Here is the preliminary schedule - well, schedules - for ETNW 2011. The post-submission period schedule will obviously depend on whether we have just one final or two or more semis.
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Submissions open: Monday 10 January 2011
Submissions close: Sunday 16 January 2011
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Scenario 1: Final only
Voting starts: Monday 17 January 2011
Voting ends: Sunday 23 January 2011
Sponsor revelation: Monday 24 January 2011
Results: Tuesday 25 January 2011
Scenario 2: Two semi-finals + final
Voting - Semi 1 starts: Monday 17 January 2011
Voting - Semi 2 starts: Thursday 20 January 2011
Voting - Semi 1 ends: Saturday 22 January 2011
Voting - Semi 2 ends: Tuesday 25 January 2011
Qualifier revelation: Wednesday 26 January 2011
Voting - Final starts: Thursday 27 January 2011
Voting - Final ends: Wednesday 2 February 2011
Sponsor revelation & results: Thursday 3 February 2011
Scenario 3: Three semi-finals + final
Voting - Semi 1 starts: Monday 17 January 2011
Voting - Semi 2 starts: Thursday 20 January 2011
Voting - Semi 1 ends: Sunday 23 January 2011
Voting - Semi 3 starts: Monday 24 January 2011
Voting - Semi 2 ends: Wednesday 26 January 2011
Voting - Semi 3 ends: Sunday 30 January 2011
Qualifier revelation: Monday 31 January 2011
Voting - Final starts: Tuesday 1 February 2011
Voting - Final ends: Monday 7 February 2011
Sponsor revelation & results: Tuesday 8 February 2011
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Obviously I'll confirm the schedule once the number of entries is known. Keep your eyes open for updates :)
12/27/2010
ETNW 2011: The Rules
After last year's shall we say 'comprehensive' approach, I'll try and keep things brief this time round... :)
*****
1. Neither your song nor singer should have taken part in Eurovision or a national selection process. (I'd prefer if the composers hadn't either, but I won't enforce it.)
2. Songs can be in any language and any length.
3. Songs from any country and any year can be entered for any country and any year. (For example, if you really want to, you can enter a Serbian song released in 2008 as Latvia 1959.)
4. No cover versions.
*****
There, how's that for brief!
I would just remind everyone, however, that the point of ETNW is to enter songs that make people think "yeah, that sounds like something Monaco might have entered in 1965" or "hmmm, I can see Ukraine picking that kind of thing in 2001". The more unlikely your combination - as in the example in point #3 above - the less likely most people are to view it as 'authentic'.
And of course that brings us to the most important but unwritten rule of ETNW: when you vote, it's not just about what you like or don't like, but also what you think comes across as most authentic based on the year and country a song's been allocated to. I know this is subjective, and proved to be a bit of a bone of contention last year, but the results showed that most people were happy to go along with it. It's the point of the contest, after all.
The submission period isn't open yet, but just as a reminder, here's what you need to submit:
1. An MP3 of your entry
2. The name of your song and singer
3. The year and country you're allocating it to
4. Your MB nickname
I'll repeat this info when the submission period opens. In the meantime, get your thinking caps on, but don't get overexcited!
If anything's not covered in the rules (!) and you want to ask about it, the best place to do so is on the MB. Indeed, until I set up a new email address for the contest, that's the only place to ask me! You could ask me via Facebook or MSN, I suppose, but other people might be wondering the same thing, so let's keep it all public.
Stay tuned for updates! :)
*****
1. Neither your song nor singer should have taken part in Eurovision or a national selection process. (I'd prefer if the composers hadn't either, but I won't enforce it.)
2. Songs can be in any language and any length.
3. Songs from any country and any year can be entered for any country and any year. (For example, if you really want to, you can enter a Serbian song released in 2008 as Latvia 1959.)
4. No cover versions.
*****
There, how's that for brief!
I would just remind everyone, however, that the point of ETNW is to enter songs that make people think "yeah, that sounds like something Monaco might have entered in 1965" or "hmmm, I can see Ukraine picking that kind of thing in 2001". The more unlikely your combination - as in the example in point #3 above - the less likely most people are to view it as 'authentic'.
And of course that brings us to the most important but unwritten rule of ETNW: when you vote, it's not just about what you like or don't like, but also what you think comes across as most authentic based on the year and country a song's been allocated to. I know this is subjective, and proved to be a bit of a bone of contention last year, but the results showed that most people were happy to go along with it. It's the point of the contest, after all.
The submission period isn't open yet, but just as a reminder, here's what you need to submit:
1. An MP3 of your entry
2. The name of your song and singer
3. The year and country you're allocating it to
4. Your MB nickname
I'll repeat this info when the submission period opens. In the meantime, get your thinking caps on, but don't get overexcited!
If anything's not covered in the rules (!) and you want to ask about it, the best place to do so is on the MB. Indeed, until I set up a new email address for the contest, that's the only place to ask me! You could ask me via Facebook or MSN, I suppose, but other people might be wondering the same thing, so let's keep it all public.
Stay tuned for updates! :)
Coming soon: ETNW 2011!
If you're reading this, you must have seen the post(s) on the message board on www.escnation.com, so welcome to the bit-before-anything-actually-happens-to-do-with the Eurovision That Never Was 2011!
The contest will have much the same set-up as the inaugural 2010 edition, although the rules have changed slightly, so see the next post for those (and yes, I've condensed them!). Bear in mind that the submission period won't open until mid-January-ish, so there's no point sending anything to me yet. There'll be a new email address anyway ;-)
That said, get thinking about the kinds of songs you could enter. The 2010 edition proved that everyone got the point and spirit of the contest (more or less!) and had fun with it, so let's hope we can repeat that in 2011!
After the Rules post, further updates will follow in due course, but they'll be signposted on the MB as well. So one way or another you shouldn't miss anything if you keep your eyes open :)
Enjoy the Eurovision That Never Was 2011!
The contest will have much the same set-up as the inaugural 2010 edition, although the rules have changed slightly, so see the next post for those (and yes, I've condensed them!). Bear in mind that the submission period won't open until mid-January-ish, so there's no point sending anything to me yet. There'll be a new email address anyway ;-)
That said, get thinking about the kinds of songs you could enter. The 2010 edition proved that everyone got the point and spirit of the contest (more or less!) and had fun with it, so let's hope we can repeat that in 2011!
After the Rules post, further updates will follow in due course, but they'll be signposted on the MB as well. So one way or another you shouldn't miss anything if you keep your eyes open :)
Enjoy the Eurovision That Never Was 2011!
2/07/2010
Your feedback is welcome
One final post before the blog goes into hibernation! First off, congratulations to our winner, Arvid, whose entry sees the inaugural ETNW win go to the home country of Tore, our much missed MB member to whom the whole contest was dedicated.
Since this was the first ever The Eurovision That Never was, I wanted to ask everyone who took part - and indeed those who didn't - for their feedback about the contest. What, in your view, worked? What didn't? What would you do differently? Were the rules too complicated? Was the timing all wrong? Were you too MB-contested out to bother taking part?
For my own part I would change the timing of the ETNW, if it is held again, so that the final doesn't coincide with the national final season kicking in, since to me it's felt like the contest went out with a fizz rather than the bang it should have. I would also consider requiring non-qualifying semi-finalists to vote in the final, since I was a little disappointed in the lack of interest among them this time around (although that might speak against making it compulsory) (and it is undoubtedly also related to the national finals being in full swing).
In any case, there's plenty of time to think about it. You can reply on here or on the MB - I will be posting a request for feedback on there also. Anything you have to say, be it praise or criticism, would be appreciated.
Thanks again to everyone for taking part! See you next year...?
Since this was the first ever The Eurovision That Never was, I wanted to ask everyone who took part - and indeed those who didn't - for their feedback about the contest. What, in your view, worked? What didn't? What would you do differently? Were the rules too complicated? Was the timing all wrong? Were you too MB-contested out to bother taking part?
For my own part I would change the timing of the ETNW, if it is held again, so that the final doesn't coincide with the national final season kicking in, since to me it's felt like the contest went out with a fizz rather than the bang it should have. I would also consider requiring non-qualifying semi-finalists to vote in the final, since I was a little disappointed in the lack of interest among them this time around (although that might speak against making it compulsory) (and it is undoubtedly also related to the national finals being in full swing).
In any case, there's plenty of time to think about it. You can reply on here or on the MB - I will be posting a request for feedback on there also. Anything you have to say, be it praise or criticism, would be appreciated.
Thanks again to everyone for taking part! See you next year...?
Full results of semi-finals and final
Here are the results of the final if you couldn't access the Scorewiz show for some reason.
01 168 Norway 1995 – Se Ilden Lyse (Arvid)
02 137 Poland 1973 – Kupilabym Ci Me Kochanie (Egle)
03 132 Spain 1997 – Amor Perdido (Danniiboy)
04 129 Italy 2008 – Oceano (Haris)
05 124 Spain 2004 – Que Te Den Candela (Jortsu)
06 110 Slovakia 2008 – Pokuj V Duši (Boris)
07 099 France 2003 – Donne-Moi Le Temps (Ben UK)
08 088 Belgium 1980 – Amoureaux Solitaires (Frank)
09 081 Spain 1974 – Tu Nombre Me Sabe A Hierba (Leo-Spain)
10 078 UK 2004 – Can't Say Goodbye (Phutty)
11 075 Spain 1989 – Mujer Contra Mujer (Costas)
12 070 UK 2008 – The Winner's Song (Merseymike)
13 066 Andorra 2007 – Love Drunk (Wahoowa)
14 057 UK 1981 – Japanese Boy (Drew UK)
15 057 Switzerland 2009 – Omnos (Jahner)
16 055 Sweden 2006 – Satellites (Ademir)
17 051 France 2005 – Quand Vos Coeurs M'appellent (Anthi)
18 050 Greece 2001 – Diaspora (Umut)
19 047 Israel 2004 – Geula (Jeremy)
20 045 UK 1978 – Run Back (Jaymakk)
21 043 Malta 2007 – Feel The Rain (Made in Malta)
22 040 Ireland 2009 – Angel (Luke (small 'l'))
23 029 Norway 2009 – Will You Remember Me Tomorrow? (Alesta)
24 025 Luxembourg 1978 – Do It Do It Again (Flameboy)
Click on one of the links below to download the Excel file with the full voting results of the semi-finals and final. If you notice any discrepancies... too late now! ;-)
http://www.zshare.net/download/7227233184792606/
http://rapidshare.com/files/347332654/ETNW_votes_table_semis_and_final.xls.html
Before you ask, I will not be revealing the names of the sponsors of the disqualified entries. They are MB regulars, and if they choose to they can make themselves known.
Congratulations again to our winner and my thanks to everyone for taking part and making it an enjoyable and largely hassle-free experience!
Greg (phutty)
01 168 Norway 1995 – Se Ilden Lyse (Arvid)
02 137 Poland 1973 – Kupilabym Ci Me Kochanie (Egle)
03 132 Spain 1997 – Amor Perdido (Danniiboy)
04 129 Italy 2008 – Oceano (Haris)
05 124 Spain 2004 – Que Te Den Candela (Jortsu)
06 110 Slovakia 2008 – Pokuj V Duši (Boris)
07 099 France 2003 – Donne-Moi Le Temps (Ben UK)
08 088 Belgium 1980 – Amoureaux Solitaires (Frank)
09 081 Spain 1974 – Tu Nombre Me Sabe A Hierba (Leo-Spain)
10 078 UK 2004 – Can't Say Goodbye (Phutty)
11 075 Spain 1989 – Mujer Contra Mujer (Costas)
12 070 UK 2008 – The Winner's Song (Merseymike)
13 066 Andorra 2007 – Love Drunk (Wahoowa)
14 057 UK 1981 – Japanese Boy (Drew UK)
15 057 Switzerland 2009 – Omnos (Jahner)
16 055 Sweden 2006 – Satellites (Ademir)
17 051 France 2005 – Quand Vos Coeurs M'appellent (Anthi)
18 050 Greece 2001 – Diaspora (Umut)
19 047 Israel 2004 – Geula (Jeremy)
20 045 UK 1978 – Run Back (Jaymakk)
21 043 Malta 2007 – Feel The Rain (Made in Malta)
22 040 Ireland 2009 – Angel (Luke (small 'l'))
23 029 Norway 2009 – Will You Remember Me Tomorrow? (Alesta)
24 025 Luxembourg 1978 – Do It Do It Again (Flameboy)
Click on one of the links below to download the Excel file with the full voting results of the semi-finals and final. If you notice any discrepancies... too late now! ;-)
http://www.zshare.net/download/7227233184792606/
http://rapidshare.com/files/347332654/ETNW_votes_table_semis_and_final.xls.html
Before you ask, I will not be revealing the names of the sponsors of the disqualified entries. They are MB regulars, and if they choose to they can make themselves known.
Congratulations again to our winner and my thanks to everyone for taking part and making it an enjoyable and largely hassle-free experience!
Greg (phutty)
The final - the results show!
Welcome to the results show for the final of The Eurovision That Never Was!
The Scorewiz extravaganza that will reveal our winner awaits you at the link below - with thanks to Ben!
http://www.tummiweb.com/escnation/scorewiz/show.php?id=88812
One request: when commenting on the results, either here on the blog or on the MB, please keep any spoilers to the body of your messages for the time being, rather than the subject lines - remember that not everyone will get to view the results at the same time.
