The Official Eurovision Song Contest Podcast

The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is back for season 2! Host Steve Holden has been on a mini tour of Europe to meet some of your favourite Eurovision artists of recent times. Konstrakta (Serbia, 2022) tells us how her life has changed since storming to 5th place in Turin. Malik Harris (Germany, 2022) gives us a lesson in positivity after coming last at the 2022 Contest. Stefania (Greece, 2021) explains what it's like to compete at Junior AND Senior Eurovision. Cesar Sampson (Austria 2018) explains how another country could have given him a VERY different Eurovision career.

It's a winner's special as we take you backstage at Amsterdam's Het Grote Songfestivalfeest, where dozens of Eurovision acts performed their greatest hits. Duncan Laurence chats about the power of Arcade, duetting with Rosa Linn and his involvement with the 2023 Dutch act. Lordi's lead singer Mr Lordi discusses rubber, rock and miconceptions about his band. Netta talks about her songwriting process and the legacy of Toy. There's also an in-depth chat with Katrina from Katrina & The Waves, who reflects on 25 years since winning for the United Kingdom with Love Shine A Light. And Måns Zelmerlöw plays Eurovision: On The Spot.

We're looking ahead to the Junior Eurovision Song Contest which is taking place in Yerevan, Armenia. Joining us are David Tserunyan, Executive Producer of JESC 2022 and Anna Ohanyan, Communications Supervisor at JESC 2022. We also chat to two previous winners of Junior: Ralf Mackenbach (The Netherlands, 2009) and Mariam Mamadashvili (Georgia, 2016). Tomaž Milhelič from Sestre (Slovenia, 2002) talks about being part of the first drag queen group to sing at the Eurovision Song Contest. And Senhit brings some Adrenalina to Eurovision On The Spot.

Gustaph from Belgium becomes the first act of 2023 to appear on the podcast, as he finally gets to be front and centre at Eurovision. UK TV presenter, commentator and Eurovision superfan Rylan Clark discusses his love of the contest and being involved for the BBC. Ukraine's Head of Delegation Oksana Skybinska returns to talk about preparation for Liverpool and putting on Ukrainian selection show Vidbir from a bomb shelter in Kyiv. And sisters OG3NE (Netherlands, 2017) play Eurovision On The Spot.

On this episode, we're joined by Subwoolfer's Ben Adams and Gaute Ormåsen as they tell us about their amazing year after FINALLY being revealed as Space Wolves 'Keith and Jim'. Georgia's representative Iru won Junior Eurovision in 2011 with girl group Candy, and is now ready to make her mark on the main competition. Plus, Georgia's Head of Delegation Natia Mshvenieradze talks about trying to turn around her country's fortunes. We get to know Slovenia's entry Joker Out after revealing their song Carpe Diem. Folloiwing the Spanish and Irish selections, Spanish commentator Victor Escudero and Irish journalist Emma Kelly discuss how they're feeling about their countries' chances. And Gjon's Tears plays Eurovision On The Spot.

On this episode, Ukraine's TVORCHI discuss Heart of Steel and they were brought together by a random meeting on the street. US Olympic figure skater, and the host of Eurovision in the States, Johnny Weir talks about his love of the contest and his favourite Eurovision songs to ice-skate to. Albina Kelmendi drops in to talk about representing Albania with Duje, and Latvia's Sudden Lights are here to dicsuss Aija. To speak about Estonia's ups and downs - and Verona's non-qualification!!! - we hear from Estonian journalist Getter Trumsi. And Sheldon Riley play Eurovision On The Spot.

On this episode, Finland's Käärijä cha-cha-chats rap and Rammstein. Monika Lynkyte from Lithuania gets a surprise message from a familiar name. Estonia's Alika reflects on bad moods and a lifelong love of rock. Plus, Mayor of Liverpool Joanne Anderson drops by, and co-founder of Aussievision, Dale Roberts, gives us a deep dive into Australia at Eurovision. And Dutch legend Edsilia Rombley plays Eurovision On The Spot.

It's a dream job, but being a Head of Delegation at the Eurovision Song Contest is never easy. From managing mega-stars, to airlines losing luggage, to potentially crashing out in the semis - a HoD has so much to deal with. So with the Grand Final less than two months away, we go behind the scenes at the Heads of Delegation meeting in Liverpool. Four heads of delegation share their secrets and stories: Felix Bergsson (Iceland), Mariangela Borneo (Italy), Birgit Simal (Belgium) and Mario Haxhiymeri (Albania). Ana Maria Bordas and Eva Mora speak about Spain's new energy following Chanel's success. Fresh from the Melodifestivalen final, Sweden's Lotta Furebäck discusses bringing a Eurovision champion back to the Contest. We also chat to the Contest's Managing Director Martin Green about putting on the show.

