Latest news with #EurovisionSongContest2025
Extra.ie
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Extra.ie
Here's how many complaints RTE received over Eurovision final
While social media was awash with spittle and rage during Saturday evening's Eurovision Song Contest final, RTÉ received a surprisingly small number of complaints from the general public. The grand final of the annual singing competition, which was held in Basel in Switzerland, saw Austria emerge as the eventual winner, with Israel coming a very close runner-up. Israel's participation in the contest has been highly controversial as the war in Gaza rages on. The Eurovision Song Contest 2025 took place in Basel, Switzerland. Pic: Fabrice Coffrini/AFP via Getty Images It was a cause of much social media consternation when the Irish jury awarded Israel a total of seven points, with the Irish voting public giving Israeli singer Yuval Raphael 10 points, propelling her to take second place. During the voting segment of Saturday night's contest, the phrase 'Irish jury' was trending on social media with a high volume of vitriolic comments aimed at the members of the Irish jury. But while many aired their displeasure on X, RTÉ, which was responsible only for broadcasting and had no involvement in the vote, received a paltry number of complaints from Eurovision viewers. Yuval Raphael representing Israel at the Eurovision Song Contest 2025. Pic:In response to queries from a spokeswoman for the national broadcaster said: 'RTÉ received two formal complaints about Thursday night's semi-final. Both are in relation to the commentary.' While Ireland failed to qualify for the final, it was the fact that the Irish jury awarded Israel a high vote is what rankled most. 'RTÉ received three emails about the Irish jury awarding Israel points. Please note these are not classed as formal complaints because they are not actually about a broadcast but about behind-the-scenes voting.' JJ representing Austria celebrates after winning the Eurovision Song Contest 2025. Pic:The RTÉ Complaints Team received zero emails about Ireland's failure to advance to the final. In addition to the two formal complaints, RTE received a total of 44 emails, with 22 relating to the jury vote and seven people complaining that Ireland failed to advance to the final stages of Eurovision. 'Over the weekend, the RTÉ Information Office received a range of comments to feedback@ Please note that these are not formal complaints, but represent negative or critical commentary. Irish act Emmy failed to make it to the final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2025. Pic: Andres Poveda And the failure of Irish act Emmy to make it to the final led to a significant drop in viewership for RTE. The grand finale was watched by a total of 221,000, a huge decrease from last year, where 666,000 tuned in to watch the final, which included Irish performer Bambi Thug.
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Korea Herald
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
[Graphic News] Countries with most Eurovision wins
Austria triumphed at the Eurovision Song Contest 2025 in Basel, Switzerland, with JJ's captivating performance of 'Wasted Love.' This opera-pop fusion won over both juries and audiences, earning 436 points and narrowly edging out Israel's Yuval Raphael, whose song 'New Day Will Rise' garnered 357 points. This marks Austria's third Eurovision victory, following previous wins in 1966 and 2014. Historically, Ireland and Sweden share the record for the most Eurovision titles, each with seven wins. Ireland's victories span from 1970 to 1996, including an unprecedented three consecutive wins in the early 1990s. Sweden's triumphs began with Abba's iconic 'Waterloo' in 1974 and most recently include Loreen's 'Tattoo' in 2023. Other notable winners include the United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands and Luxembourg, each with five wins. Israel follows with four, while Italy, Norway, Denmark, Ukraine, Switzerland and now Austria have each secured three victories.