An Excel spreadsheet of the full results of each semi-final and the final will be uploaded (for download) in about an hour's time.
At this point let me just say thank you to everyone who took part, but in particular to those of you who saw it through to the end, and congratulations in advance to our winner! Tiramisu for everyone!
The Scorewiz extravaganza that will reveal our winner awaits you at the link below - with thanks to Ben!
http://www.tummiweb.com/escnation/scorewiz/show.php?id=88812
One request: when commenting on the results, either here on the blog or on the MB, please keep any spoilers to the body of your messages for the time being, rather than the subject lines - remember that not everyone will get to view the results at the same time.
An Excel spreadsheet of the full results of each semi-final and the final will be uploaded (for download) in about an hour's time.
At this point let me just say thank you to everyone who took part, but in particular to those of you who saw it through to the end, and congratulations in advance to our winner! Tiramisu for everyone!
The final - revelation of sponsors!
Click on the link below to watch the Revelation of Sponsors video on YouTube.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yYMrTs0rc_A
Alternatively, here's a handy all-in-one list.
01 Spain 1997 – Amor Perdido (Marta Sánchez) Danniiboy
02 France 2005 – Quand Vos Coeurs M'appellent (Isabelle Boulay) Anthi
03 Spain 1989 – Mujer Contra Mujer (Mecano) Costas
04 Norway 1995 – Se Ilden Lyse (Sissel) Arvid
05 Switzerland 2009 – Omnos (Eluveitie) Jahner
06 Sweden 2006 – Satellites (September) Ademir
07 UK 2008 – The Winner's Song (Geraldine McQueen) Merseymike
08 UK 1981 – Japanese Boy (Anika) Drew UK
09 Spain 2004 – Que Te Den Candela (Bea Bronchal) Jortsu
10 Andorra 2007 – Love Drunk (Boys Like Girls) Wahoowa
11 Spain 1974 – Tu Nombre Me Sabe A Hierba (Marisol) Leo-Spain
12 Israel 2004 – Geula (Hemi Rudner) Jeremy
13 Norway 2009 – Will You Remember Me Tomorrow? (Margaret Berger) Alesta
14 Belgium 1980 – Amoureaux Solitaires (Lio) Frank
15 France 2003 – Donne-Moi Le Temps (Jenifer) Ben UK
16 Malta 2007 – Feel The Rain (Chasing Pandora) Made in Malta
17 Slovakia 2008 – Pokuj V Duši (Jana Kirschner) Boris
18 Luxembourg 1978 – Do It Do It Again (Raffaella Carrà) Flameboy
19 Italy 2008 – Oceano (Lisa) Haris
20 UK 1978 – Run Back (Carl Douglas) Jaymakk
21 UK 2004 – Can't Say Goodbye (Pop!) Phutty
22 Greece 2001 – Diaspora (Omega Vibes) Umut
23 Ireland 2009 – Angel (The Corrs) Luke (small 'l')
24 Poland 1973 – Kupilabym Ci Me Kochanie (Anna German) Egle
How many did you guess right? :-)
Good luck to everyone in the final, which will go live in around an hour's time.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yYMrTs0rc_A
Alternatively, here's a handy all-in-one list.
01 Spain 1997 – Amor Perdido (Marta Sánchez) Danniiboy
02 France 2005 – Quand Vos Coeurs M'appellent (Isabelle Boulay) Anthi
03 Spain 1989 – Mujer Contra Mujer (Mecano) Costas
04 Norway 1995 – Se Ilden Lyse (Sissel) Arvid
05 Switzerland 2009 – Omnos (Eluveitie) Jahner
06 Sweden 2006 – Satellites (September) Ademir
07 UK 2008 – The Winner's Song (Geraldine McQueen) Merseymike
08 UK 1981 – Japanese Boy (Anika) Drew UK
09 Spain 2004 – Que Te Den Candela (Bea Bronchal) Jortsu
10 Andorra 2007 – Love Drunk (Boys Like Girls) Wahoowa
11 Spain 1974 – Tu Nombre Me Sabe A Hierba (Marisol) Leo-Spain
12 Israel 2004 – Geula (Hemi Rudner) Jeremy
13 Norway 2009 – Will You Remember Me Tomorrow? (Margaret Berger) Alesta
14 Belgium 1980 – Amoureaux Solitaires (Lio) Frank
15 France 2003 – Donne-Moi Le Temps (Jenifer) Ben UK
16 Malta 2007 – Feel The Rain (Chasing Pandora) Made in Malta
17 Slovakia 2008 – Pokuj V Duši (Jana Kirschner) Boris
18 Luxembourg 1978 – Do It Do It Again (Raffaella Carrà) Flameboy
19 Italy 2008 – Oceano (Lisa) Haris
20 UK 1978 – Run Back (Carl Douglas) Jaymakk
21 UK 2004 – Can't Say Goodbye (Pop!) Phutty
22 Greece 2001 – Diaspora (Omega Vibes) Umut
23 Ireland 2009 – Angel (The Corrs) Luke (small 'l')
24 Poland 1973 – Kupilabym Ci Me Kochanie (Anna German) Egle
How many did you guess right? :-)
Good luck to everyone in the final, which will go live in around an hour's time.
Voting in the final has now closed!
Voting in the final closed at 23:59:59 last night and I can exclusively reveal that all of the sponsors actually managed to vote this time ;-)
Double-checking of votes will be happening shortly - and if there are any discrepancies I'll be getting in touch with you ASAP - and then it will onto the Scorewiz for the results.
The revelation of sponsors show and results show are scheduled for 19:00:00 and 20:00:00 CET tonight.
Good luck to everyone in the final!
Double-checking of votes will be happening shortly - and if there are any discrepancies I'll be getting in touch with you ASAP - and then it will onto the Scorewiz for the results.
The revelation of sponsors show and results show are scheduled for 19:00:00 and 20:00:00 CET tonight.
Good luck to everyone in the final!
2/05/2010
The final: 24-hour warning!
Quick message for those who still have to vote in the final: you've got slightly more than 24 hours left to submit them. 23:59:59 CET tomorrow, Saturday 6 February, is the cut-off.
Just a reminder that if you're the sponsor of an entry in the final but fail to submit your votes by the deadline, your entry will be disqualified, regardless of whether it would have come first or last. And that still applies to a good third of you! :-P
Naturally enough, the deadline for voting in the final by sponsors is also the deadline to vote for non-qualifying semi-finalists and non-participants, who are also welcome to do so.
Remember that the revelation of sponsors and results show will be on Sunday night starting from 20:00:00 CET. Good luck to everyone involved!
Just a reminder that if you're the sponsor of an entry in the final but fail to submit your votes by the deadline, your entry will be disqualified, regardless of whether it would have come first or last. And that still applies to a good third of you! :-P
Naturally enough, the deadline for voting in the final by sponsors is also the deadline to vote for non-qualifying semi-finalists and non-participants, who are also welcome to do so.
Remember that the revelation of sponsors and results show will be on Sunday night starting from 20:00:00 CET. Good luck to everyone involved!
2/04/2010
The final: 48-hour warning!
Quick message for those who still have (which is about half the sponsors) or wish to vote in the final: as of 23:59:59 tonight (Thursday) you'll have just 48 hours left to submit them. Saturday is the cut-off for all voting. And since you'll all be busy with the various finals and whatnot on Saturday night, you might want to get you act together ;-)
Just a reminder that if you're the sponsor of an entry in the final but fail to submit your votes by the deadline, your entry will be disqualified - albeit retrospectively - even if it would otherwise have won.
Don't miss out!
Just a reminder that if you're the sponsor of an entry in the final but fail to submit your votes by the deadline, your entry will be disqualified - albeit retrospectively - even if it would otherwise have won.
Don't miss out!
1/31/2010
Regarding voting in the final
I've received a couple of queries as to whether you can change your votes in the final after you've submitted them - for example, if you submit your votes today, all excited, but then listen to the songs again during the week and want to amend them.
Yes, you can.
The voting deadline is exactly that: the time by which votes have to be submitted. You can change them 100 times before then if you want to (although please think of me before doing so!). Whichever is the last set of votes I receive by the deadline is the one that will be recorded next to your name.
Happy voting! :)
Yes, you can.
The voting deadline is exactly that: the time by which votes have to be submitted. You can change them 100 times before then if you want to (although please think of me before doing so!). Whichever is the last set of votes I receive by the deadline is the one that will be recorded next to your name.
Happy voting! :)
1/30/2010
The final starts now!
We now have our 24 qualifiers for the final and the draw for the running order has been held. You will find it below. Feel free to use it as your voting form.
The link to download the final .rar for anyone who needs or wants it - and you could just as easily rearrange them on your computer or wherever you have them! is:
http://www.zshare.net/download/71895587f0a63df0/
Running order
01 Spain 1997 – Amor Perdido (Marta Sánchez)
02 France 2005 – Quand Vos Coeurs M'appellent (Isabelle Boulay)
03 Spain 1989 – Mujer Contra Mujer (Mecano)
04 Norway 1995 – Se Ilden Lyse (Sissel)
05 Switzerland 2009 – Omnos (Eluveitie)
06 Sweden 2006 – Satellites (September)
07 UK 2008 – The Winner's Song (Geraldine McQueen)
08 UK 1981 – Japanese Boy (Anika)
09 Spain 2004 – Que Te Den Candela (Bea Bronchal)
10 Andorra 2007 – Love Drunk (Boys Like Girls)
11 Spain 1974 – Tu Nombre Me Sabe A Hierba (Marisol)
12 Israel 2004 – Geula (Hemi Rudner)
13 Norway 2009 – Will You Remember Me Tomorrow? (Margaret Berger)
14 Belgium 1980 – Amoureaux Solitaires (Lio)
15 France 2003 – Donne-Moi Le Temps (Jenifer)
16 Malta 2007 – Feel The Rain (Chasing Pandora)
17 Slovakia 2008 – Pokuj V Duši (Jana Kirschner)
18 Luxembourg 1978 – Do It Do It Again (Raffaella Carrà)
19 Italy 2008 – Oceano (Lisa)
20 UK 1978 – Run Back (Carl Douglas)
21 UK 2004 – Can't Say Goodbye (Pop!)
22 Greece 2001 – Diaspora (Omega Vibes)
23 Ireland 2009 – Angel (The Corrs)
24 Poland 1973 – Kupilabym Ci Me Kochanie (Anna German)
Voting is now open. The deadline for voting in the final is 23:59:59 next Saturday 6 February 2010.
Please remember that if your entry has qualified for the final you must vote, or you will be disqualified. Sponsors of non-qualifying entries can also vote in the final with full weighting. Non-participants may also vote, although theirs will be combined into one final 'bonus' vote ;-)
Good luck to everyone in the final, and have fun voting!
The link to download the final .rar for anyone who needs or wants it - and you could just as easily rearrange them on your computer or wherever you have them! is:
http://www.zshare.net/download/71895587f0a63df0/
Running order
01 Spain 1997 – Amor Perdido (Marta Sánchez)
02 France 2005 – Quand Vos Coeurs M'appellent (Isabelle Boulay)
03 Spain 1989 – Mujer Contra Mujer (Mecano)
04 Norway 1995 – Se Ilden Lyse (Sissel)
05 Switzerland 2009 – Omnos (Eluveitie)
06 Sweden 2006 – Satellites (September)
07 UK 2008 – The Winner's Song (Geraldine McQueen)
08 UK 1981 – Japanese Boy (Anika)
09 Spain 2004 – Que Te Den Candela (Bea Bronchal)
10 Andorra 2007 – Love Drunk (Boys Like Girls)
11 Spain 1974 – Tu Nombre Me Sabe A Hierba (Marisol)
12 Israel 2004 – Geula (Hemi Rudner)
13 Norway 2009 – Will You Remember Me Tomorrow? (Margaret Berger)
14 Belgium 1980 – Amoureaux Solitaires (Lio)
15 France 2003 – Donne-Moi Le Temps (Jenifer)
16 Malta 2007 – Feel The Rain (Chasing Pandora)
17 Slovakia 2008 – Pokuj V Duši (Jana Kirschner)
18 Luxembourg 1978 – Do It Do It Again (Raffaella Carrà)
19 Italy 2008 – Oceano (Lisa)
20 UK 1978 – Run Back (Carl Douglas)
21 UK 2004 – Can't Say Goodbye (Pop!)
22 Greece 2001 – Diaspora (Omega Vibes)
23 Ireland 2009 – Angel (The Corrs)
24 Poland 1973 – Kupilabym Ci Me Kochanie (Anna German)
Voting is now open. The deadline for voting in the final is 23:59:59 next Saturday 6 February 2010.
Please remember that if your entry has qualified for the final you must vote, or you will be disqualified. Sponsors of non-qualifying entries can also vote in the final with full weighting. Non-participants may also vote, although theirs will be combined into one final 'bonus' vote ;-)
Good luck to everyone in the final, and have fun voting!
Semi 3 - Revelation of qualifiers!