We're in Barcelona for the first pre-party of the Eurovision season! We get to know Spain's Blanca Paloma, Dilja from Iceland and Wild Youth from Ireland. Gustaph from Belgium and Georgia's Iru return to the podcast, and we catch up with Destiny (Malta, 2021) as she reflects on her Eurovision experience.

Para celebrar las dos mayores fiestas de Eurovisión en España - BCN Eurovisión Party y PrePartyES (Madrid, 7 y 8 de abril) - el podcast oficial de Eurovisión presenta un episodio exclusivo en español. Hemos estado en la PreParty de Barcelona donde hemos conocido a muchos de los artistas de este año, así como a algunas leyendas de la historia de Eurovisión. Presentado por Víctor Escudero que habla con Blanca Paloma de España, Mimicat de Portugal y Bojan Cvjetićanin de Joker Out, de Eslovenia. También habla con Barei (España, 2016) y Rosa López (España, 2002), dos leyendas españolas de Eurovisión.

On this episode, we hear from one of Eurovision's most famous creative directors, Sacha Jean-Baptiste. She's worked with loads of countries to create the staging for iconic performances such as Fuego, Tout L'Univers and Beautiful Mess. Andrew Lambrou, representing Cyprus, talks about Break A Broken Heart and Remo Forrer joins from Switzerland to chat about Watergun. Latvia's Sudden Lights, Lithuania's Monika Linkytė and SuRie & Victor Escudero give us the pre-party gossip. And Bulgaria's Poli Genova plays Eurovision On The Spot.

The first of two episodes from the London Eurovision Party featuring Sweden's Loreen on coming back to the contest, 11 years after winning. We challenge Austria's Teya & Salena to show us their Edgar Allen Poe knowledge as they play 'Poe Or No?'. Portugal's Mimicat chats musicals, Festival da Canção and her musical family. The Busker from Malta meet us after a wild night to give us the lowdown on saxophones and sweaters.

It's our second episode from the London Eurovision Party. Käärijä from Finland returns to the podcast to talk about his new-found fame. Serbia's Luke Black explains how he learnt English from Lara Croft, and does a deep dive into his love of video games. Alessandra, representing Norway, talks about her own favourite Queen, although things get a little lost in translation. Czechia's Vesna showcase their diverse musical tastes... and one of them admits to being a massive Taylor Swift fan. And Romania's Theodor Andrei explains everything you might have missed about his Eurovision entry.

The United Kingdom's Mae Muller joins us to talk about performing at a home Eurovision with her entry I Wrote A Song, as well as testing her Class of 2023 knowledge. We speak to this year's youngest competitor, 16-year-old Victor Vernicos, on representing Greece. Chris Harms, the frontman of Germany's glam metal rock band Lord Of The Lost, completes a lifelong dream by competing at the Contest. And Brunette comes out of her shell as she sings for Armenia.

On this episode, Australia's Voyager join us from a basement dressing room at a recent gig. Noa Kirel from Israel explains why she's keeping Unicorn a secret. Find out what connects Blanka from Poland with Lady Gaga. We're also rewinding 10 years and speaking to 2013's winner Emmelie de Forest, who represented Denmark with Only Teardrops, and Norway's Margaret Berger, who came fourth with I Feed You My Love.

On this special episode, we're inviting you to listen in to a conversation between Björn Ulvaeus from ABBA and Martin Österdahl, the Executive Supervisor of the Eurovision Song Contest. It's nearly 50 years since ABBA won with Waterloo, so how does Björn think the contest has changed, and what does he think of it now? The pair discuss the values of Eurovision and its importance for democracy in Europe. They also chat about success stories like Måneskin and Rosa Linn, and Björn reflects on his own memories of Eurovision.

The first rehearsals have begun in Liverpool for the acts of this year's Eurovision Song Contest! We take you backstage to catch up with Latvia's Sudden Lights, Serbia's Luke Black, Portugal's Mimicat, Ireland's Wild Youth, Vesna representing Czechia, Sweden's Loreen and Andrew Lambrou who is singing for Cyprus. Also, Reiley from Denmark joins the podcast for the first time, and Norway's head of delegation Stig Karlsen reflects on the first day.

