Eurovision ratings plunge amidst a number of controversies and boycott calls

During Wednesday night’s Britain’s Got Talent live semi-final, viewers flooded to social media fearing one act may and in tragedy. On Wednesday 29 May, American sword swallower Heather Holliday, 38, put on a particularly daring performance that sparked complaints to Ofcom. Viewers were horrified as Heather plunged an array of swords down her throat right in front of the judging panel, which left Amanda Holden and Alesha Dixon cringing.

Eurovision 2024 nearly pulled out of the song contest, just 25 minutes before the live final.The grand final of the competition took place in Malmö, Sweden – the home of 2023 winner Loreen – on Saturday May 11. However, the show was mired by widespread political backlash over the inclusion of Israel amid the Hamas-Israel conflict.Many of the contestants, including Ireland’s Bambie Thug and UK representative Olly Alexander, faced pressure to boycott the event in solidarity with Palestine.

The final round of Britain’s Got Talent auditions aired on Sunday 16 May before it switches to the live semi-finals. Some viewers, however, didn't quite feel satisfied by the latest episode.

Sophie and Pete Sandiford have cemented themselves as Gogglebox legends, thanks to their hilarious reactions and witty one-liners.The Blackpool-based siblings have been part of the cast since 2017, joining for the tenth series. Sophie, 27, and Pete, 29, proved to be an instant hit with TV viewers and have remained a part of the Gogglebox cast ever since.The pair's humour has helped them standout among their fellow Goggleboxers, as well as their iconic collection of tacky mugs and brightly coloured living room. So, what do we know about Pete and Sophie away from Gogglebox? Let's take a look into their lives away from the cameras...

Christian Nodal and Cazzu have decided to part ways. Nodal took to Instagram to share the heartfelt news with his followers, writing in Spanish: “Ha llegado el momento de compartir que Julieta y yo tomamos caminos separados.

Jeremy Clarkson has been named the UK and Ireland’s sexiest man for the second year running, beating the likes of Cillian Murphy, Tom Holland and Idris Elba.The Clarkson’s Farm star scored an impressive nine out of 10 points in the annual poll conducted by Illicit Encounters, which proclaims to be “the best online dating site for married people”.Entering the UK’s top 10 for the first time was Spider-Man star Tom Holland, who came second with a score of eight out 10. Completing the top three is the Prince of Wales, who has shot right up after coming near the bottom of the list last year.The annual Sexiest Man poll from Illicitencounters.com takes votes from 2,000 of its female members.

Olly Alexander has expressed his gratitude after competing in Eurovision 2024, saying that receiving zero public points was “iconic”.The Years & Years frontman represented the UK with his song ‘Dizzy’ at this year’s competition, which took place in Malmö, Sweden. He finished 18th out of 25 countries – earning 46 points from the jury, but none from the voting public.Nemo clinched victory for Switzerland at Eurovision 2024 with their track ‘The Code’.

Olly Alexander‘s dad has said he was “surprised” that his son’s song ‘Dizzy’ received the dreaded ‘nul points’ from the public at last night’s Eurovision.Despite high hopes for this year’s UK entry, Alexander finished in 18th place out of 25 countries with 46 points, a position he only achieved thanks to his jury score.Now, his dad David Thornton has shared his thoughts, saying that Eurovision still offered a “fantastic learning experience” for Alexander [via BBC].“I enjoyed every minute of it,” said Thornton. “To me it’s a real surprise the public didn’t sort of connect with that song, though the juries gave it a really good score.”He added: “He’s had a wonderful time out there.

There was a furious fan reaction when viewers blamed the Eurovision Song Contest for "sabotaging" the UK's entry Olly Alexander. Despite delivering a fiery performance of his bop Dizzy, alongside some steamy backup dancers, poor Olly didn't receive any points from the public. Meanwhile, Nemo clinched the prestigious 68th Eurovision Song Contest title with their single The Code, which beautifully charts their journey into accepting a non-binary identity.

K.J. Yossman Switzerland has won the Eurovision Song Contest. Swiss entry Nemo stormed the contest with the song “The Code,” walking away with 591 points — a combination of a jury vote and public vote.

The grand final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2024 has finally arrived after a busy week of semi-finals and events for those lucky enough to be in Sweden in the build up to what is always one of the biggest nights of the year.

It's nearly that time again for the Eurovision grand finale to appear on our small screens.

This year's Eurovision Song Contest has got off to a frenzied start and the final hasn't even begun.