Click on the YouTube link below to find out which entries from the 3rd semi-final have qualified for the final.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MB7zNAPCeTw
If that's not working, here is the full list:
Qualifiers (in random order)
Slovakia 2008 – Pokuj V Duši (Jana Kirschner)
Spain 1997 – Amor Perdido (Marta Sánchez)
UK 1981 – Japanese Boy (Anika)
Italy 2008 – Oceano (Lisa)
Spain 2004 – Que Te Den Candela (Bea Bronchal)
Ireland 2009 – Angel (The Corrs)
UK 2008 – The Winner's Song (Geraldine McQueen)
Andorra 2007 – Love Drunk (Boys Like Girls)
And those who didn't make it...
WITHDRAWN: Norway 2004 – Don't Speak (No Doubt)
16th – 20 points: Finland 1994 – Mind Across The Ocean (Cheap And Nasty) DylanUK
15th – 48 points: Sweden 1976 – Agamemnons Stora Ballad Om Flykten Från Sitt Hemland (Kåldolmar & Kalsipper) Jonas
14th – 55 points: Norway 1989 – Hallo Hallo (Toma) Steinar
13th – 56 points: Netherlands 1970 – Venus (Shocking Blue) Jordy
12th – 68 points: Malta 2009 – My Own (Isabeau Miller) SamB
11th – 78 points: Russia 1998 – Ya Pozabyl Tvoyo Litso (Valeriy Leontiev) Andy
10th – 79 points: Switzerland 2008 – Piange Il Sole (Luca Dirisio) Shi
9th – 87 points: Monaco 1975 – Quand J'étais Chanteur (Michel Delpech) KevinFrance
Congratulations to all of the qualifiers and commiserations to everyone else!
The draw for the final has been completed and the running order (and link to download the final .rar) will be posted shortly. Voting will open immediately once it does.
P.S. If you comment on the results on the MB, please refrain from including 'spoilers' in your subject line so as not to, er, spoil it for others who haven't seen the results yet. Thanks.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MB7zNAPCeTw
If that's not working, here is the full list:
Qualifiers (in random order)
Slovakia 2008 – Pokuj V Duši (Jana Kirschner)
Spain 1997 – Amor Perdido (Marta Sánchez)
UK 1981 – Japanese Boy (Anika)
Italy 2008 – Oceano (Lisa)
Spain 2004 – Que Te Den Candela (Bea Bronchal)
Ireland 2009 – Angel (The Corrs)
UK 2008 – The Winner's Song (Geraldine McQueen)
Andorra 2007 – Love Drunk (Boys Like Girls)
And those who didn't make it...
WITHDRAWN: Norway 2004 – Don't Speak (No Doubt)
16th – 20 points: Finland 1994 – Mind Across The Ocean (Cheap And Nasty) DylanUK
15th – 48 points: Sweden 1976 – Agamemnons Stora Ballad Om Flykten Från Sitt Hemland (Kåldolmar & Kalsipper) Jonas
14th – 55 points: Norway 1989 – Hallo Hallo (Toma) Steinar
13th – 56 points: Netherlands 1970 – Venus (Shocking Blue) Jordy
12th – 68 points: Malta 2009 – My Own (Isabeau Miller) SamB
11th – 78 points: Russia 1998 – Ya Pozabyl Tvoyo Litso (Valeriy Leontiev) Andy
10th – 79 points: Switzerland 2008 – Piange Il Sole (Luca Dirisio) Shi
9th – 87 points: Monaco 1975 – Quand J'étais Chanteur (Michel Delpech) KevinFrance
Congratulations to all of the qualifiers and commiserations to everyone else!
The draw for the final has been completed and the running order (and link to download the final .rar) will be posted shortly. Voting will open immediately once it does.
P.S. If you comment on the results on the MB, please refrain from including 'spoilers' in your subject line so as not to, er, spoil it for others who haven't seen the results yet. Thanks.
Semi 2 - Revelation of qualifiers!
Click on the YouTube link below to find out which entries from the 2nd semi-final have qualified for the final.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qWKWLov-Uvw
If that's not working, here is the full list:
Qualifiers (in random order)
Sweden 2006 – Satellites (September)
Norway 2009 – Will You Remember Me Tomorrow? (Margaret Berger)
Norway 1995 – Se Ilden Lyse (Sissel)
France 2003 – Donne-Moi Le Temps (Jenifer)
Belgium 1980 – Amoureaux Solitaires (Lio)
Switzerland 2009 – Omnos (Eluveitie)
UK 1978 – Run Back (Carl Douglas)
Spain 1974 – Tu Nombre Me Sabe A Hierba (Marisol)
And those who didn't make it...
18th – 14 points: Armenia 2005 – Sugar (System Of A Down) MartinF
17th – 27 points: Luxembourg 2006 – Bandits (Thorunn) Geert
16th – 27 points: Ireland 2007 – Off And On (Róisín Murphy) Noah
15th – 44 points: Russia 1980 – Babooshka (Kate Bush) Catherine of Aragon
14th – 55 points: Malta 1973 – Welcome Home (Peters And Lee) Boog
13th – 70 points: Andorra 2008 – We Are One (Same Difference) MattL
12th – 75 points: Iceland 2004 – Passive Aggressive (The Honeymoon) GSM
11th – 88 points: Portugal 2008 – Sem Ar (D'Black) Adonis
10th – 96 points: Spain 1993 – Una Rosa Es Una Rosa (Mecano) AdolfoPT
9th – 108 points: Greece 2008 – Yparxei Zoi (There Is Life) (Despina Vandi) Orestis
Congratulations to all of the qualifiers and commiserations to everyone else!
The qualifiers for Semi 3 will be revealed in about half an hour. See you soon...
P.S. If you comment on the results on the MB, please refrain from including 'spoilers' in your subject line so as not to, er, spoil it for others who haven't seen the results yet. Thanks.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qWKWLov-Uvw
If that's not working, here is the full list:
Qualifiers (in random order)
Sweden 2006 – Satellites (September)
Norway 2009 – Will You Remember Me Tomorrow? (Margaret Berger)
Norway 1995 – Se Ilden Lyse (Sissel)
France 2003 – Donne-Moi Le Temps (Jenifer)
Belgium 1980 – Amoureaux Solitaires (Lio)
Switzerland 2009 – Omnos (Eluveitie)
UK 1978 – Run Back (Carl Douglas)
Spain 1974 – Tu Nombre Me Sabe A Hierba (Marisol)
And those who didn't make it...
18th – 14 points: Armenia 2005 – Sugar (System Of A Down) MartinF
17th – 27 points: Luxembourg 2006 – Bandits (Thorunn) Geert
16th – 27 points: Ireland 2007 – Off And On (Róisín Murphy) Noah
15th – 44 points: Russia 1980 – Babooshka (Kate Bush) Catherine of Aragon
14th – 55 points: Malta 1973 – Welcome Home (Peters And Lee) Boog
13th – 70 points: Andorra 2008 – We Are One (Same Difference) MattL
12th – 75 points: Iceland 2004 – Passive Aggressive (The Honeymoon) GSM
11th – 88 points: Portugal 2008 – Sem Ar (D'Black) Adonis
10th – 96 points: Spain 1993 – Una Rosa Es Una Rosa (Mecano) AdolfoPT
9th – 108 points: Greece 2008 – Yparxei Zoi (There Is Life) (Despina Vandi) Orestis
Congratulations to all of the qualifiers and commiserations to everyone else!
The qualifiers for Semi 3 will be revealed in about half an hour. See you soon...
P.S. If you comment on the results on the MB, please refrain from including 'spoilers' in your subject line so as not to, er, spoil it for others who haven't seen the results yet. Thanks.
Semi 1 - revelation of qualifiers!
Click on the YouTube link below to find out which entries from the 1st semi-final have qualified for the final.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzC3qRxIALA
If that's not working, here is the full list:
Qualifiers (in random order)
France 2005 – Quand Vos Coeurs M'appellent (Isabelle Boulay)
Spain 1989 – Mujer Contra Mujer (Mecano)
Poland 1973 – Kupilabym Ci Me Kochanie (Anna German)
Luxembourg 1978 – Do It Do It Again (Raffaella Carrà)
Israel 2004 – Geula (Hemi Rudner)
Malta 2007 – Feel The Rain (Chasing Pandora)
UK 2004 – Can't Say Goodbye (Pop!)
Greece 2001 – Diaspora (Omega Vibes)
And those who didn't make it...
DISQUALIFIED: Turkey 2001 – Private Emotion (Ricky Martin)
DISQUALIFIED: Monaco 1986 – Ouragan (Stephanie)
DISQUALIFIED: Finland 2007 – Hiljennä, Siiri (Aki Sirkesalo)
WITHDRAWN: Denmark 2007 – Travel To Romantis (Ace Of Base)
14th – 4 points: UK 1971 – I Want It Now (Oompaloompa) (The Willy Wonka Cast) TenT
13th – 53 points: Azerbaijan 2009 – Come Alive (War Of The Roses) (Janelle Monae) Harrow
12th – 62 points: Luxembourg 1994 – Un, Deux, Trois (Fredericks Goldman Jones) Roger
11th – 81 points: Ireland 1995 – Miss Chateleine (k.d. Lang) Loboinmadrid
10th – 83 points: Norway 1999 – Come Downtown (One 2 Many) DavidG
9th – 94 points: Spain 2001 – Me Pongo Colorada (Papá Levante) Sergio
Congratulations to all of the qualifiers and commiserations to everyone else!
The qualifiers for Semi 2 will be revealed in about half an hour. See you soon...
P.S. If you comment on the results on the MB, please refrain from including 'spoilers' in your subject line so as not to, er, spoil it for others who haven't seen the results yet. Thanks.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzC3qRxIALA
If that's not working, here is the full list:
Qualifiers (in random order)
France 2005 – Quand Vos Coeurs M'appellent (Isabelle Boulay)
Spain 1989 – Mujer Contra Mujer (Mecano)
Poland 1973 – Kupilabym Ci Me Kochanie (Anna German)
Luxembourg 1978 – Do It Do It Again (Raffaella Carrà)
Israel 2004 – Geula (Hemi Rudner)
Malta 2007 – Feel The Rain (Chasing Pandora)
UK 2004 – Can't Say Goodbye (Pop!)
Greece 2001 – Diaspora (Omega Vibes)
And those who didn't make it...
DISQUALIFIED: Turkey 2001 – Private Emotion (Ricky Martin)
DISQUALIFIED: Monaco 1986 – Ouragan (Stephanie)
DISQUALIFIED: Finland 2007 – Hiljennä, Siiri (Aki Sirkesalo)
WITHDRAWN: Denmark 2007 – Travel To Romantis (Ace Of Base)
14th – 4 points: UK 1971 – I Want It Now (Oompaloompa) (The Willy Wonka Cast) TenT
13th – 53 points: Azerbaijan 2009 – Come Alive (War Of The Roses) (Janelle Monae) Harrow
12th – 62 points: Luxembourg 1994 – Un, Deux, Trois (Fredericks Goldman Jones) Roger
11th – 81 points: Ireland 1995 – Miss Chateleine (k.d. Lang) Loboinmadrid
10th – 83 points: Norway 1999 – Come Downtown (One 2 Many) DavidG
9th – 94 points: Spain 2001 – Me Pongo Colorada (Papá Levante) Sergio
Congratulations to all of the qualifiers and commiserations to everyone else!
The qualifiers for Semi 2 will be revealed in about half an hour. See you soon...
P.S. If you comment on the results on the MB, please refrain from including 'spoilers' in your subject line so as not to, er, spoil it for others who haven't seen the results yet. Thanks.
Notification of disqualifications
Unfortunately I've been left with no choice but to disqualify two entries because, after repeated reminders, their sponsors failed to vote in their respective semi-finals.
I will not be revealing the names of any sponsors of entries disqualified or withdrawn during the revelation shows - if the sponsors wish to tell you who they are, that's up to them. However, the names of the sponsors of the songs withdrawn after voting began will be published after the final when the full voting in the semi-finals is revealed... so even if they don't want anyone to know it was them, they voted - so bad luck :-P
Commiserations to those whose entries have been disqualified, since I assume you didn't just not vote because you couldn't be arsed ;-) But them's the breaks.
See you all for the qualifier revelation shows later tonight!
I will not be revealing the names of any sponsors of entries disqualified or withdrawn during the revelation shows - if the sponsors wish to tell you who they are, that's up to them. However, the names of the sponsors of the songs withdrawn after voting began will be published after the final when the full voting in the semi-finals is revealed... so even if they don't want anyone to know it was them, they voted - so bad luck :-P
Commiserations to those whose entries have been disqualified, since I assume you didn't just not vote because you couldn't be arsed ;-) But them's the breaks.
See you all for the qualifier revelation shows later tonight!
Voting in the semi-finals has now closed!
The deadline for voting in Semi 3 - and thus for all voting in the semi-finals of The Eurovision That Never Was - passed at 23:59:59 last night. Thank you to everyone who voted!
The following is a reminder of the remaining schedule of the contest. All times are CET and subject to change. Except for the deadline for voting in the final ;-)
_____
Sat 30.01.10
20:00:00 Revelation of qualifiers - Semi 1
20:30:00 Revelation of qualifiers - Semi 2
21:00:00 Revelation of qualifiers - Semi 3
21:30:00 Final begins and voting window opens
Sat 06.02.10
23:59:59 Deadline for voting for final
Sun 07.02.10
20:00:00 Revelation of sponsors
21:00:00 Results show
____
Good luck to everyone for tonight's revelation of qualifiers!