We're taking you behind the scenes at the Eurovision Song Contest as we chat to the Head of Show, Lee Smithurst. We go to Monika Linkytė's soundcheck for Lithuania and bump into Slovenia's Joker Out. Greece's Victor Vernicos, Austria's Teya & Salena and Poland's Blanka show us round backstage. And we meet El Waller, responsible for the pyro and effects at the show.

Käärijä's Cha Cha Cha dancers join the podcast to talk about representing Finland and the iconic Käärijä 'Piggy Train'. Gustaph from Belgium drops by to introduce his amazing team. Steve also has a surreal chat about teleportation with Let 3 from Croatia, hangs out with Moldova's Pasha Parfeni and finally tracks down Piqued Jacks, representing San Marino.

Donatella Versace, Harry Styles and The Beatles all get a mention on today's episode. Italy's Marco Mengoni joins us to discuss his return to the Eurovision Song Contest. Mia Nicolai and Dion Cooper talk about Duncan Laurence bringing them together for the Netherlands. We visit TuralTuranX who are representing Azerbaijan, and catch up with their friends from Malta's The Busker. Corinne Cumming discusses what it's been like to photograph all of this year's acts and Alasdair Rendall gives us the lowdown on the EuroClub.

We're on the Turquoise Carpet to officially open this year's Eurovision Song Contest in Liverpool! Hear from the representatives from Norway, Malta, France, Serbia, Latvia, Switzerland, Israel, Moldova, Sweden, Italy, Finland, Germany, Armenia, Estonia, Iceland, Poland, Ukraine, Georgia, Albania and the United Kingdom.

Rosa Linn's Snap became one of 2022's biggest hits. It started its life on the Eurovision stage when Rosa sang for Armenia in Turin. It placed 20th - but went on to become a global sensation. A year on, we catch up with Rosa on her incredible 12 months.

France's La Zarra becomes the 37th and final act to join Steve on the podcast. We also catch up with last year's Ukrainian Eurovision Song Contest winners Kalush Orchestra as they prepare to return to the stage in the Grand Final. Australian commentators Myf Warhurst and Joel Creasy share their stories from Eurovisions past, and dancer Yves Cueni discusses what it's like to appear in all three of this year's live shows.

Steve gets the first reactions from all ten qualifiers from the first semi-final. We hear from Vesna representing Czechia, Mimicat from Portugal, Serbia's Luke Black, Norway's Alessandra, Remo Forrer from Switzerland, Let 3 from Croatia, Moldova's Pasha Parfeni, Noa Kirel from Israel, Sweden's Loreen and Käärijä from Finland. Eurovision fans and bloggers Samantha Ross and Madlen Tutelian also share their thoughts and offer analysis on the qualifiers and non-qualifiers.

2018 champion Netta teases her appearance during the Grand Final interval in the Liverpool Songbook. Star of RuPaul's Drag Race UK Tia Kofi shows off her Eurovision expertise. Iceland's commentator Gísli Marteinn Baldursson explains why Iceland is a Eurovision-obsessed nation. And Eurovision's Lead Creative Director Dan Shipton tells us how much work has gone into creating this year's contest.

Steve gets reaction from all ten qualifiers from the second semi-final. We hear from Belgium's Gustaph, Andrew Lambrou from Cyprus, Brunette from Armenia, Albina & Familja Kelmendi representing Albania, Monika Linketė from Lithuania, Teya and Salena from Austria, Slovenia's Joker Out, Voyager from Australia, Poland's Blanka and Alika from Estonia. Eurovision fans and bloggers Samantha Ross and Madlen Tutelian also share their thoughts and offer analysis on the qualifiers and non-qualifiers.

The Eurovision Song Contest Grand Final is here! Joining Steve to look ahead is the Ukrainian host of the Contest, Julia Sanina. We also catch up with Eurovision legends Daði Freyr, Cornelia Jakobs and Mahmood. And Ukrainian commentator Timur Miroshnychenko joins to reflect on a year since Kalush Orchestra won.

Hear Loreen's EXCLUSIVE first interview after winning the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest for Sweden with Tattoo. She makes history by becoming the first woman to win the Contest twice.

It's the final episode of the 2023 season so who better to chat to than some of the artists who made this year's Eurovision Song Contest so special. Hear from Gustaph (Belgium), Monika Linkytė (Lithuania), Patricie from Vesna (Czechia) and Voyager (Australia) to find out what they made of their Eurovision journey. Also joining us is Finland's Assistant Head of Delegation Matti Myllyaho who was one of Käärijä's Cha Cha Cha dancers to discuss the country's incredible second place.