Guilty Pleasure - Eurovision Special: Half way there!

That's right folks. We're at the half way stage with my Eurovision countdown. I hope you have liked my choices so far.
Ready for the next one?

Number 5 - This is My Life by Euroband (Iceland)

The duo are the very handsome Fridrik Omar Hjorleifsson and Regina Osk and they represented Iceland in the 2008 contest.
After giving one of the best performances of the night, they only managed to finish in 14th place. A top 5 placing was much deserved and one can only imagine how gutted they must have felt, especially as there were some absolutely appalling songs that scored better than Euroband. Proof, yet again, that tastes in music differ from Country to Country. Either that or there are lots of tone deaf viewers out there.

Never let it be said that Iceland cannot produce a good dance track. This one really is a beauty and I can just imagine myself and many other guys dancing our socks off to it in Queens Court. It could even warrant a dance around a pole too.

The song itself did not chart in the UK but  did reach number 2 in their home
country.
With the right amount of promotion, I honestly believe this song could have been a hit in the UK and Ireland and who knows, maybe even the USA?

Those of you who know your Eurovision may recognise the voice before the start of the above video. That's right, it is the legend that is Sir Terry Wogan who sadly hosts the show no more. The political scoring became too much and he wasn't enjoying hosting the show because of it. A sad loss for us Brits but he was replaced with a good choice in Graham Norton.

Until next time, I bid thee farewell.

Guilty Pleasure - Eurovision Special

Yes folks, you read that correctly. The Eurovision Song Contest is indeed one of my guilty pleasures.

My earliest memory of watching Eurovision is in 1976 with my family. I was a mere 9 years old and Brotherhood of Man won the contest for the UK with Save all Your Kisses for Me. Who could ever forget that dance and don't any of  you dare deny that you didn't have a go at those moves like I did.

Eurovision was a big part of our life and we never missed it. We'd had our electricity cut off one year and were so desperate not to miss it that we made do with the radio.
There we were with a few candles and Eurovision blurting out of a small speaker. It was bliss and one of the memories I treasure most.

Katie Boyle and Terry Wogan were of course the King and Queen of Eurovision but I think Graham Norton is proving to be a most excellent host. As with his predecessors, you can tell he absolutely loves everything about it.

These days it has become a little too political with countries awarding points to their neighbours just to keep them happy, for fear of possible invasions or a ban from fishing in the other countries waters.
Never the less, I still love it and and even more so now that each year it is on, I visit my good friend Andy to watch it with him. We even go as far as awarding our own points and trying to predict who will win. I love it but Andy adores it. I'm not kidding, the man is like the encyclopedia Eurovision.

So why do I love it so? I could say it's because I'm gay and because it is as camp as Christmas. I could even say it's because sometimes the songs are so bad and the artists so ridiculous you just have to laugh out loud. There could be the possibility my addiction to Eurovision is all down to the hosts and their hilarious comments.
It is, however, none of the previous. The reason I love it so is quite simply because the contest unites countries through the art of music. Millions of people watch it every year and with each passing year, it becomes bigger and better and more importantly it becomes even more loved.
Yes there are those who ridicule it but they still watch it.
I think the Eurovision Song Contest will be with us for many more years and I would love it see it evolve into the World Song Contest. Not sure if the BBC could spare a whole day to show all the acts taking part but it sure would be fun to watch.

Leading up to this years contest, I will be compiling my top ten Eurovision acts. The list will contain acts that won and some that didn't and thanks to the wonders of YouTube, I will do my utmost to include a video (hopefully from the contest) for each one.

I hope you find it an interesting and enjoyable edition to my blog and please feel free to let me know your favourite Eurovision acts or songs.

Until next week when we start with number 10 in our countdown, I bid thee farewell.

Guilty Pleasure 3

It's that time of the week when I announce to the world another of my guilty pleasures. This weeks recipient is Mr Graham Norton.

Yes Graham..you are my guilty pleasure!

This is an unusual one for me as I did go off him for quite a while. I still found him and his chat show very entertaining but just didn't fancy him. The reason for this I cannot explain but the attraction is now back and as strong as ever. So what is it that makes me want to ravish Mr Norton so?
I can assure you it is not his dress sense. Those suits! What on earth is he thinking when he picks them? It's like all taste is thrown out of the window when he chooses one, though sometimes he does surprise you and wears a nice outfit. Alas, this is a rare occurrence and most of the time it's like watching a bizarre version of Mr Benn!
It's not the bags under his eyes that attract me either. Does the man not sleep?There is a surgeon out there somewhere who is just itching to get a knife to them, though I feel Mr Norton without the bags would not be as attractive.
Neither is it the fact that he hosts Eurovision and many other camp shows and is absolutely brilliant at it.

(Graham's suit collection?)

The reason I am attracted to Graham Norton is simple...it is his humour!
I love the fact that he puts his guests at ease and then ridicules, insults and basically takes the piss out of them but in a way where he and the guests know it's just for a laugh.
You just know that after the show they'll go up to him and say how much fun they had and then offer to take him out for a drink. Look at what happened with Liza Minnelli and David Guest..he was invited to their wedding..the swine!!!
It's also his facial expressions. He is an absolute pro when it come to those. It's as if he went to the Royal Academy of Facial Expressions and was tutored by none other than the kings of facial expressions, Frankie Howard and Larry Grayson .
There is also the added bonus that I do actually find him very attractive and I defy anyone not to love his Irish accent. It's not as strong as some but never the less I love it.

Yes, Mr Norton would make a perfect boyfriend for me, just as long as he didn't expect me to wear the same over the top suits as him.

I await your call Graham :)