The following is a reminder of the remaining schedule of the contest. All times are CET and subject to change. Except for the deadline for voting in the final ;-)
_____
Sat 30.01.10
20:00:00 Revelation of qualifiers - Semi 1
20:30:00 Revelation of qualifiers - Semi 2
21:00:00 Revelation of qualifiers - Semi 3
21:30:00 Final begins and voting window opens
Sat 06.02.10
23:59:59 Deadline for voting for final
Sun 07.02.10
20:00:00 Revelation of sponsors
21:00:00 Results show
____
Good luck to everyone for tonight's revelation of qualifiers!
1/28/2010
Semi 3: 24-hour warning!
Quick message for those who still have (or want) to vote in the 3rd semi-final: you've got a little over 24 hours left to submit them. 23:59:59 tomorrow, Friday 29 January, is the cut-off.
Just a reminder that if you're the sponsor of an entry in this semi-final but fail to submit your votes by the deadline, your entry will be disqualified, regardless of whether it would otherwise have qualified for the final. And that still applies to more than half of you! :-P
Naturally enough, the deadline for the 3rd semi-final is the deadline for all semi-final voting in The Eurovision That Never Was. So don't miss out!
Just a reminder that if you're the sponsor of an entry in this semi-final but fail to submit your votes by the deadline, your entry will be disqualified, regardless of whether it would otherwise have qualified for the final. And that still applies to more than half of you! :-P
Naturally enough, the deadline for the 3rd semi-final is the deadline for all semi-final voting in The Eurovision That Never Was. So don't miss out!
1/26/2010
Semi 3: 48-hour warning!
Quick message for those who still have (i.e. pretty much all of you!) or want to vote in the 3rd semi-final: as of 23:59:59 tonight (Wednesday) you'll have just 48 hours left to submit them. Friday is the cut-off for all voting in the semi-finals.
Just a reminder that if you're the sponsor of an entry in this semi-final but fail to submit your votes by the deadline, your entry will be disqualified, regardless of whether it would otherwise have qualified for the final.
Don't miss out! ;-)
Voting for Semi 2 has now closed
Thank you to everyone who voted in Semi 2! Keep your fingers crossed for your entries (or your favourites) in this semi-final come the revelation of qualifiers this Saturday.
Remember that voting in Semi 3 - and as such all voting for the semi-finals - is open until 23:59:59 this Friday 29 January.
Remember that voting in Semi 3 - and as such all voting for the semi-finals - is open until 23:59:59 this Friday 29 January.
1/25/2010
Semi 2: 24-hour warning!
Quick message for those who still have (or want) to vote in the 2nd semi-final: you've got a little over 24 hours left to submit them. 23:59:59 tomorrow, Tuesday 26 January, is the cut-off.
Just a reminder that if you're the sponsor of an entry in this semi-final but fail to submit your votes by the deadline, your entry will be disqualified, regardless of whether it would otherwise have qualified for the final. That still applies to almost two-thirds of you, and I ain't emailing you all individually chasing up your votes! :-P
Don't miss out!
Just a reminder that if you're the sponsor of an entry in this semi-final but fail to submit your votes by the deadline, your entry will be disqualified, regardless of whether it would otherwise have qualified for the final. That still applies to almost two-thirds of you, and I ain't emailing you all individually chasing up your votes! :-P
Don't miss out!
1/24/2010
Semi 2: 48-hour warning :)
Quick message for those who still have (and that's most of you!) or want to vote in the 2nd semi-final: you've got a little over 48 hours left to submit them. 23:59:59 on Tuesday 26 January is the cut-off.
Just a reminder that if you're the sponsor of an entry in this semi-final but fail to submit your votes by the deadline, your entry will be disqualified, regardless of whether it would otherwise have qualified for the final.
Don't miss out! ;-)
Just a reminder that if you're the sponsor of an entry in this semi-final but fail to submit your votes by the deadline, your entry will be disqualified, regardless of whether it would otherwise have qualified for the final.
Don't miss out! ;-)
Notification of song withdrawals
Due to personal reasons, a further two sponsors have had to withdraw their entries from the contest :(
However, since voting for the semis is ongoing - and indeed voting for Semi 1 has already closed - I won't be announcing who has pulled out, and neither will I be asking people to submit their votes again: the songs in question will simply be marked as 'withdrawn' during the revelation show.
I wish all of the sponsors who have had to withdraw their entries all the best in dealing with the situations that have come up and would like them to know that my thoughts are with them.
However, since voting for the semis is ongoing - and indeed voting for Semi 1 has already closed - I won't be announcing who has pulled out, and neither will I be asking people to submit their votes again: the songs in question will simply be marked as 'withdrawn' during the revelation show.
I wish all of the sponsors who have had to withdraw their entries all the best in dealing with the situations that have come up and would like them to know that my thoughts are with them.
Voting for Semi 1 has now closed
Thank you to everyone who voted in Semi 1! Keep your fingers crossed for your entries (or your favourites) in this semi-final come the revelation of qualifiers this Saturday.
Remember that voting in Semi 2 is open until Tuesday and in Semi 3 until Friday.
Remember that voting in Semi 2 is open until Tuesday and in Semi 3 until Friday.
1/22/2010
Semi 3 starts now!
Here are the 17 songs competing in the 3rd semi-final. Feel free to copy and paste the list to make voting easier, if you like :)
http://www.zshare.net/download/71539424c763ddf3/
http://rapidshare.com/files/339346560/ETNW_Semi_3.rar.html
01 Slovakia 2008 – Pokuj V Duši (Jana Kirschner)
02 Netherlands 1970 – Venus (Shocking Blue)
03 Sweden 1976 – Agamemnons Stora Ballad Om Flykten Från Sitt Hemland (Kåldolmar & Kalsipper)
04 Switzerland 2008 – Piange Il Sole (Luca Dirisio)
05 Andorra 2007 – Love Drunk (Boys Like Girls)
06 Finland 1994 – Mind Across The Ocean (Cheap And Nasty)
07 Norway 2004 – Don't Speak (No Doubt)
08 Spain 2004 – Que Te Den Candela (Bea Bronchal)
09 Malta 2009 – My Own (Isabeau Miller)
10 Monaco 1975 – Quand J'étais Chanteur (Michel Delpech)
11 Russia 1998 – Ya Pozabyl Tvoyo Litso (Valeriy Leontiev)
12 Spain 1997 – Amor Perdido (Marta Sánchez)
13 Norway 1989 – Hallo Hallo (Toma)
14 Ireland 2009 – Angel (The Corrs)
15 UK 2008 – The Winner's Song (Geraldine McQueen)
16 Italy 2008 – Oceano (Lisa)
17 UK 1981 – Japanese Boy (Anika)
The deadline for voting in the 3rd semi-final is 23:59:59 CET on Friday 29 January. Email your votes to the usual address: eurovisionthatneverwas@gmail.com.
Remember that if your entry is in this semi you must vote in it, or else be disqualified. Participants in the remaining semi-finals can also vote, with full weighting. Non-participants too can vote, although their votes will be amalgamated as one non-participants' jury.
Before voting, please read the post 'How you should go about voting' below, as well as the other posts on the blog that set out the voting criteria. Remember that this contest is not just about voting for your favourites.
Good luck to everyone in this semi!
P.S. Further downloading links may be added in due course, so keep your eyes open!
http://www.zshare.net/download/71539424c763ddf3/
http://rapidshare.com/files/339346560/ETNW_Semi_3.rar.html
01 Slovakia 2008 – Pokuj V Duši (Jana Kirschner)
02 Netherlands 1970 – Venus (Shocking Blue)
03 Sweden 1976 – Agamemnons Stora Ballad Om Flykten Från Sitt Hemland (Kåldolmar & Kalsipper)
04 Switzerland 2008 – Piange Il Sole (Luca Dirisio)
05 Andorra 2007 – Love Drunk (Boys Like Girls)
06 Finland 1994 – Mind Across The Ocean (Cheap And Nasty)
07 Norway 2004 – Don't Speak (No Doubt)
08 Spain 2004 – Que Te Den Candela (Bea Bronchal)
09 Malta 2009 – My Own (Isabeau Miller)
10 Monaco 1975 – Quand J'étais Chanteur (Michel Delpech)
11 Russia 1998 – Ya Pozabyl Tvoyo Litso (Valeriy Leontiev)
12 Spain 1997 – Amor Perdido (Marta Sánchez)
13 Norway 1989 – Hallo Hallo (Toma)
14 Ireland 2009 – Angel (The Corrs)
15 UK 2008 – The Winner's Song (Geraldine McQueen)
16 Italy 2008 – Oceano (Lisa)
17 UK 1981 – Japanese Boy (Anika)
The deadline for voting in the 3rd semi-final is 23:59:59 CET on Friday 29 January. Email your votes to the usual address: eurovisionthatneverwas@gmail.com.
Remember that if your entry is in this semi you must vote in it, or else be disqualified. Participants in the remaining semi-finals can also vote, with full weighting. Non-participants too can vote, although their votes will be amalgamated as one non-participants' jury.
Before voting, please read the post 'How you should go about voting' below, as well as the other posts on the blog that set out the voting criteria. Remember that this contest is not just about voting for your favourites.
Good luck to everyone in this semi!
P.S. Further downloading links may be added in due course, so keep your eyes open!
1/21/2010
Semi 1: 24-hour warning!
Quick message for those who still have (or want) to vote in the 1st semi-final: you've got a little over 24 hours left to submit them. 23:59:59 this Saturday 23 January is the cut-off.
Just a reminder that if you're the sponsor of an entry in this semi-final but fail to submit your votes by the deadline, your entry will be disqualified, regardless of whether it would otherwise have qualified for the final. That still applies to half of you, and I ain't emailing you all individually chasing up your votes! :-P
Don't miss out!
Just a reminder that if you're the sponsor of an entry in this semi-final but fail to submit your votes by the deadline, your entry will be disqualified, regardless of whether it would otherwise have qualified for the final. That still applies to half of you, and I ain't emailing you all individually chasing up your votes! :-P
Don't miss out!
1/20/2010
Semi 1: 48-hour warning :)
Quick message for those who still have (or want) to vote in the 1st semi-final: you've got a little over 48 hours left to submit them. 23:59:59 this Saturday 23 January is the cut-off.
Just a reminder that if you're the sponsor of an entry in this semi-final but fail to submit your votes by the deadline, your entry will be disqualified, regardless of whether it would otherwise have qualified for the final.
Don't miss out! ;-)
Just a reminder that if you're the sponsor of an entry in this semi-final but fail to submit your votes by the deadline, your entry will be disqualified, regardless of whether it would otherwise have qualified for the final.
Don't miss out! ;-)
1/19/2010
Notification of song withdrawal
For personal reasons one sponsor has asked to withdraw their entry from the 3rd semi-final.
Barring any further withdrawals or disqualifications, this will mean that the 1st and 3rd semi-finals feature 17 songs and the 2nd semi-final 18 songs. As planned, 8 songs from each semi-final will still qualify for the final.
Barring any further withdrawals or disqualifications, this will mean that the 1st and 3rd semi-finals feature 17 songs and the 2nd semi-final 18 songs. As planned, 8 songs from each semi-final will still qualify for the final.
Semi 2 starts now!
Here are the 18 songs competing in the 2nd semi-final. Feel free to copy and paste the list to make voting easier, if you like :)
http://www.zshare.net/download/714008481b1030f6/
http://rapidshare.com/files/337723542/ETNW_Semi_2.rar.html
01 Iceland 2004 – Passive Aggressive (The Honeymoon)
02 Spain 1974 – Tu Nombre Me Sabe A Hierba (Marisol)
03 France 2003 – Donne-Moi Le Temps (Jenifer)
04 Belgium 1980 – Amoureaux Solitaires (Lio)
05 Spain 1993 – Una Rosa Es Una Rosa (Mecano)
06 Armenia 2005 – Sugar (System Of A Down)
07 Portugal 2008 – Sem Ar (D'Black)
08 Sweden 2006 – Satellites (September)
09 Malta 1973 – Welcome Home (Peters And Lee)
10 Russia 1980 – Babooshka (Kate Bush)
11 Switzerland 2009 – Omnos (Eluveitie)
12 Norway 2009 – Will You Remember Me Tomorrow? (Margaret Berger)
13 Greece 2008 – Yparxei Zoi (There Is Life) (Despina Vandi)
14 Ireland 2007 – Off And On (Róisín Murphy)
15 Norway 1995 – Se Ilden Lyse (Sissel)
16 Luxembourg 2006 – Bandits (Thorunn)
17 UK 1978 – Run Back (Carl Douglas)
18 Andorra 2008 – We Are One (Same Difference)
The deadline for voting in the 2nd semi-final is 23:59:59 CET on Tuesday 26 January. Email your votes to the usual address: eurovisionthatneverwas@gmail.com.
Remember that if your entry is in this semi you must vote in it, or else be disqualified. Participants in the remaining semi-finals can also vote, with full weighting. Non-participants too can vote, although their votes will be amalgamated as one non-participants' jury.