USA Today
18-05-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Austria's JJ wins Eurovision Song Contest with operatic 'Wasted Love'
Austria's JJ wins Eurovision Song Contest with operatic 'Wasted Love' BASEL, Switzerland − Austria won Eurovision Song Contest 2025 on May 17, the country's first victory since bearded drag queen Conchita Wurst won in 2014. Operatic singer JJ won ahead of Israel's Yuval Raphael, a survivor of the Oct. 7 attacks, who sang "New Day Will Rise." The event is the world's biggest music competition, watched by more than 160 million people across the world. The win was Austria's third in the competition, following Conchita's success and Udo Juergens' victory in 1966. JJ, 24, a countertenor opera singer from Vienna, combined elements of opera, techno and soprano in his song "Wasted Love," winning the hearts of the professional juries and telephone voters. "This is absolutely insane. My dreams came true," said the singer, whose real name is Johannes Pietsch. "It's out of this world." Going into the final, the Filipino-Austrian was second favorite behind Swedish comedy trio KAJ, whose song extolling the joy of saunas had been the hot favorite with bookmakers and ultimately finished fourth. Switzerland, hosting after Swiss rapper and singer Nemo won last year's contest in Malmo, Sweden, finished 10th. JJ said he wanted to give listeners an insight into his deepest thoughts when he wrote the song, and was happy it had resonated with so many fans. "There's no wasted love. Love is never wasted. There's so much love that we can spread around, and we should use love as the strongest force on planet Earth," he added. His success was applauded by Austrian Chancellor Christian Stocker, who said JJ was writing musical history. "Dear JJ, you have moved Europe with your voice and sung Austria into the spotlight," Austrian Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger said on X. JJ told reporters he would like next year's event to be hosted in his hometown of Vienna, which hosted the 2015 final, and added he would like to be a TV host for the event. Meinl-Reisinger and others joked about the significant cost of holding the event at a time when the government is planning to cut spending by billions of euros a year to rein in the budget deficit. "Now we're going to have to take a look at our budget," she wrote on X. "But isn't it fantastic?" Fans traveled from across Europe and beyond to Basel, with 100,000 people attending Eurovision events in the city, including the final. Hermann Heyn travelled from Chile for a once-in-a-lifetime experience. "We came from really, really far away for this," he told Reuters. "We are not even competing, but we needed to be here." Eurovision, which stresses its political neutrality, faced controversy again this year amid the war in Gaza. Israel's entrant, Raphael, was at the Nova music festival during the Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Hamas militants on southern Israel that killed 1,200 people and saw 251 taken hostage, according to Israeli officials. The singer was the most popular among the general public to finish behind Austria, the most popular contestant among the juries. Pro-Palestinian groups urged the European Broadcasting Union to exclude Israel over Gaza, where more than 50,000 people have been killed in the ensuing offensive by Israel, according to local health officials. Around 200 protesters mounted a demonstration in Basel on Saturday evening, while two protesters attempted to get on to the stage during Raphael's performance but were halted by security officials. Nobody was injured. Spanish public broadcaster RTVE displayed a message before the start of the Eurovision show that read: "When human rights are at stake, silence is not an option. Peace and Justice for Palestine." Contributing: Johnny Cotton, Cecile Mantovani, Swantje Stein, Max Schwarz and Denis Balibouse with Francois Murphy in Vienna and Ana Rios Cantero in Madrid
Daily Mirror
18-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Eurovision 2025's final brings in two million more viewers than FA Cup Final
The Eurovision Song Contest 2025 had millions of people tuning in for the grand final on Saturday, 17 May – a lot more than those who watched the FA Cup Final The grand final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2025 brought in two million more viewers than the FA Cup Final, the BBC revealed. On 17 May, millions of fans gathered with their friends with snacks and drinks to watch a night of camp performances, tear-jerking ballads, dance tunes and quirky dances. Unfortunately, the UK's entrant, Remember Monday, was dealt a huge blow and left the competition with only 88 points, while Austria's JJ, real name Johannes Pietsch, won the competition with their incredible song, Wasted Love. The event received a peak of 7.9 million viewers, with an average of 6.7 million viewers. However, it was a decline on the viewing figures from last year's competition in Malmo, Sweden, which saw 7.9 million tune in with a peak of 8.5 million. Many fans chose to boycott the last two events due to Israel's controversial participation in the show amid the country's ongoing bombardment of Palestine, which is seeing Palestinians starving to death due to a blockade of aid. Meanwhile, UK's Remember Monday recently spoke out about their doomed performance with a statement on Sunday morning. They said in a statement to the Mirror: "WOW - what a ride! Three best mates walked onto the world 's biggest music stage and came out with a Top 10 Jury score, massive streaming numbers, and memories that will last a lifetime. "Performing at Eurovision was one of the most surreal and emotional moments of our lives. The love we've felt from fans, our incredible team, and everyone who streamed, voted, and believed in us has been overwhelming. "This is just the beginning for Remember Monday. We've got new music coming your way, a UK & Ireland headline tour this year, a summer packed with festivals, and we'll be hitting the stage at Wembley Stadium for the Summertime Ball… no big deal! "We're so grateful for the platform, the media support, and every single new fan who's joined us on this wild journey. Eurovision? Completed it. Let's go! Charlotte, Holly and Lauren x." Speaking on the night of their performance, commentator Graham Norton said: 'We couldn't have asked for more." Over on Twitter, viewers were picking up on the West End vibes the girls gave off. 'Say all you want about this song being just a random West End number, you cannot deny that Remember Monday's chemistry together on stage is immaculate,' one wrote. 'They really look like they're having the time of their lives on the #Eurovision stage!' Other notable performances included Maltese singer Miriana Conte with Serving, which was renamed from Kant due to its resemblance to a swearword, and Switzerland's Zoe Me with the powerful Voyage.
