THE ENTIRE INTERVIEW HERE

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Did You Know 💡that Eurovision could make you happier?

CNN.COM REPORTS / EUROPE – A new study suggests that when a nation takes part in Eurovision, it has a 13% chance of higher “life satisfaction” among its population compared with those who don’t. This life satisfaction may in turn benefit their physical and mental health, according Filippos Filippidis, an epidemiologist in public health at Imperial College London, who led the study published Friday in the journal BMC Public Health. His team found that people were 4% more likely to be satisfied with their life for every increase of 10 places on the final score board — for example, if their country finished second rather than 12th.

However, doing badly in the contest was also associated with a greater increase in life satisfaction compared with not taking part at all. So, achieving “nul points” — a zero score — is not so bad after all. His team — from competing countries Greece, Italy, Ireland, Australia and the UK — is usually researching the effect of public policies, environmental factors and economic conditions on people’s lifestyle and health.But last year, during the competition, they began discussing whether it could also affect a country’s national well-being and decided to investigate.

They collected data from the Eurobarometer survey, which included answers from over 160,000 people from 33 European countries to a question on life satisfaction taken just after the finals of the contest between 2009 and 2015. They also analyzed each country’s performance in the contest, ranking those at 20th place or below as “terrible.” Winning was not associated with improved life satisfaction, but the higher the ranking per 10 places, the higher the odds of being “very satisfied.”

The scientists also compared data from countries that participated but did badly with those that didn’t take part at all. They found that taking part but finishing near the bottom of the table was associated with a 13% higher chance of life satisfaction compared with not taking part in the competition. Filippidis said the results surprised him. “I thought there may be something there, but the results were quite consistent across countries.

Professor Mike Berry, consultant clinical forensic psychologist at Birmingham City University, wasn’t involved in the study but described the work as “a really interesting, amusing and well-designed study.” He added that although it did not show causation, the link with greater satisfaction sounded “feasible.” However, he said the problem was that the effect was fleeting. “There was a marked increase in attendance and productivity during the 1966 World Cup soccer finals in England, which England won,” he explained. “Workers attended factories every day, so they could talk about the various games.”

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Eurovision 1968 🇪🇸 How Franco cheated Cliff out of Eurovision title

TELEGRAPH.CO.UK REPORTS / SPAIN – Sir Cliff Richard was cheated of victory in the Eurovision Song Contest of 1968 by General Franco’s fascist regime which rigged the contest to boost Spain’s image, a documentary has claimed.

The Spanish entrant Massiel won the competition 40 years ago with the ditty La, la, la robbing the British crooner of the title by only one point in a nail-biting finish. Sir Cliff, who was knighted in 1995, represented the United Kingdom with the hit song Congratulations! in the contest in April 1968 held at London’s Royal Albert Hall and strongly led the competition until the last moment when Spain’s entry surged ahead.

A documentary filmmaker has now revealed that Spain’s only ever Eurovision win (actually Spain also won the 1969 Eurovision as well – part of the four winners tie) was down to behind the scenes negotiations by television executives from Spain’s state run channel.

Director Montse Fernandez Vila claims that RTE executives toured Europe offering cash and promising to buy television series and contract unknown artists from other Eurovision member states to influence the vote in the then prestigious singing competition.

”There is evidence that votes were bought to secure a win for Massiel,” said the director discussing the documentary 1968. I lived through the Spanish May, broadcast on Spain’s Sexta channel.

At the time the winner of the competition was decided by a jury comprised of 10 members from each of the 17 countries participating. Each member awarded one point to their favourite song.

With the emerging tourist industry on the Spanish Costas, Franco’s regime hoped that a Eurovision win would boost its popularity both at home and abroad.

”The regime was acutely aware of the need to improve their image,” Ms Fernandez Vila told Spanish daily newspaper 20 Minutos. “Looking back at the parties that were organised and the way Massiel was turned into a national hero – it seems a bit excessive for a song festival but it all served to glorify the regime,” she said.

Massiel, now 60, whose real name is Maria Felix de los Angeles Santamaria Espinosa, went on to become one of Spain’s best loved singers and re-released her Eurovision entry in 1997 with a hip hop beat.