Before voting, please read the post 'How you should go about voting' below, as well as the other posts on the blog that set out the voting criteria. Remember that this contest is not just about voting for your favourites.
Good luck to everyone in this semi!
P.S.1. Further downloading links may be added in due course, so keep your eyes open!
P.S.2. As Mecano also make an appearance in this semi, the same ? applies to them as was raised per Semi 1, but neither song has been disqualified, and neither will be, and that's all I'm saying about it :)
http://www.zshare.net/download/714008481b1030f6/
http://rapidshare.com/files/337723542/ETNW_Semi_2.rar.html
01 Iceland 2004 – Passive Aggressive (The Honeymoon)
02 Spain 1974 – Tu Nombre Me Sabe A Hierba (Marisol)
03 France 2003 – Donne-Moi Le Temps (Jenifer)
04 Belgium 1980 – Amoureaux Solitaires (Lio)
05 Spain 1993 – Una Rosa Es Una Rosa (Mecano)
06 Armenia 2005 – Sugar (System Of A Down)
07 Portugal 2008 – Sem Ar (D'Black)
08 Sweden 2006 – Satellites (September)
09 Malta 1973 – Welcome Home (Peters And Lee)
10 Russia 1980 – Babooshka (Kate Bush)
11 Switzerland 2009 – Omnos (Eluveitie)
12 Norway 2009 – Will You Remember Me Tomorrow? (Margaret Berger)
13 Greece 2008 – Yparxei Zoi (There Is Life) (Despina Vandi)
14 Ireland 2007 – Off And On (Róisín Murphy)
15 Norway 1995 – Se Ilden Lyse (Sissel)
16 Luxembourg 2006 – Bandits (Thorunn)
17 UK 1978 – Run Back (Carl Douglas)
18 Andorra 2008 – We Are One (Same Difference)
The deadline for voting in the 2nd semi-final is 23:59:59 CET on Tuesday 26 January. Email your votes to the usual address: eurovisionthatneverwas@gmail.com.
Remember that if your entry is in this semi you must vote in it, or else be disqualified. Participants in the remaining semi-finals can also vote, with full weighting. Non-participants too can vote, although their votes will be amalgamated as one non-participants' jury.
Before voting, please read the post 'How you should go about voting' below, as well as the other posts on the blog that set out the voting criteria. Remember that this contest is not just about voting for your favourites.
Good luck to everyone in this semi!
P.S.1. Further downloading links may be added in due course, so keep your eyes open!
P.S.2. As Mecano also make an appearance in this semi, the same ? applies to them as was raised per Semi 1, but neither song has been disqualified, and neither will be, and that's all I'm saying about it :)
1/18/2010
Favour to ask re: voting
To everyone still required or otherwise planning to vote, please use at least the country/year combination when giving your points, rather than just saying for example "1 point to song 5, 2 points to song 14" etc. Actually using the names should eschew misunderstandings and mistakes.
Feel free to copy/paste the list of entries for the 1st semi-final in the post below into your email and use that to vote with. And remember that your votes should be sent to the same address as your entries were: eurovisionthatneverwas@gmail.com.
Feel free to copy/paste the list of entries for the 1st semi-final in the post below into your email and use that to vote with. And remember that your votes should be sent to the same address as your entries were: eurovisionthatneverwas@gmail.com.
Regarding disqualifications...
I just wanted to let people know that I've made a decision regarding calls for disqualification. We've already had a handful more for songs in Semi 1, but since all of them fall into a bit of a grey zone, I've decided they can stay.
However, as some sponsors may feel this is unfair, I have also decided to reveal the names of the entries about which doubts have been raised due to a potential Eurovision connection. This way those voting can make up their own mind whether or not to give any points to them.
The songs flagged up as potentially breaking the rules in the 1st semi-final (so far!) are:
09 Spain 1989 – Mujer Contra Mujer (Mecano)
12 Greece 2001 – Diaspora (Omega Vibes)
18 UK 2004 – Can't Say Goodbye (Pop!)
Remember that 04 Turkey 2001 – Private Emotion (Ricky Martin) has already been disqualified for being a cover version.
From here on in I will still be happy to deal with any claims that songs are breaking the rules, but only if they do so in a very obvious way - either by being a cover version or the credited song or singer having been in a national final - will they be disqualified. If, like the ones above, the circumstances surrounding them are vague or borderline, I will highlight them in the same way and leave it up to voters to decide whether they will boycott them or not.
If you would like to amend your votes in the light of these 'warnings', you are free to do so at any time prior to the deadline.
Otherwise, as ever, enjoy the songs and have fun voting!
However, as some sponsors may feel this is unfair, I have also decided to reveal the names of the entries about which doubts have been raised due to a potential Eurovision connection. This way those voting can make up their own mind whether or not to give any points to them.
The songs flagged up as potentially breaking the rules in the 1st semi-final (so far!) are:
09 Spain 1989 – Mujer Contra Mujer (Mecano)
12 Greece 2001 – Diaspora (Omega Vibes)
18 UK 2004 – Can't Say Goodbye (Pop!)
Remember that 04 Turkey 2001 – Private Emotion (Ricky Martin) has already been disqualified for being a cover version.
From here on in I will still be happy to deal with any claims that songs are breaking the rules, but only if they do so in a very obvious way - either by being a cover version or the credited song or singer having been in a national final - will they be disqualified. If, like the ones above, the circumstances surrounding them are vague or borderline, I will highlight them in the same way and leave it up to voters to decide whether they will boycott them or not.
If you would like to amend your votes in the light of these 'warnings', you are free to do so at any time prior to the deadline.
Otherwise, as ever, enjoy the songs and have fun voting!
1/17/2010
Alternative download link for Semi 1
RapidShare (rapid? huh!!) finally decided to cooperate, so this link is now also available for the 1st semi-final:
http://rapidshare.com/files/336654957/ETNW_Semi_1.rar.html
The .rar can only be downloaded 10 times from this link though, so please only use it if the ZShare one doesn't work for you. Cheers.
http://rapidshare.com/files/336654957/ETNW_Semi_1.rar.html
The .rar can only be downloaded 10 times from this link though, so please only use it if the ZShare one doesn't work for you. Cheers.
Semi 1 - Disqualification
It has been brought to my attention that Ricky Martin's version of Private Emotion is a cover of the original by the group The Hooters. As a result, the following entry has been disqualified from the 1st semi-final:
04 Turkey 2001 - Private Emotion (Ricky Martin)
If you have already voted and allocated points to this song, please submit your votes again. If you have yet to vote, please do not allocate any points to this song.
Commiserations to the sponsor!
04 Turkey 2001 - Private Emotion (Ricky Martin)
If you have already voted and allocated points to this song, please submit your votes again. If you have yet to vote, please do not allocate any points to this song.
Commiserations to the sponsor!
1/16/2010
How you should go about voting
With the 1st semi-final now up and running, and knowing that some people tend to vote within about 5 minutes of the songs becoming available, I just thought I'd go over again how the voting in The Eurovision That Never Was is meant to work.
The most important point is this: do not vote for your favourites. The contest is meant to be about finding songs that could theoretically have represented the countries they have been allocated to in the years selected - by which I mean that in terms of the style of the song, the language and whatnot it feels 'authentic' to you. Whether or not you like it is not very important ;-)
I suggest you go about your voting like so:
1. As you listen to the songs for the first time, divide them into two groups - one marked 'Authentic' and the other 'Not'. Anything you hear and immediately think "yeah, that really does sound like a song that could have represented that country in that year (in that style and language)" should go in the 'Authentic' box. Everything else should go in the 'Not' box.
2. Everything in the 'Authentic' box should receive points from you ahead of those in the 'Not' box - even if you don't necessary like the 'authentic' songs, or prefer songs that are in the 'Not' box.
3. Rank the songs you have in your 'Authentic' box first and foremost on how authentic they sound (obviously!). For example, a song where both the language and style feel right for that country and year should be marked higher than one which sounds very authentic style-wise but in which the language strikes you as a bit odd. Beyond this, you'll have to be guided by your taste and/or quality of the entries.
4. If you don't have 10 songs in your 'Authentic' box, you will still need to give (lower) points to some from your 'Not' box. Here though how you vote is entirely up to you :-P
-----
Once again, please remember that The Eurovision That Never Was is not just about picking the songs you like most.
Enjoy listening to the entries and have fun voting!
The most important point is this: do not vote for your favourites. The contest is meant to be about finding songs that could theoretically have represented the countries they have been allocated to in the years selected - by which I mean that in terms of the style of the song, the language and whatnot it feels 'authentic' to you. Whether or not you like it is not very important ;-)
I suggest you go about your voting like so:
1. As you listen to the songs for the first time, divide them into two groups - one marked 'Authentic' and the other 'Not'. Anything you hear and immediately think "yeah, that really does sound like a song that could have represented that country in that year (in that style and language)" should go in the 'Authentic' box. Everything else should go in the 'Not' box.
2. Everything in the 'Authentic' box should receive points from you ahead of those in the 'Not' box - even if you don't necessary like the 'authentic' songs, or prefer songs that are in the 'Not' box.
3. Rank the songs you have in your 'Authentic' box first and foremost on how authentic they sound (obviously!). For example, a song where both the language and style feel right for that country and year should be marked higher than one which sounds very authentic style-wise but in which the language strikes you as a bit odd. Beyond this, you'll have to be guided by your taste and/or quality of the entries.
4. If you don't have 10 songs in your 'Authentic' box, you will still need to give (lower) points to some from your 'Not' box. Here though how you vote is entirely up to you :-P
-----
Once again, please remember that The Eurovision That Never Was is not just about picking the songs you like most.
Enjoy listening to the entries and have fun voting!
Semi 1 starts now!
Here are the 18 songs competing in the 1st semi-final. Feel free to copy and paste the list to make voting easier, if you like :)
http://www.zshare.net/download/712915810820cd24/
01 Norway 1999 – Come Downtown (One 2 Many)
02 Azerbaijan 2009 – Come Alive (War Of The Roses) (Janelle Monae)
03 Malta 2007 – Feel The Rain (Chasing Pandora)
04 Turkey 2001 – Private Emotion (Ricky Martin)
05 France 2005 – Quand Vos Coeurs M'appellent (Isabelle Boulay)
06 Monaco 1986 – Ouragan (Stephanie)
07 Luxembourg 1978 – Do It Do It Again (Raffaella Carrà)
08 Luxembourg 1994 – Un, Deux, Trois (Fredericks Goldman Jones)
09 Spain 1989 – Mujer Contra Mujer (Mecano)
10 UK 1971 – I Want It Now (Oompaloompa) (The Willy Wonka Cast)
11 Spain 2001 – Me Pongo Colorada (Papá Levante)
12 Greece 2001 – Diaspora (Omega Vibes)
13 Denmark 2007 – Travel To Romantis (Ace Of Base)
14 Israel 2004 – Geula (Hemi Rudner)
15 Finland 2007 – Hiljennä, Siiri (Aki Sirkesalo)
16 Poland 1973 – Kupilabym Ci Me Kochanie (Anna German)
17 Ireland 1995 – Miss Chateleine (k.d. Lang)
18 UK 2004 – Can't Say Goodbye (Pop!)
Good luck to everyone in this semi!
DOWNLOADING PROBLEMS?
I chose to use ZShare on advice, since in any case MegaUpload and RapidShare weren't cooperating, and YouSendIt has limited downloads. The files are also compacted as an .rar because that's what I use.
If either of these facts causes you headaches - slow downloads, or your computer doesn't like .rar stuff - be patient! The good people of the MB will undoubtedly come up with other options. Remember you have an entire week to vote in any case ;-)
All I would ask is that if any kind souls do repackage the MP3s in another format or upload them to another, er, downloading site, send the links to me so I can add them here to the blog. Cheers.
http://www.zshare.net/download/712915810820cd24/
01 Norway 1999 – Come Downtown (One 2 Many)
02 Azerbaijan 2009 – Come Alive (War Of The Roses) (Janelle Monae)
03 Malta 2007 – Feel The Rain (Chasing Pandora)
04 Turkey 2001 – Private Emotion (Ricky Martin)
05 France 2005 – Quand Vos Coeurs M'appellent (Isabelle Boulay)
06 Monaco 1986 – Ouragan (Stephanie)
07 Luxembourg 1978 – Do It Do It Again (Raffaella Carrà)
08 Luxembourg 1994 – Un, Deux, Trois (Fredericks Goldman Jones)
09 Spain 1989 – Mujer Contra Mujer (Mecano)
10 UK 1971 – I Want It Now (Oompaloompa) (The Willy Wonka Cast)
11 Spain 2001 – Me Pongo Colorada (Papá Levante)
12 Greece 2001 – Diaspora (Omega Vibes)
13 Denmark 2007 – Travel To Romantis (Ace Of Base)
14 Israel 2004 – Geula (Hemi Rudner)
15 Finland 2007 – Hiljennä, Siiri (Aki Sirkesalo)
16 Poland 1973 – Kupilabym Ci Me Kochanie (Anna German)
17 Ireland 1995 – Miss Chateleine (k.d. Lang)
18 UK 2004 – Can't Say Goodbye (Pop!)
The deadline for voting in the 1st semi-final is 23:59:59 CET on Saturday 23 January. Remember that if your entry is in this semi you must vote in it, or else be disqualified. Participants in the remaining semi-finals can also vote, with full weighting. Non-participants too can vote, although their votes will be amalgamated as one non-participants' jury.
