The Eurovision Song Contest is officially handed over to Liverpool today and will assume the role of the host city of the 67th edition of the competition.
The key times for today are:
- Eurovision 2023 Semi-Final Allocation Draw & Handover Ceremony – 20:00 CET
- Spain – Benidorm Fest 2023 – Semi-Final One – 22:50 CET
Eurovision 2023 Semi-Final Allocation Draw & Handover Ceremony – 20:00 CET
The Semi-Final Allocation Draw and Host City Insignia will take place on this evening at St George’s Hall. AJ Odudu and Rylan will be the hosts of the draw, as well as receiving help from pupils of a local Liverpool school and Ukrainians in the city, who have came to the country due to the ongoing conflict.
The semi-final allocation draw is traditionally formed of two parts. The first part of the draw determines which semi-final each of the six pre-qualified countries (France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the host country the United Kingdom along with Ukraine) will broadcast and be able to vote in.
The second part of the draw determined in which semi-final and in which half of the respective semi-final the other 31 participating countries will perform. As has been the case since 2013, the exact running order will be determined by the producers of the show at a later point in March.
Five pots have been drawn based on historical voting patterns, as well as a pot containing the automatic qualifiers. The aim of the pots is to ensure a split of countries that historically are more likely to vote for one another across different Semi-Finals.
The six 2023 pots are as follows:
Pot 1:
- Albania
- Austria
- Switzerland
- Croatia
- Serbia
- Slovenia
Pot 2:
- Denmark
- Australia
- Finland
- Iceland
- Norway
- Sweden
- Estonia
Pot 3:
- Armenia
- Azerbaijan
- Georgia
- Israel
- Latvia
- Lithuania
Pot 4:
- Cyprus
- Greece
- Ireland
- Malta
- Portugal
- San Marino
Pot 5:
- Belgium
- Czech Republic
- The Netherlands
- Moldova
- Poland
- Romania
And Pot 6 contains the automatic qualifiers: France, Italy, Germany, Spain, United Kingdom and Ukraine.
As well as the draw, the Mayor of Turin will be present to hand over the host city key insignia to the Liverpool Mayor – Joanne Anderson. Furthermore, the logo and slogan of the 2023 edition will also be broadcast during the event.
For UK viewers, the event will be broadcasted live via BBC Two and BBC iPlayer. For other viewers, the draw will be broadcast live through the Eurovision YouTube Channel at 8pm (CET), Suspilne in Ukraine is also broadcasting the event live on TV, Facebook and online.
Spain – Benidorm Fest 2023 – Semi-Final One – 22:50 CET
Spain’s search for the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 commences this evening live from Benidorm.
Benidorm Fest returns this evening with nine artists competing to represent Spain at the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 in Liverpool, United Kingdom. Tonight is the first of two Semi-Finals which will determine the line-up for Saturday’s Grand Final.
Competing this evening are:
- Agoney – “Quiero arder” (I want to burn)
- Alice Wonder – “Yo quisiera” (I would like)
- Aritz Arén – “Flamenco”
- Fusa Nocta – “Mi familia” (My family)
- Megara – “Arcadia”
- Meler – “No nos moverán” (They won’t move us)
- Sharonne – “Aire” (Air)
- SofĂa MartĂn – “Tuki”
- Twin Melody – “Sayonara” (Goodbye)
Benidorm Fest 2023 will be presented by Monica Naranjó, Inés Hernand and Rodrigo Vázquez, will take place in Palau Municipal d’Esports l’Illa de Benidorm. From the nine artists competing this evening four will progress to the Grand Final.
The voting system remains the same as last year. In all three shows, the results will be decided by a professional jury (50%), a demoscopic jury (25%) and public voting (25%). The professional jury will comprise of Spanish and international music industry professionals.
Edurne who represented Spain at the 2015 Eurovision Song Contest with “Amanecer” will be performing during the interval this evening. For her interval performance, she will perform a medley of her latest singles.
You can watch the show live here.
Image Source: Eurovision.tv
SOURCE: EUROVOIX