Wales Online
18-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Wales Online
Eurovision fans say UK's Remember Monday had 'perfect response' to getting 'nul points'
Eurovision fans say UK's Remember Monday had 'perfect response' to getting 'nul points' The UK's Remember Monday took to the stage at the Eurovision Song Contest 2025 in Switzerland, and despite receiving 88 points from the jury, they got 0 points from the public Remember Monday took 19th place at Eurovision 2025 (Image: (Image: Getty) ) As Austria revels in their Eurovision Song Contest victory, the UK's Remember Monday remain upbeat despite receiving zero points from the public vote. The girl band graced the stage at St Jakobshalle in Basel, Switzerland, alongside 25 other acts, vying for the coveted trophy in its 69th year. Singers Lauren Byrne, Holly-Anne Hull and Charlotte Steele seemed to be on a promising trajectory when they garnered 88 points from the jury votes for their song 'What The Hell Just Happened'. However, their aspirations were dashed when they failed to secure a single point from the public vote, resulting in an overall 19th place out of a possible 26. Yet fans praised their "perfect response" to the 'nul points' outcome, as they were spotted brushing off the disappointment with a smile and savouring the experience. The trio could be seen laughing, raising their hands, and standing up, while the hall burst into applause. One supporter shared the moment on X, writing: "Well done girls. The perfect response." Another showed their support, stating: "I am sorry but that is actually criminal. Outrageous. I'm so upset for Remember Monday but that is Eurovision. Ahhhh well. We had a lovely time and the girls were phenomenal." Content cannot be displayed without consent Article continues below Bee Gees fans only just realising what band name stands for after 60 years READ MORE: One user commented: "They were actually amazing. Oh well, at least they are at the Capital Summertime Ball." Another chimed in: "Such a shame. They were really good." Some pointed out that the UK has received 0 points two years in a row, with one remarking: "Hey, don't worry! It's just because you left the EU. Please come back." Another user stated: "UK turned into a very unlikeable place - that is just a fact unfortunately." A further user added: "And this is why the public shouldn't be allowed to vote." Austria's JJ was declared as last night's victor with his performance of Wasted Love, while the controversial Israeli entrant came in second. Article continues below Upon receiving the trophy, the singer Johannes Pietsch expressed: "I want to thank my entire family, my entire team, thank you so much for making my dreams come true. And especially to you Europe, thank you for making my dreams come took to social media to share their thoughts, with one saying on X: "Thank f**k for that! Well done Austria. " Another echoed: "Phew, well done Austria. "However, many Brits still consider Remember Monday to be their winners, with one stating: "Oh girls. You smashed it. That was stunning and your joy on stage was infectious. So loved it. You're our winners. " In agreement, another said: "Didn't they. Loved it. Defo best so far. Could be biased. "A final user lamented: "Our girls were robbed. Crazy public voting. Zero points for us and Switzerland. Two of the best songs.".