Before voting, please read the post 'How you should go about voting' above, as well as the other posts on the blog that set out the voting criteria. Remember that this contest is not just about voting for your favourites.Good luck to everyone in this semi!
DOWNLOADING PROBLEMS?
I chose to use ZShare on advice, since in any case MegaUpload and RapidShare weren't cooperating, and YouSendIt has limited downloads. The files are also compacted as an .rar because that's what I use.
If either of these facts causes you headaches - slow downloads, or your computer doesn't like .rar stuff - be patient! The good people of the MB will undoubtedly come up with other options. Remember you have an entire week to vote in any case ;-)
All I would ask is that if any kind souls do repackage the MP3s in another format or upload them to another, er, downloading site, send the links to me so I can add them here to the blog. Cheers.
Information on semi-finals and final
With 54 entries having been submitted to the contest, there will be 3 semi-finals of 18 songs each from which the top 8 songs will qualify for the final. This will give us a final of 24 songs.
Please remember that you must vote in the semi-final your song is allocated to. If you fail to submit your votes by the deadline (see schedule below) without good reason your entry will be disqualified.
Participants can also vote in the two other semi-finals, in which their votes will count in full.
Non-participants can vote in all three semi-finals: your votes will be combined to form one non-participants' jury.
Obviously, if you qualify for the final you will also be required to vote in that, and again, if you fail to, your entry will be disqualified. Non-qualifying participants can also vote in the final, with full weighting, and non-participants can also vote, again forming one non-participants' jury.
If you have any questions, please post them here or on the MB.
The draw for the running order of the semi-finals will be conducted shortly. The 1st semi-final will go live later tonight.
Please remember that you must vote in the semi-final your song is allocated to. If you fail to submit your votes by the deadline (see schedule below) without good reason your entry will be disqualified.
Participants can also vote in the two other semi-finals, in which their votes will count in full.
Non-participants can vote in all three semi-finals: your votes will be combined to form one non-participants' jury.
Obviously, if you qualify for the final you will also be required to vote in that, and again, if you fail to, your entry will be disqualified. Non-qualifying participants can also vote in the final, with full weighting, and non-participants can also vote, again forming one non-participants' jury.
If you have any questions, please post them here or on the MB.
The draw for the running order of the semi-finals will be conducted shortly. The 1st semi-final will go live later tonight.
Submission of entries has now closed
The deadline for the submission of entries passed at midnight last night. Three last-minute entries were received, bringing the total number of entries to 54.
Good luck to everyone taking part!
Good luck to everyone taking part!
1/15/2010
Schedule of semi-finals and final
Now that the submission period is coming to an end and it's clear how many entries we have for The Eurovision That Never Was, here's the schedule for the semi-finals - all *three* of 'em people! - and final.
SCHEDULE
Sat 16.01.10: 1st semi-final begins and voting window opens
Tues 19.01.10: 2nd semi-final begins and voting window opens
Fri 22.01.10: 3rd semi-final begins and voting window opens
Sat 23.01.10: Deadline for voting for 1st semi-final
Tues 26.01.10: Deadline for voting for 2nd semi-final
Fri 29.01.10: Deadline for voting for 3rd semi-final
Sat 30.01.10: Revelation of qualifiers for final / Final begins and voting window opens
Sat 06.02.10: Deadline for voting for final
Sun 07.02.10: Revelation of sponsors and results show
If, in your view, there's anything about the schedule that could do with improving or changing, leave a comment here on post or the MB about it. If the majority are happy with it, though, we'll stick to it.
Best of luck to everyone taking part! (And you've still got a few hours left to enter if you want to!!)
SCHEDULE
Sat 16.01.10: 1st semi-final begins and voting window opens
Tues 19.01.10: 2nd semi-final begins and voting window opens
Fri 22.01.10: 3rd semi-final begins and voting window opens
Sat 23.01.10: Deadline for voting for 1st semi-final
Tues 26.01.10: Deadline for voting for 2nd semi-final
Fri 29.01.10: Deadline for voting for 3rd semi-final
Sat 30.01.10: Revelation of qualifiers for final / Final begins and voting window opens
Sat 06.02.10: Deadline for voting for final
Sun 07.02.10: Revelation of sponsors and results show
If, in your view, there's anything about the schedule that could do with improving or changing, leave a comment here on post or the MB about it. If the majority are happy with it, though, we'll stick to it.
Best of luck to everyone taking part! (And you've still got a few hours left to enter if you want to!!)
1/14/2010
24-hour warning :)
Quick message for those still thinking about their entry: you've now only got just over 24 hours left to submit them. 23:59:59 this Friday 15 January is the cut-off for submission of entries. Like I said before: don't miss out!
Angel-Chiara #5
With more than forty entries submitted we have our fifth Angel-Chiara country...
MALTA
This doesn't mean that no more entries allocated to Malta will be accepted, but you might want to bear it in mind.
MALTA
This doesn't mean that no more entries allocated to Malta will be accepted, but you might want to bear it in mind.
A bit more about voting :)
An MB discussion last night did a very good job of summing up what the voting in this contest is [meant to be] about, so for convenience's sake I'll post it here in its entirety!
-----
I don't think it's really about similairty to the actualentry from that country that year though... - Jonas @o@ - 13 Jan, 23:25:28
It's more like... if someone submits and entry as "Romania 1988" and it
a) sounds like it could have been released in 1988
b) sounds like it could have been an ESC entry
c) sounds like it is romanian (and preferrably in romanian, as there was no free langauge)
e) sounds like it's performed by performers eligible (i.e. not a choir of 500 people), then it would be quite authentic.
If someone enters "Montenegro 1997" but you quite quickly hear that the song
a) is American
b) is in English
c) is in a style you couldn't imagine at ESC in the 90s
d) is actually recorded in 1938, and sounds like it too! plus
e) Montenegro didn't exist as an independt country in 1997
Then the entry is probably a bit less authentic :)
But it's of course up to each one what they go by when deciding if something is authentic to them or not, and how much they'll take authentic-ness into account verses how good the actual song is ;))
-----
And of course, then there's the added factor of... - Martin F. - 13 Jan, 23:27:56
...whether the quality of the song affects your judgement on its suitability. Like, if something were submitted as an alternative Montenegrin entry of the late 2000s but was in fact bloody brilliant, that really wouldn't be in keeping with the standard of their *actual* entries... :)
-----
For my part I would add:
1. It's definitely not about whether the entry submitted is similar to that year's actual entry from that country (if there was one). That doesn't and shouldn't come into it at all.
2. I agree with every point Jonas makes bar e) in Montenegro, since this is The Eurovision That Never Was: whether or not a country was independent/interested/eligible to enter at a particular time shouldn't affect how you view the entry per se. Montenegro is, I suppose, a slightly odd case, but I would encourage people not to mark down an entry labelled, say, Croatia 1958 just because it's not labelled Yugoslavia 1958.
3. Martin makes a good point as well: too high-brow (or simply good!) an entry for a country not renowned for entering such songs should and probably will affect how authentic it is viewed to be - and even if it is good, or even very good, or brilliant, the fact that it doesn't feel right for that country and that year should see people not marking it as highly.
Once again, The Eurovision That Never Was is not about the quality of the songs as such, nor about which ones you like most. The thought that should be uppermost in your mind (at first) when you get around to voting is "does this song, in this language and in this style for this country in this year, feel like it could have been a Eurovision entry". Those are the entries you should reward ahead of ones you might like, but which simply don't seem as authentic.
Make sense? :)
-----
I don't think it's really about similairty to the actualentry from that country that year though... - Jonas @o@ - 13 Jan, 23:25:28
It's more like... if someone submits and entry as "Romania 1988" and it
a) sounds like it could have been released in 1988
b) sounds like it could have been an ESC entry
c) sounds like it is romanian (and preferrably in romanian, as there was no free langauge)
e) sounds like it's performed by performers eligible (i.e. not a choir of 500 people), then it would be quite authentic.
If someone enters "Montenegro 1997" but you quite quickly hear that the song
a) is American
b) is in English
c) is in a style you couldn't imagine at ESC in the 90s
d) is actually recorded in 1938, and sounds like it too! plus
e) Montenegro didn't exist as an independt country in 1997
Then the entry is probably a bit less authentic :)
But it's of course up to each one what they go by when deciding if something is authentic to them or not, and how much they'll take authentic-ness into account verses how good the actual song is ;))
-----
And of course, then there's the added factor of... - Martin F. - 13 Jan, 23:27:56
...whether the quality of the song affects your judgement on its suitability. Like, if something were submitted as an alternative Montenegrin entry of the late 2000s but was in fact bloody brilliant, that really wouldn't be in keeping with the standard of their *actual* entries... :)
-----
For my part I would add:
1. It's definitely not about whether the entry submitted is similar to that year's actual entry from that country (if there was one). That doesn't and shouldn't come into it at all.
2. I agree with every point Jonas makes bar e) in Montenegro, since this is The Eurovision That Never Was: whether or not a country was independent/interested/eligible to enter at a particular time shouldn't affect how you view the entry per se. Montenegro is, I suppose, a slightly odd case, but I would encourage people not to mark down an entry labelled, say, Croatia 1958 just because it's not labelled Yugoslavia 1958.
3. Martin makes a good point as well: too high-brow (or simply good!) an entry for a country not renowned for entering such songs should and probably will affect how authentic it is viewed to be - and even if it is good, or even very good, or brilliant, the fact that it doesn't feel right for that country and that year should see people not marking it as highly.
Once again, The Eurovision That Never Was is not about the quality of the songs as such, nor about which ones you like most. The thought that should be uppermost in your mind (at first) when you get around to voting is "does this song, in this language and in this style for this country in this year, feel like it could have been a Eurovision entry". Those are the entries you should reward ahead of ones you might like, but which simply don't seem as authentic.
Make sense? :)
1/13/2010
Angel-Chiara #4
Two in one night! It's all too much. But anyway... we have our fourth Angel-Chiara country:
NORWAY
This doesn't mean that no more entries allocated to Norway will be accepted, but you might want to bear it in mind.
NORWAY
This doesn't mean that no more entries allocated to Norway will be accepted, but you might want to bear it in mind.
48-hour warning :)
Quick message for those still thinking about their entry: you've got just over 48 hours left to submit them. 23:59:59 this Friday 15 January is the cut-off for submission of entries. Don't miss out! ;-)
Angel-Chiara #3
With almost forty entries submitted we have our third Angel-Chiara country...
IRELAND
This doesn't mean that no more entries allocated to Ireland will be accepted, but you might want to bear it in mind.
IRELAND
This doesn't mean that no more entries allocated to Ireland will be accepted, but you might want to bear it in mind.
1/12/2010
Angel-Chiara #2
With almost thirty entries submitted we have our second Angel-Chiara country...
SPAIN
This doesn't mean that no more entries allocated to Spain will be accepted, but you might want to bear it in mind.
SPAIN
This doesn't mean that no more entries allocated to Spain will be accepted, but you might want to bear it in mind.
1/10/2010
Submission of entries continues
More and more entries are being submitted - and we almost have enough already to ensure there will be two semi-finals and a final. Almost a dozen languages are represented, and more than a dozen different countries, with only the UK remaining an Angel-Chiara at this point.
For those yet to submit their entry, remember to include in your email (sent to eurovisionthatneverwas@gmail.com) your MB name, the MP3 and the following information about the song:
*Country and year allocated
*Title of song
*Name of artist
Format: Country Year – Song Title (Name of artist)
Example: United Kingdom 2006 – Hung Up (Madonna)
I will do my best to confirm receipt of your entry - and let you know if there are any problems - as soon as possible after you send it by emailing you back. If you haven't heard from me within a few days, send me another email or chase me up on the MB.
For those yet to submit their entry, remember to include in your email (sent to eurovisionthatneverwas@gmail.com) your MB name, the MP3 and the following information about the song:
*Country and year allocated
*Title of song
*Name of artist
Format: Country Year – Song Title (Name of artist)
Example: United Kingdom 2006 – Hung Up (Madonna)
I will do my best to confirm receipt of your entry - and let you know if there are any problems - as soon as possible after you send it by emailing you back. If you haven't heard from me within a few days, send me another email or chase me up on the MB.
1/09/2010
Angel-Chiara #1
With a dozen entries submitted we already have our first Angel-Chiara country. Somewhat predictably, it is...
UNITED KINGDOM
This does not mean that no more entries allocated to the United Kingdom will be accepted; of course they will be. It's just something to bear in mind.
UNITED KINGDOM
This does not mean that no more entries allocated to the United Kingdom will be accepted; of course they will be. It's just something to bear in mind.
Submission of entries is well underway!
People have begun submitting their entries, and already we have almost a dozen. For those yet to do so, remember to include in your email (sent to eurovisionthatneverwas@gmail.com) your MB name, the MP3 and the following information about the song:
*Country and year allocated
*Title of song
*Name of artist
Format: Country Year – Song Title (Name of artist)
Example: United Kingdom 2006 – Hung Up (Madonna)
I will do my best to confirm receipt of your entry - and let you know if there are any problems - as soon as possible after you send it by emailing you back. If you haven't heard from me within a few days, send me another email or chase me up on the MB.
