EUROVISION fans got a treat tonight when the famous song contest got underway.
Tonight was the first round of two semi-finals, and saw 15 countries battle it out for 10 spots in the Grand Final at the weekend.
Sign up for the TV newsletter
Thank you!
The Eurovision live-semi finals took place tonight with hosts Victoria Swarovski and Michael Ostrowski Credit: BBC
Favourites Finland winning a place in the final Credit: AP
Broadcasted live from Vienna on BBC One, Rylan and Angela Scanlon were on hand tonight, providing the witty commentary from the Wiener Stadthalle in Austria.
After all 15 acts had performed, it was down to Eurovision fans to vote for who they want to see in Saturday’s final.
Just ten countries were picked and they were:
Moldova – Satoshi, Viva, Moldova!
Sweden – Felicia, My System
Croatia – Lelek, Andromeda
Greece – Akylas, Ferto
Finland – Linda Lampenius and Pete Parkkonen, Liekinheitin
Israel – Noam Bettan, Michelle
Belgium – Essyla, Dancing on the Ice
Lithuania – Lion Ceccah, Sólo quiero más
Poland – Alicja, Pray
Serbia – Lavina, Kraj mene
MONEY TALKS
Why UK automatically qualifies for Eurovision final & countries skipping semis
BOY, OH BOY!
Ban Israel from Eurovision? You can’t blame every Jew, says Boy George
Sadly this meant the end of the Eurovision 2026 road for San Marino – Senhit (featuring Boy George). Montenegro – Tamara Živković, Estonia – Vanilla Ninja, Portugal – Bandidos do Cante and Georgia – Bzikebi.
As one of Eurovision’s “Big Four” (formerly “Big Five”), the UK gets an automatic place in this Saturday’s final, so did not take part in tonight’s semi-final – nor will they compete in round two on Thursday.
They join France, Germany and Italy, who are also automatic finalists.
These countries are awarded a place in the final because of the money they put into the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) – the organisation that runs the famous Song Contest.
Sam Battle is representing the UK as Look Mum No Computer Credit: PA
Graham Norton and his team will host the UK coverage of the big final on Saturday Credit: BBC
Spain also used to be part of the “Big Five”, but pulled out of the contest entirely in protest of Israel’s participation amid the Gaza war, alongside Iceland, Ireland, the Netherlands and Slovenia.
Meanwhile, Look Mum No Computer, real name Sam Battle, is flying the flag for Brits at Eurovision this year with his track Eins, Zwei, Drei, and won’t have to fight it out in this week’s semi-finals.
But, despite this, singer Sam was today dealt a blow ahead of the big final at the weekend.
It came after the latest odds from the bookies were revealed and the UK did not fair well.
Britain is currently at the bottom with 125/1 to win the contest.
While Finland’s Linda Lampenius is top with odds of 6/5, followed by Greece who are at 15/4 to scoop the crown.
BetGoodwin‘s Ben Head said: “The UK’s entries have consistently struggled to connect with European audiences, apart from Sam Ryder in 2022.
“Although, at 125/1, the odds are against the UK this year. That said, Eurovision is never short of surprises.
“A stunning live performance and jury vote could throw up some interesting results. Anything could happen.”
Along with the rest of the finalists, Look Mum No Computer will take to the stage with his song, Eins, Zwei, Drei.
In a new move for the UK, a large chunk of the chorus is in German instead of English, as per the title.
Speaking about Eurovision in a press conference ahead of Saturday’s final, singer Sam said: “It has been a lot of work, especially as I have just become a new dad at the same time as prepping for Eurovision.
“But overall, it’s been a lot of fun – I’m really proud of what we’ve pulled together and can’t wait to put it into practise.
“Working with (choreographer Fredrik Rydman) has been brilliant, he’s a really cool guy and has been pushing the boundaries of what we want to do up on that stage.
“It’s going to make for a really interesting live performance.”
As the reigning Eurovision champs, Austria is hosting this year’s edition of the contest.
This is the third time that Austria has hosted the contest, having previously done so in 1967 and 2015.
The 2026 Song Contest will be held in Vienna at Wiener Stadthalle.
The second Eurovision live semi-finals will take place at 8pm on Thursday and can be watched on BBC One.