The song La la la sparked controversy from the start. The original version penned by Duo Dinamico was in the Catalan language but the Franco regime insisted the words be sung in Spanish.

Sir Cliff, now 67, made a second attempt to win the Eurovision Song contest when in 1973 he represented the UK with Power To All Our Friends. But he only reached third place behind artists from Luxembourg and Spain.

In Britain he has sold more records than either Elvis or the Beatles – his worldwide sales total 250 million – and he was the first rock star to be honoured with a knighthood.

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EYM 2018 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Ivan Bessonov from Russia wins Eurovision Young Musicians 2018

YOUNGMUSICIANS.TV REPORTS / SCOTLAND – Also competing in the final were Hungary’s Máté Bencze on Saxophone, German violinist Mira Marie Foron, cellist Birgitta Oftestad from Norway, Czech double bassist Indi Stivín and Slovenian violinist Nikola Pajanović.

The 16-year-old Ivan Bessonov was born in 2002 and began to study the piano at the age of six. Currently he studies at the Central Music School at the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory.

Ivan performs recitals and concertos in Russia and abroad and has participated in various music festivals. He worked with the State Symphony Orchestra of the Republic of Tatarstan and the Symphony Orchestra of the State Academic Capella of St. Petersburg, with outstanding contemporary conductors – Valery Gergiev, Vladimir Spivakov, Alexander Sladkovsky and others.

In 2016, Ivan presented a solo program at the Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg. Ivan also composes music; in 2015 he made his debut as a film score composer for the documentary film Varicella by Victor Kossakovsky, the premiere of which took place at the Message to Man international film festival in St Petersburg.

Ivan participated in the established young talent contest Sinyaya Ptitsa (Blue Bird) and was selected to represent Russia at the Eurovision Young Musicians 2018 in Edinburgh.

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Eurovision 2019 🇮🇱 Shas to Regev: No Eurovision work on Shabbat

ISRAEL – MK Michael Malchieli (Shas) said Wednesday his party hopes that the preparations for the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest would be held without desecrating Shabbat. Speaking to Ynet, Malchieli addressed Culture and Sports Minister Miri Regev’s remarks according to which rehearsals for the Eurovision will be held on Saturdays saying, “Regev has to understand we want (the preparations for the Eurovision-ed) to take place without desecrating the Shabbat.”

“We cannot let the celebrations, important as they may be to harm the Shabbat,” Malchieli opined. “We expect the Culture and Sports Minister who welcomed today Minister Katz’s decision not to carry out construction works on the bridge (over the Ayalon Highway) to reach an understanding and not to cause a mass Shabbat desecration because of the Eurovision,” he went on to say.

When asked about the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest to be held in Israel, Regev said, “My guess is that as soon as the contest’s location will be chosen, work on Saturdays could not be avoided. We will have to explain the ultra-Orthodox community that they are things beyond our decision and control. The Eurovision is always held on Saturdays nights. In the past, the Eurovision was held in Jerusalem, and we will have to come to an understanding with the Haredim on this matter,” Regev added. “I don’t think works will be done on Shabbat. However, there will be rehearsals. All the preparations for the Eurovision will be completed long before the event, and there will be no reason for work to take place on Saturdays.”

Regev also justified Transportation Minister Yisrael Katz’s decision not to carry out construction work on a new bridge over the Ayalon Highway during the weekends and said his decision is “worthy and right.” Last week it was determined the Eurovision will be held in Israel in May 2019. The Israel Public Broadcasting Corporation (IPBC) has accepted the outline proposed by the Finance Ministry.

The IPBC will take out a loan from the bank to cover the 12 million euro guarantee required by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) without the involvement of the Treasury or the government. The government will decide whether to cover the costs if the guarantee payment is forfeited in the case of war a higher power causing the cancellation of the event in Israel.

“The IPBC sees great importance in hosting the Eurovision in Israel, both because of the exposure it would give the State of Israel and because the competition would serve as an economic boost to Israel,” the IPBC said in a statement announcing the decision. The IPBC believes the Israeli government will do all in its power to ensure a worthy and respectable Eurovision will be held in Israel and to fulfill the commitment of its ministers—which have been made in the media—about the funding of the competition,” the statement added.

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