PLEASE NOTE
Although it's not really my problem, I'll be letting people know if the sound quality of the MP3 they submit is below standard (i.e. below the standard of others submitted). Remember that some people may be put off by an entry if the sound quality is not 100%, so do your best to submit the best-sounding MP3 you can.
*Country and year allocated
*Title of song
*Name of artist
Format: Country Year – Song Title (Name of artist)
Example: United Kingdom 2006 – Hung Up (Madonna)
I will do my best to confirm receipt of your entry - and let you know if there are any problems - as soon as possible after you send it by emailing you back. If you haven't heard from me within a few days, send me another email or chase me up on the MB.
PLEASE NOTE
Although it's not really my problem, I'll be letting people know if the sound quality of the MP3 they submit is below standard (i.e. below the standard of others submitted). Remember that some people may be put off by an entry if the sound quality is not 100%, so do your best to submit the best-sounding MP3 you can.
1/08/2010
Voting criteria confusing you?
A few people have been scratching their heads about the 'authenticity' thing when it comes to voting in The Eurovision That Never Was. Hopefully the following will help clarify it for you.
The idea is that even if you don't like something you think seems very authentic as an entry for a particular country in a particular year, you should still give it points, assuming there aren't ten other songs that meet that criteria and which you do actually like.
For example, even if you don't like the fact that ESC in the 90s featured lots of ethno stuff, and someone enters, say, an ethno French number as France 1995, which in itself you don't like very much either but which feels like it could easily have been the French entry in 1995, you should reward it on that basis alone. This is the one MB contest that isn't strictly about whether or not you like the songs.
My suggestion - which no one is obliged to follow, obviously, but which may help when it comes to sorting out your votes - is to divide them into groups along lines of 'authentic and good', 'authentic and so-so', 'not so authentic but good' and 'not so authentic and not that good'. Those in the second group should still get points from you ahead of those in the third, even though you might like those in the third group more than those in the second group, or even in the first.
But then, no one can make you vote for something you don't like, and voting's not meant to be a frustrating experience! So don't worry about it too much - just try and keep all these things in mind, and preferably in balance. And have fun!
Submission of entries begins tomorrow!
You can start submitting your entries tomorrow, Saturday 9 January 2010. Remember to include in your email (sent to eurovisionthatneverwas@gmail.com) your MB name, the MP3 and the following information about the song:
*Country and year allocated
*Title of song
*Name of artist
Format: Country Year – Song Title (Name of artist)
Example: United Kingdom 2006 – Hung Up (Madonna)
I will do my best to confirm receipt of your entry - and let you know if there are any problems - as soon as possible after you send it by emailing you back. If you haven't heard from me within a few days, send me another email or chase me up on the MB.
The preliminary schedule for the contest (depending on whether there is just one final or two or more semis) is as follows:
PRELIMINARY SCHEDULE
Sat 09.01.10
Submission of entries begins
Fri 15.01.10
Deadline for submission of entries
In the event of one round:
Sat 16.01.10
Final begins and voting window opens
Fri 22.01.10
Deadline for voting for final
Sat 23.01.10
Revelation of sponsors and results show
In the event of three rounds:
Sat 16.01.10
1st semi-final begins and voting window opens
Tues 19.01.10
2nd semi-final begins and voting window opens
Fri 22.01.10
Deadline for voting for 1st semi-final
Mon 25.01.10
Deadline for voting for 2nd semi-final
Tues 26.01.10
Revelation of qualifiers for final, final begins and voting window opens
Sat 30.01.10
Deadline for voting for final
Sun 31.01.10
Revelation of sponsors and results show
The schedule shall be extended accordingly in the event of 4+ rounds.
This is all completely pie-in-the-sky at the moment and is likely to change. I am open to suggestions and recommendations re: timing, gaps between semis, voting windows et al, so if you have any, please let me know (by email or on the MB). The only thing that won't change is the period for submission of entries - so you have until next Friday to get them into me!
For the purposes of deadlines, the cut-off shall be 23:59:59 on the day in question. 'Opening times' shall vary according to when songs are uploaded etc.
Start getting your entries ready!
*Country and year allocated
*Title of song
*Name of artist
Format: Country Year – Song Title (Name of artist)
Example: United Kingdom 2006 – Hung Up (Madonna)
I will do my best to confirm receipt of your entry - and let you know if there are any problems - as soon as possible after you send it by emailing you back. If you haven't heard from me within a few days, send me another email or chase me up on the MB.
The preliminary schedule for the contest (depending on whether there is just one final or two or more semis) is as follows:
PRELIMINARY SCHEDULE
Sat 09.01.10
Submission of entries begins
Fri 15.01.10
Deadline for submission of entries
In the event of one round:
Sat 16.01.10
Final begins and voting window opens
Fri 22.01.10
Deadline for voting for final
Sat 23.01.10
Revelation of sponsors and results show
In the event of three rounds:
Sat 16.01.10
1st semi-final begins and voting window opens
Tues 19.01.10
2nd semi-final begins and voting window opens
Fri 22.01.10
Deadline for voting for 1st semi-final
Mon 25.01.10
Deadline for voting for 2nd semi-final
Tues 26.01.10
Revelation of qualifiers for final, final begins and voting window opens
Sat 30.01.10
Deadline for voting for final
Sun 31.01.10
Revelation of sponsors and results show
The schedule shall be extended accordingly in the event of 4+ rounds.
This is all completely pie-in-the-sky at the moment and is likely to change. I am open to suggestions and recommendations re: timing, gaps between semis, voting windows et al, so if you have any, please let me know (by email or on the MB). The only thing that won't change is the period for submission of entries - so you have until next Friday to get them into me!
For the purposes of deadlines, the cut-off shall be 23:59:59 on the day in question. 'Opening times' shall vary according to when songs are uploaded etc.
Start getting your entries ready!
1/07/2010
Welcome to The Eurovision That Never Was!
This humble little MB-based contest is about three things: the Eurovision Song Contest; music that has never been heard at the Eurovision Song Contest; and with both those things in mind, tipping our hat to our much-missed member Tore.
In short, the contest is about picking a song you think could pass as a past entry in the contest - from any country that has ever taken part, from anywhere between 1956 and 2009. You might have some Portuguese song you've always loved (probably featuring a pine tree or field of corn or some such) which was released back in 1986 which you've always thought should have been the country's entry in 1987; or you know a Lithuanian song which you're convinced the Baltic state would have entered had it been around in 1965.
The song you pick might seem so utterly Eurovisiony that it jumps out at you immediately, or it might take a while before you come round to it and realise, well yep, actually that would have fitted in really well for that contest and that country that year. Whatever you choose, the idea is to mix things up a bit - the whole point is that it's The Eurovision That Never Was. How you interpret that is up to you. Hopefully it will make for as fun a contest as ever, with a good variety of music - something Tore would undoubtedly have approved of and enjoyed.
Just so we all know from the off, the general e-mail address for the contest will be eurovisionthatneverwas@gmail.com and the website (obviously, since you're reading this) www.eurovisionthatneverwas.blogspot.com.
The submission period will open - and I'll post confirming dates and timelines et al. shortly - once everyone's had sufficient time to digest the Rules and Voting Criteria (both coming up) and given time to sort out any immediate problems and add to or revise things. Most of this i.e. question-asking and suggestion-making will take place on the MB, but feel free to email me as well at the address above. One warning though, related to both the board and e-mail: I'm only running this thing in my spare time, so bear with me :)
In the meantime, enjoy The Eurovision That Never Was! And read the rules ;-)
In short, the contest is about picking a song you think could pass as a past entry in the contest - from any country that has ever taken part, from anywhere between 1956 and 2009. You might have some Portuguese song you've always loved (probably featuring a pine tree or field of corn or some such) which was released back in 1986 which you've always thought should have been the country's entry in 1987; or you know a Lithuanian song which you're convinced the Baltic state would have entered had it been around in 1965.
The song you pick might seem so utterly Eurovisiony that it jumps out at you immediately, or it might take a while before you come round to it and realise, well yep, actually that would have fitted in really well for that contest and that country that year. Whatever you choose, the idea is to mix things up a bit - the whole point is that it's The Eurovision That Never Was. How you interpret that is up to you. Hopefully it will make for as fun a contest as ever, with a good variety of music - something Tore would undoubtedly have approved of and enjoyed.
Just so we all know from the off, the general e-mail address for the contest will be eurovisionthatneverwas@gmail.com and the website (obviously, since you're reading this) www.eurovisionthatneverwas.blogspot.com.
The submission period will open - and I'll post confirming dates and timelines et al. shortly - once everyone's had sufficient time to digest the Rules and Voting Criteria (both coming up) and given time to sort out any immediate problems and add to or revise things. Most of this i.e. question-asking and suggestion-making will take place on the MB, but feel free to email me as well at the address above. One warning though, related to both the board and e-mail: I'm only running this thing in my spare time, so bear with me :)
In the meantime, enjoy The Eurovision That Never Was! And read the rules ;-)
Rules
Key points in bold.
1. You may only submit one (1) song.
2. The song you submit must not have been entered in the Eurovision Song Contest or any national final or open selection process for the Eurovision Song Contest, or withdrawn or disqualified from a national final or open selection process. In other words, your song can't have anything to do with Eurovision.
3. The artist performing the song you submit must not have performed an entry in the Eurovision Song Contest or any national final or open selection process for the Eurovision Song Contest, or an entry withdrawn or disqualified from a national final or open selection process. In other words, your performer can't be directly related to Eurovision in any way. (But for more on this point, read on.)
4. The composer(s) and lyricist(s) of the song you submit should preferably not have composed or written an entry in the Eurovision Song Contest or any national final or open selection process for the Eurovision Song Contest, or an entry withdrawn or disqualified from a national final or open selection process. In other words, the writers can have something to do with Eurovision, but it's recommended that they don't.
5. The song you submit can be of any length. In other words, there is no 3-minute limit.
6. The song you submit can be in any language. (But for more on this point, read on.)
7. The song you submit should, to you at least, sound like something you would expect to hear in the Eurovision Song Contest. Needless to say this encompasses a variety of genres and 50+ years, so your options are almost unlimited. (But for more on this point, read on.) No cover versions though, obviously.
8. The song you submit must be allocated to (i) a country and (ii) a year you think it could have represented and not sounded out of place at the Eurovision Song Contest. (This is an important consideration when it comes to the criteria for voting: for which, read on.)
9. The year to which you allocate the song you submit must not be earlier than the year of release of the song. In other words, if the song you submit was released in 1994, you cannot allocate it to any year between 1956 and 1993. However, it can be allocated to any year from 1994 onwards.
10. If your chosen combination of country and year has already been taken by the time you submit your song, you will be asked to allocate your song to another year and/or country. You may choose to do this or to submit a completely new song.
11. If the song you submit has already been submitted by another participant by the time you submit it, you will be asked to submit a new song.
12. The song you submit must be in MP3 format. Artist and title information does not need to be deleted from the file, although any indication of who submitted the entry should be deleted. I don't have the wherewithal to go converting files, so submit your entry as a ready-to-use MP3 or don't even bother ;-)
13. The song you submit must be accompanied in your email (sent to eurovisionthatneverwas@gmail.com) by your MB name and the following information about the song:
*Country and year allocated
*Title of song
*Name of artist
Format: Country Year – Song Title (Name of artist)
For example: United Kingdom 2006 – Hung Up (Madonna)
14. All submissions must remain anonymous to everyone other than you (as the sponsor) and me (as the organiser) until the revelation(s) of sponsors. If this is breached at any time prior to the revelation(s) of sponsors, whether through your own fault or otherwise, your song will be disqualified. Likewise, if you inadvertently learn about and reveal the sponsor of another entry, your song will also be disqualified. In other words, if someone reveals which song you submitted, or you reveal someone else's, you're out – no arguments. However, anyone whose song is disqualified, for whatever reason, will have the option of submitting another entry, provided the submission period is still open. A sponsor of a song disqualified after the submission period has closed will not be able to submit a replacement.
15. Should another participant provide proof that the song you submit was entered in the Eurovision Song Contest or any national final or open selection process for the Eurovision Song Contest, or withdrawn or disqualified from a national final or open selection process, your song will be disqualified. Likewise, should another participant provide proof that the artist perfoming the song you submit performed an entry in the Eurovision Song Contest or any national final or open selection process for the Eurovision Song Contest, or an entry withdrawn or disqualified from a national final or open selection process, your song will be disqualified. For the purposes of this clause, the performance of an entry in the Eurovision Song Contest or any national final or open selection process for the Eurovision Song Contest, or of an entry withdrawn or disqualified from a national final or open selection process, shall be considered to be the lead vocals and/or as credited (on screen or otherwise). In other words, if your song is by someone who once did backing vocals or dancing or something at Eurovision but was never the main artist, that's alright. But don't push it.
16. All sponsors will be required to vote in their respective semi-final (should there be more than one round due to the number of entries) or in the final (if there is only one round). Sponsors may not vote for their own entries. In the event of semi-finals, sponsors whose songs qualify for the final shall also be required to vote in the final. Sponsors may vote in the semi-final(s) they are not participating in, and non-qualifying sponsors may vote in the final, but are not required to (although their votes will count in full). Non-participants may vote in any round (although their votes will only form one combined non-participants' vote in each case).
