The farce of Eurovision

Eurovision Song Contest
How do you feel about the BBC contributing a part of your enforced TV Licence Fee Tax towards the utterly futile Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) every year? Much how the Beeb wants to dress it up, the 'membership fee' that the BBC hands over to the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) to participate each year is around £400,000. For this, the UK is 'guaranteed' a place in the final every year because they are one of the 'Big Five' investors. That's £400,000 of our TV Licence Fee Tax that we don't have a vote on how it is spent.

However, our Licence Fee Taxing 'public broadcaster' then shells out an estimated £800,000 to £1 million on producing the UK's TV broadcasting coverage of the ESC each year. That's £800,000 to £1 million of our TV Licence Fee Tax that we don't have a say on what gets shown on the channel that we all have to financially back, lest we can't legally watch TV at all if we don't pay the fee. Not only that but, if the UK is ever likely to win (see more about this below), the BBC, British Government and local authorities share the hosting costs which, for our last hosting event in Liverpool in 2023 on behalf of Ukraine, cost in the region of £31 million to stage. That's £31 million of our Licence Fee Tax, Income Tax and Council Tax we are forced to pay from our wages and pension without us being asked if we want to host an ageing singing competition anyway. 

Research does not confirm how much, nor how little, Ukraine contributed financially but it is believed to be a very small amount or none. Liverpool itself has apparently benefitted from the income on hospitalities so it was very much a case of 'blow you, Jack, I'm all right', as long as one city was happy while the rest of the country got bugger all.

So, not only is a part of your Licence Fee Tax spent out on this waste-of-time-and-money annual event but, part of your Income Tax and Council Tax is also used to fund the production of it if the UK flukes a win. Or we step in to help out a war-torn country when they cannot do so for obvious reasons. I appreciate the sentiment of such help our country gave but it is you and I who footed the bill for it without even being asked about it first. Somehow, the UK coming last each year in the ESC now makes it somewhat satisfying, thinking about my taxes not being used in an odious way when the UK entrant doesn't win.

Here's another question. How do you feel about the fact that, each year that the UK is entered into this competition, we are pitted against former Eastern Bloc countries that constantly tactically vote for each other so that the likes of the UK, France, Germany, Denmark, et al, cannot win nor come in the 'Top Ten' voting positions? Believe it or not, in times past, judges from the Scandinavian countries were accused of partiality voting and, similarly, Greece voting for Cyprus with top marks and vice-versa, both of which still happen as it did again last night. Then, as more and more ex-Soviet Union ruled Eastern European countries entered Eurovision, the partiality voting became an even bigger concern. And, from what I saw during last night's 2026 competition in Vienna, Austria, tactical voting is still going on unchallenged by the organisers, one of whom is the BBC.

And, forgive me for being so naive but, how long has Israel and Australia been in Europe? The last I knew, Israel is in the Middle East and Oz is a part of Australasia and is a different continent in its own right. Both are quite far from the outer borders of Europe. I will stop short of saying that Eurovision is an EU initiative, because it isn't and never has been. According to my research, Israel has always been a member of Eurovision because its early TV broadcasting service was helped in its set up by the EBU, including input from the BBC and, Israel has always therefore been considered a part of the EBU and therefore a part of the ESC. Hence why Israel rightly or wrongly usually appears in the song contest. 

As for Australia competing, you are never going to believe this but, one of their TV channels holds an 'associate membership' with the EBU and as such Australia is now allowed to compete in what was ostensibly a European-only countries competition when Eurovision was first broadcast in 1956. Australia was invited to partake in the ESC in 2015 as a one-off  'wildcard' option... but they never left and, they have now participated in 11 consecutive finals, winning none but coming second in 2016. You just couldn't make this story up!

But, here is something to consider. If you tap the ESC key on a computer keyboard, you can generally escape or quit the programme you are in. Apart from changing TV channels on your remote on one Saturday evening every May, why can't the country as a whole press an ESC key and rid ourselves of the burden of the European Song Contest once and for all? Will we even be missed...?!

Trevor Mulligan