Much pre-contest publicity was centred around Russian entrant t.A.T.u, who have already had success throughout Europe in no small part to the shock value of their professed bisexuality. They cancelled their rehearsal, according to the band due to a sore throat.
Whilst the contest featured its usual collection of instantly forgettable dance numbers and power ballads (complete with "truck-driver's" key changes for the last chorus in typical Eurovision style), and entries pulled the usual stunt of attractive dancers gradually removing some clothing throughout the performance, there were several acts that generally stood out from the usual fare. Alf Poier, the Austrian entry, gave a performance that was a clear attempt to poke fun at the contest excesses, with a stage act involving cardboard cutout "musicians" (Eurovision entrants are more often than not accompanied mostly or exclusively by a backing tape, despite the presence of musicians on stage), and a tune that went from inanely boppy to outrageously over-the-top percussive, accompanied by similarly manic dancing by Poier. The German lyrics were nonsense about the behaviour of various animals. Clearly Eurovision viewers found the act funny, as he finished sixth.
t.A.T.u themselves, after promising all manner of antics in their performance, were restricted to a brief kiss in front of a crowd who jeered them, possibly because of their behaviour in the week leading up to the contest as well as national rivalry. They notably struggled with their singing throughout the performance.
The Spanish entry, Beth[?], sang the song "Dime" ("Tell me"). She was chosen by the Spanish people in a TV contest.
Estonia's Ruffus broke completely with Eurovision tradition and performed (with the on-stage band providing virtually all of the instrumentation) a Britpop-style number with meaningful lyrics about the stylistic excesses of the 1980s.
Belgian entry Urban Trad produced a song somewhere in the space between folk and New Age music[?] with on-stage instrumentation including the piano-accordion, bagpipes, and the recorder, and lyrics in "an imaginary language" delivered without substantial artifice. Language what this song had was something like Finnish.
Erener's song clearly showed her nationality with a striking violin hook in typically Turkish pop style, emphasised with attractive dancers accompanying her performing a bellydance[?].
In the end, voting came down to a three-way race between Russia, Belgium, and Turkey, with the usual pattern of ethnic blocs and quarrels mostly holding sway but with a few surprising exceptions, notably 7 points from Greece to Turkey.
The United Kingdom's act, Jemini[?], failed to receive a single vote, provoking slight consternation in the UK. Some, such as long-time commentator Terry Wogan, believed that it was due to Britain's decision to, virtually alone, back the United States in its attack on Iraq. However, discussion on the BBC's website suggested that many Eurovision enthusiasts attributed it to a mediocre song and to the fact that the female singer was completely out of key in the entire performance.
|
Country | Artist(s) | Song | Place | Points |
---|---|---|---|---|
Austria | Alf Poier | Weil der Mensch zählt | 6 | 101 |
Belgium | Urban Trad | Sanomi | 2 | 165 |
Bosnia and Herzegovina | Mija Martina[?] | Ne brini | 16 | 27 |
Croatia | Claudia Beni | Više nisam tvoja | 15 | 29 |
Cyprus | Stelios Konstantas[?] | Feeling Alive | 20 | 15 |
Estonia | Ruffus[?] | Eighties Coming Back | 21 | 14 |
France | Louisa Baileche[?] | Monts et Merveilles | 18 | 19 |
Germany | Lou[?] | Let's Get Happy | 11 | 53 |
Greece | Mando[?] | Never Let You Go | 17 | 25 |
Iceland | Birgitta Haukdal[?] | Open Your Heart | 8 | 81 |
Ireland | Mickey Harte | We've Got The World | 11 | 53 |
Israel | Lior Narkis[?] | Words for Love | 19 | 17 |
Latvia | F.L.Y[?] | Hello From Mars | 24 | 5 |
Malta | Lynn Chircop[?] | To Dream Again | 25 | 4 |
Netherlands | Esther Hart | One More Night | 13 | 45 |
Norway | Jostein Hasselgård[?] | I'm Not Afraid to Move On | 4 | 123 |
Poland | Ich Troje | Keine Grenzen - Żadnych Granic | 7 | 90 |
Portugal | Rita Guerra | Deixa-me Sonhar (Só Mais Uma Vez) | 22 | 13 |
Romania | Nicola | Don't Break My Heart | 10 | 73 |
Russia | t.A.T.u. | Ne ver', Ne Bojsia | 3 | 164 |
Slovenia | Karmen Stavec | Nanana | 23 | 7 |
Spain | Beth[?] | Dime | 8 | 81 |
Sweden | Fame[?] | Give Me Your Love | 5 | 107 |
Turkey | Sertab Erener | Everyway That I Can | 1 | 167 |
Ukraine | Oleksandar[?] | Hasta la Vista | 14 | 30 |
United Kingdom | Jemini[?] | Cry Baby | 26 | 0 |
Venue: Skonto Hall[?] - Riga, Latvia | ||||
The table is ordered by the countries names. |
First Appearances: Ukraine
Voting Structure The vast majority of countries use a televote, where the top ten most voted for songs were awarded 12, 10, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 points. In case of technical problems, or where televoting was not practical, a jury awarded the 12, 10, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 points.
Children's Eurovision Song Contests 2003
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