17. All voting shall take place in typical Eurovision style, with points allocated from 1-8, then 10 and 12. At the end of the voting in the final, the song which has received the most points will be declared the winner. In the event of a tie in rankings at the end of the voting, in any round, the Eurovision rules shall apply: the song which received points from the most voters shall prevail; if this is the same, then the song which received the most 12s; if this is the same, then the song which received the most 10s (and so on, down to 1 point); and if at this point two or more songs still cannot be separated, a tie shall be declared.
18. The number of semi-finals (should there be more than one round due to the number of entries) shall be determined on the basis of the number of songs submitted. The number of songs qualifying for the final from the semi-finals shall be determined on the basis of the number of semi-finals.
19. These and other details – including the schedule of potential semi-finals and the final – shall be confirmed at the end of the submission period.
20. Have I missed anything? If so, it might be covered in the next bit.
VOTING CRITERIA
There are various criteria which participants should consider when voting, but unlike in similar contests the main one in The Eurovision That Never Was is how authentic you think the songs sound as allocated to their countries and years by their sponsors. In this sense, whether the songs themselves are good or bad is less important – the contest it not designed to select the highest quality or most popular entry per se. However, it may still affect how people vote, so also bear this in mind.
How authentic an entry sounds in terms of where and when its sponsor allocates it to is largely objective, but this is where your choice of language and genre will come in.
Obviously, styles of music which have never or rarely been entered in the Eurovision Song Contest will probably seem less authentic, or at least it will be harder to convince people that they are. If you're not sure, consider the precedents: when and how often have songs in the style of your entry been heard at the contest? Which countries have tended to submit entries in such genres? Not that this should dictate your choice necessarily, but you might want to consider it.
Language is also an issue: you can choose a song in any language to represent any country in any year, although if you follow the language conventions of the day you will probably stand a better chance of your entry seeming more authentic. Songs in English could represent virtually anyone in the mid-70s and since 1999, and to a lesser extent in the early days before anyone had considered language restrictions; but submitting a song in, say, Albanian to represent Ireland might be an odd choice. At the same time, there might be an argument for a song in, say, Punjabi representing the UK. Don't limit yourself, but do think about it.
The final couple of points I would make are about the country and year you choose and the composers and writers of the song you submit (although this last bit has nout to do with the 'authenticity' thing).
You don't have to restrict yourself to the Eurovision timeline, which saw e.g. Yugoslavia participating until 1992 and only then saw the debuts of Croatia, Bosnia et al. You might have a Macedonian song from 1987 and want to submit it as FYR Macedonia 1988. Likewise, you might have a song you want to represent San Marino in 1959, or Estonia in 1972, or whatever. It is The Eurovision That Never Was, after all. Having said that, your only restriction is that you have to pick a country that has actually participated in the contest at some point (so no Lebanon, say, or Liechtenstein) to maintain at least some authenticity.
(Incidentally, in the cases of the former Yugoslavia and USSR I recommend – but will not enforce – that you eschew the use of those names and instead pick a particular country, since otherwise it may limit the number of songs that can represent a certain year. For example, if you submit an entry as USSR 1968, it will preclude anyone else from submitting songs for countries within the USSR for that year. Then again, that might be a good tactic. It's up to you, but I would still say don't do it if your only thought is that it might give you some advantage. Play nice.)
Me saying that I would prefer the producers of the song you submit not to have anything to do with Eurovision is not about authenticity – since obviously songwriters and composers who have worked on songs for the contest are probably more attuned to its musical quirks – but about emphasising the core idea of The Eurovision That Never Was: I'm encouraging you to find songs that wouldn't have sounded out of place in the contest, but had nothing whatsoever to do with it; and to show a broader musical appreciation, which is something Tore, to whom the whole thing is dedicated, had in spades.
In any case, voters might frown on your entry if it comes from a Eurovision stable, so avoid it if you can. Also, if all we end up with is a Swedish schlager-fest, people may well go for something else. (I will be issuing Angel-Chiaras in regard to country, just so you know.) They might also frown on your entry if it's by a famous artist who would never be or would never have been likely to take part in the contest – as in the case of my example of Madonna for the UK! – but that's another matter...
In other words, you should base your voting first and foremost on how 'authentic' you think the entries seem; then on how good or bad you think the songs are; then on whatever other criteria you normally judge these things on. Don't get too caught up in second-guessing who submitted what: it's still meant to be about the songs. And simply having a bit of fun, obviously :) Enjoy!
1. You may only submit one (1) song.
2. The song you submit must not have been entered in the Eurovision Song Contest or any national final or open selection process for the Eurovision Song Contest, or withdrawn or disqualified from a national final or open selection process. In other words, your song can't have anything to do with Eurovision.
3. The artist performing the song you submit must not have performed an entry in the Eurovision Song Contest or any national final or open selection process for the Eurovision Song Contest, or an entry withdrawn or disqualified from a national final or open selection process. In other words, your performer can't be directly related to Eurovision in any way. (But for more on this point, read on.)
4. The composer(s) and lyricist(s) of the song you submit should preferably not have composed or written an entry in the Eurovision Song Contest or any national final or open selection process for the Eurovision Song Contest, or an entry withdrawn or disqualified from a national final or open selection process. In other words, the writers can have something to do with Eurovision, but it's recommended that they don't.
5. The song you submit can be of any length. In other words, there is no 3-minute limit.
6. The song you submit can be in any language. (But for more on this point, read on.)
7. The song you submit should, to you at least, sound like something you would expect to hear in the Eurovision Song Contest. Needless to say this encompasses a variety of genres and 50+ years, so your options are almost unlimited. (But for more on this point, read on.) No cover versions though, obviously.
8. The song you submit must be allocated to (i) a country and (ii) a year you think it could have represented and not sounded out of place at the Eurovision Song Contest. (This is an important consideration when it comes to the criteria for voting: for which, read on.)
9. The year to which you allocate the song you submit must not be earlier than the year of release of the song. In other words, if the song you submit was released in 1994, you cannot allocate it to any year between 1956 and 1993. However, it can be allocated to any year from 1994 onwards.
10. If your chosen combination of country and year has already been taken by the time you submit your song, you will be asked to allocate your song to another year and/or country. You may choose to do this or to submit a completely new song.
11. If the song you submit has already been submitted by another participant by the time you submit it, you will be asked to submit a new song.
12. The song you submit must be in MP3 format. Artist and title information does not need to be deleted from the file, although any indication of who submitted the entry should be deleted. I don't have the wherewithal to go converting files, so submit your entry as a ready-to-use MP3 or don't even bother ;-)
13. The song you submit must be accompanied in your email (sent to eurovisionthatneverwas@gmail.com) by your MB name and the following information about the song:
*Country and year allocated
*Title of song
*Name of artist
Format: Country Year – Song Title (Name of artist)
For example: United Kingdom 2006 – Hung Up (Madonna)
14. All submissions must remain anonymous to everyone other than you (as the sponsor) and me (as the organiser) until the revelation(s) of sponsors. If this is breached at any time prior to the revelation(s) of sponsors, whether through your own fault or otherwise, your song will be disqualified. Likewise, if you inadvertently learn about and reveal the sponsor of another entry, your song will also be disqualified. In other words, if someone reveals which song you submitted, or you reveal someone else's, you're out – no arguments. However, anyone whose song is disqualified, for whatever reason, will have the option of submitting another entry, provided the submission period is still open. A sponsor of a song disqualified after the submission period has closed will not be able to submit a replacement.
15. Should another participant provide proof that the song you submit was entered in the Eurovision Song Contest or any national final or open selection process for the Eurovision Song Contest, or withdrawn or disqualified from a national final or open selection process, your song will be disqualified. Likewise, should another participant provide proof that the artist perfoming the song you submit performed an entry in the Eurovision Song Contest or any national final or open selection process for the Eurovision Song Contest, or an entry withdrawn or disqualified from a national final or open selection process, your song will be disqualified. For the purposes of this clause, the performance of an entry in the Eurovision Song Contest or any national final or open selection process for the Eurovision Song Contest, or of an entry withdrawn or disqualified from a national final or open selection process, shall be considered to be the lead vocals and/or as credited (on screen or otherwise). In other words, if your song is by someone who once did backing vocals or dancing or something at Eurovision but was never the main artist, that's alright. But don't push it.
16. All sponsors will be required to vote in their respective semi-final (should there be more than one round due to the number of entries) or in the final (if there is only one round). Sponsors may not vote for their own entries. In the event of semi-finals, sponsors whose songs qualify for the final shall also be required to vote in the final. Sponsors may vote in the semi-final(s) they are not participating in, and non-qualifying sponsors may vote in the final, but are not required to (although their votes will count in full). Non-participants may vote in any round (although their votes will only form one combined non-participants' vote in each case).
17. All voting shall take place in typical Eurovision style, with points allocated from 1-8, then 10 and 12. At the end of the voting in the final, the song which has received the most points will be declared the winner. In the event of a tie in rankings at the end of the voting, in any round, the Eurovision rules shall apply: the song which received points from the most voters shall prevail; if this is the same, then the song which received the most 12s; if this is the same, then the song which received the most 10s (and so on, down to 1 point); and if at this point two or more songs still cannot be separated, a tie shall be declared.
18. The number of semi-finals (should there be more than one round due to the number of entries) shall be determined on the basis of the number of songs submitted. The number of songs qualifying for the final from the semi-finals shall be determined on the basis of the number of semi-finals.
19. These and other details – including the schedule of potential semi-finals and the final – shall be confirmed at the end of the submission period.
20. Have I missed anything? If so, it might be covered in the next bit.
VOTING CRITERIA
There are various criteria which participants should consider when voting, but unlike in similar contests the main one in The Eurovision That Never Was is how authentic you think the songs sound as allocated to their countries and years by their sponsors. In this sense, whether the songs themselves are good or bad is less important – the contest it not designed to select the highest quality or most popular entry per se. However, it may still affect how people vote, so also bear this in mind.
How authentic an entry sounds in terms of where and when its sponsor allocates it to is largely objective, but this is where your choice of language and genre will come in.
Obviously, styles of music which have never or rarely been entered in the Eurovision Song Contest will probably seem less authentic, or at least it will be harder to convince people that they are. If you're not sure, consider the precedents: when and how often have songs in the style of your entry been heard at the contest? Which countries have tended to submit entries in such genres? Not that this should dictate your choice necessarily, but you might want to consider it.
Language is also an issue: you can choose a song in any language to represent any country in any year, although if you follow the language conventions of the day you will probably stand a better chance of your entry seeming more authentic. Songs in English could represent virtually anyone in the mid-70s and since 1999, and to a lesser extent in the early days before anyone had considered language restrictions; but submitting a song in, say, Albanian to represent Ireland might be an odd choice. At the same time, there might be an argument for a song in, say, Punjabi representing the UK. Don't limit yourself, but do think about it.
The final couple of points I would make are about the country and year you choose and the composers and writers of the song you submit (although this last bit has nout to do with the 'authenticity' thing).
You don't have to restrict yourself to the Eurovision timeline, which saw e.g. Yugoslavia participating until 1992 and only then saw the debuts of Croatia, Bosnia et al. You might have a Macedonian song from 1987 and want to submit it as FYR Macedonia 1988. Likewise, you might have a song you want to represent San Marino in 1959, or Estonia in 1972, or whatever. It is The Eurovision That Never Was, after all. Having said that, your only restriction is that you have to pick a country that has actually participated in the contest at some point (so no Lebanon, say, or Liechtenstein) to maintain at least some authenticity.
(Incidentally, in the cases of the former Yugoslavia and USSR I recommend – but will not enforce – that you eschew the use of those names and instead pick a particular country, since otherwise it may limit the number of songs that can represent a certain year. For example, if you submit an entry as USSR 1968, it will preclude anyone else from submitting songs for countries within the USSR for that year. Then again, that might be a good tactic. It's up to you, but I would still say don't do it if your only thought is that it might give you some advantage. Play nice.)
Me saying that I would prefer the producers of the song you submit not to have anything to do with Eurovision is not about authenticity – since obviously songwriters and composers who have worked on songs for the contest are probably more attuned to its musical quirks – but about emphasising the core idea of The Eurovision That Never Was: I'm encouraging you to find songs that wouldn't have sounded out of place in the contest, but had nothing whatsoever to do with it; and to show a broader musical appreciation, which is something Tore, to whom the whole thing is dedicated, had in spades.
In any case, voters might frown on your entry if it comes from a Eurovision stable, so avoid it if you can. Also, if all we end up with is a Swedish schlager-fest, people may well go for something else. (I will be issuing Angel-Chiaras in regard to country, just so you know.) They might also frown on your entry if it's by a famous artist who would never be or would never have been likely to take part in the contest – as in the case of my example of Madonna for the UK! – but that's another matter...
In other words, you should base your voting first and foremost on how 'authentic' you think the entries seem; then on how good or bad you think the songs are; then on whatever other criteria you normally judge these things on. Don't get too caught up in second-guessing who submitted what: it's still meant to be about the songs. And simply having a bit of fun, obviously :) Enjoy!
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