It's nearly been a whole five decades since ABBA won the Eurovision Song Contest with one of their biggest hits of all time.

Olly Alexander, the former Years and Years singer, has been urged by fans to withdraw from the Eurovision Song Contest just hours before he is due to represent the UK on stage.

Eurovision is set to take place tonight (May 11) – check out the full running order and list of contestants below.Altogether, 37 countries entered the contest and were split in half to compete for a place in the finals across two semi finals on Tuesday (May 7) and Thursday (May 9). Tonight, 26 of them will perform in the final, with Big Five nations France, Spain, Germany, Italy, the UK and the host nation Sweden all going straight through.Representing the UK this year is Olly Alexander, who will be performing his song ‘Dizzy’ which has been compared to the likes of the Pet Shop Boys’ ‘It’s A Sin’.According to Eurovision World, the favourites to win the competition is Croatia, whose entry Baby Lasagna currently has a 42 per cent chance at snagging the crown this year with their song ‘Rim Tim Tagi Dim’.The full running order for Eurovision 2024 is:1. Sweden | Marcus & Martinus – ‘Unforgettable’2. Ukraine | alyona alyona & Jerry Heil – ‘Teresa & Maria’3. Germany | ISAAK – ‘Always On The Run’4. Luxembourg | TALI – ‘Fighter’5. Netherlands | Joost Klein – ‘Europapa’6. Israel | Eden Golan – ‘Hurricane’7. Lithuania | Silvester Belt – ‘Luktelk’8. Spain | Nebulossa – ‘ZORRA’9. Estonia | 5MIINUST x Puuluup – ‘(nendest) narkootikumidest ei tea me (küll) midagi’10. Ireland | Bambie Thug – ‘Doomsday Blue’11. Latvia | Dons – ‘Hollow’12. Greece | Marina Satti – ‘ZARI’13. United Kingdom | Olly Alexander – ‘Dizzy’14. Norway | Gåte – ‘Ulveham’15. Italy | Angelina Mango – ‘La Noia’16. Serbia | TEYA DORA – ‘RAMONDA’17. Finland | Windows95man – ‘No Rules!’18. Portugal | iolanda – ‘Grito’19. Armenia | LADANIVA – ‘Jako’20. Cyprus | Silia Kapsis – ‘Liar’21. Switzerland | Nemo – ‘The Code’22. Slovenia | Raiven – ‘Veronika’23. Croatia | Baby

Eurovision 2024 entrant Joost Klein has been placed under investigation by the contest’s organisers due to an unexplained “incident”.The singer was not allowed to perform his song ‘Europapa’ during the final dress rehearsal in Malmö, Sweden on Friday (May 10), and it is currently unknown whether he will be able to perform in the grand final on Saturday (May 11).The European Broadcasting Union said in a statement: “We are currently investigating an incident that was reported to us involving the Dutch artist. He will not be rehearsing until further notice.“We have no further comment at this time and will update in due course.”Klein’s most recent public appearance was during the flag parade at the start of the Friday rehearsal, but he did not appear during his performance slot approximately 30 minutes later.Klein is scheduled to perform in the fifth slot in the ceremony, one place before Israel’s Eden Golan.

Eurovision icon Cheryl Baker has unleashed a scathing critique, doubting Olly Alexander's chances of triumphing at the upcoming contest.

Eurovision entry Bambie Thug has shared an eerie cover of The Cranberries’ ‘Zombie’ and spoken out in support of Palestine ahead of this weekend’s finale.The non-binary singer will be representing Ireland at the final of the song contest in Malmö, Sweden, and has become Ireland’s first finalist since 2018. They won their place in Saturday’s final (May 11) with a performance of ‘Doomsday Blue’ at Tuesday’s (May 7) semi-finals.They have been listed as in the top 10 favourites to win the competition this year, and told NME that they are hoping to “give the best performance I can and try to connect in those three minutes to those millions of viewers”.That being said, there has been pressure on contestants, including Thug and UK representative Olly Alexander, to boycott the event in solidarity with Palestine.

Speculation is building over whether ABBA will take to the stage at the Eurovision Song Contest later this week.This year marks the 50th anniversary of Sweden having won the contest for the first time back in 1974, when the country was represented by ABBA and the event was hosted by the UK in Brighton. Now, rumours have been circulating that the iconic band could reunite for the contest on Saturday, 11 May – where Olly Alexander will represent the UK with his song, Dizzy, despite dividing audiences during the semi-finals this week.