Strange Thoughts of a Strange Man

I let my brain freewheel too much, obviously, but I was thinking more about the current Eurovision trend for the Eastern European countries getting all the votes, especially in last night's semi-final.

I've also been talking to colleagues and reading ESCToday.com.

Anyhow, thoughts and ramblings ...

1. To the EE crowd, Eurovision is a new and important thing. We in the West have become a bit blasé about the contest, especially in the UK where it is seen as a bit of a joke in many circles, although not to me. Consequently, they vote, and we don't.


2. There is the tendency to vote for people and singing styles you are familiar with i.e. your neighbours. The EE countries have a lot of neighbours in common and therefore there will be an overlap in votes.


3. According to someone on ESCToday, the tele-voting thing is not monitored and you can vote for your favourite as many times as you like. That will be bound to distort the figures a bit. So, let's test the theory and VOTE FOR SCOOCH tomorrow night over and over and over again.


4. My rather cynical colleague suggested that the EE countries were voted in last night by countries already in the final to remove the competition. This theory has some appeal but I'm not sure if I am cynical enough to believe it.

This whole thing needs looking at. Should we go back to a jury system? Should we make it one person one vote? Should we have regional finals? Who knows. If the current situation continues, however, there will be tears before bedtime.