Countdown to Eurovision 2013: my all-time favourites
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| Let's get ready to ruffle |
2009 was a sterling year, really – as well as Anti-Crisis Girl Svetlana, we also saw Greek Eurovision stalwart Sakis Rouvas pelvic thrusting on a giant stapler, and, of course, sexy Norwegian fiddler Alexander Rybek, zooming to victory with his Fairytail violin riff - which remains firmly embedded Europe’s collective ears. Alex absolutely smashed the scoring in Moscow, accumulating 387 points (trois cent quatre-vingt-sept points), miles away from his nearest rival, Iceland’s Yohanna, who came in second with 218 points (deux cent dix-huit points). But I still LOVE this Icelandic entry, even though it is... *deep breath*... a ballad. Yep, I'll admit it, sometimes (rarely), the slow ones get me too, and 'Is It True?' still tugs at my sentimental old heart strings.
Probably, what gets me is the full-blown and utterly shameless Disneyisation going on (when it comes to cycnism, the Lion King is my Achilles Heel). It's just complete chocolate box from start to end and has no desire whatsoever to reach for any grit or edge. And it works - I’m sure little girls Europe-wide took one look at Yohanna’s outfit and were up and ready to eschew feminism, pull pigtails and kick shins with patent shoes to get their hands on a blue satin ballgown with sequin ornamental detail and ruffle galore. And Yohanna’s so PREEETY. And her lip gloss is so PERFECT. And her hair is so SHINY. *sigh*
Any other year, without the Rybek juggernaut, we’d have found ourselves heading to Reykjavik for a geyser old time - sure, Norway was a worthy winner, but we missed out on Bjork, dressed as an arctic fox, blowing up a volcano as the part-time entertainment. Just think on that.
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