Mae Muller is flying the flag for the UK on home turf at this year’s Eurovision (Picture: Getty Images)
The Eurovision Song Contest is bringing the party to the UK this year, with Liverpool stepping in as the host city for the annual musical shebang.
The United Kingdom is hosting for the first time in 25 years after 2022 winners Ukraine were unable to stage the contest due to the ongoing war with Russia – with the honour falling to this country after Sam Ryder finished in second place in Turin last year.
Viewers have a whole week’s worth of Eurovision fun to look forward to, as acts from 37 countries performing in their bid to be crowned this year’s champion, with the winning country getting the honour of hosting the contest in 2024.
And among them will be Mae Muller, hoping to bring the UK its sixth victory – and its first since Katrina And The Waves triumphed with Love Shine A Light in 1997 – with her dance banger I Wrote A Song.
Whether you love Eurovision or whether you’ll be watching for the first time you won’t want to miss a minute – but when is the song contest and how can you tune in?
When is Eurovision 2023?
The grand final of Eurovision 2023 will take place on Saturday May 13 at 8pm.
It’s being held at the M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool, hosted by Graham Norton, Alesha Dixon, actress Hannah Waddingham and Ukrainian singer Julia Sanina.
The final will see 26 countries competing for this year’s trophy, with the winner decided by a mix of public votes, and those given by juries of music industry experts from each of the participating nations.
Six of the countries taking part in this year’s contest are already pre-qualified for the final – France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Ukraine and the UK.
Of these, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK automatically win a place in the final due to their status as the ‘Big Five’ – the countries who are the biggest financiers of the contest.
Last year’s winner -in this case Ukraine – also receives an automatic place in the final.
The remaining countries will have to compete in one of two semi-finals, on Tuesday May 9 and Thursday May 11, to be in with a chance of nabbing a place in the grand final.
The UK was given the chance to host after Sam Ryder finished second last year, and winners Ukraine were unable to host (Picture: Getty Images)
Only 10 countries from each of the two semis will make it through to Saturday night, so there is everything to play for.
The first semi-final will see 15 countries battling it out for those places, while 16 will take part in Thursday night’s show.
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This year, in a change to the voting, the 10 finalists from each semi will be decided entirely by public vote.
Each of the pre-qualified nations has the chance to vote in one semi-final, which was decided by a special draw made back in January – as a result of this UK viewers will have the chance to vote during Thursday night’s show.
How to watch Eurovision in the UK
If you’ve never watched a Eurovision semi-final before now’s your chance, as the semis are being shown on BBC One this year for the first time ever – having previously been screened on either BBC Three or BBC Four.
Live coverage of both kicks off at 8pm on May 9 and 11, with Rylan Clark and Scott Mills in the commentary box.
Hannah Waddingham is among this year’s presenters (Picture: PA)
The grand final will also be on BBC One, on Saturday May 13 at 8pm, with Graham Norton commentating between presentation duties, with a little help from Mel Giedroyc.
If you miss any of it you’ll be able to catch up via the BBC iPlayer – or you can stream it via Eurovision.tv’s official YouTube channel (although you won’t get any commentary with it).
Alternatively, if you don’t fancy staying in and watching on the sofa, many big cities are also putting on large scale screening events, including the following:
Birmingham – Centenary Square
Brighton – Jubilee Square
Cardiff – The Depot
Darlington – Market Square
Leeds – Millenium Square
Manchester – Piccadilly Gardens
Newcastle – Times Square
Nottingham – Nottingham Castle
Sheffield – Devonshire Green
Some of the above screenings are ticketed, while others are on a first-come first-served basis – you should check your local council website or local press for further information.
As well as the official screenings, hundreds of bars, restaurants and pubs across the UK will be screening both the semi-finals and the final – while it is also being shown in over 500 cinemas across the UK for the first time.
Once again check local press and listings to see which venues in your are are showing it – and whether you can still get tickets.
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Prepare to party in Liverpool.
