Bambie Thug on Eurovision 2024: “I know that my heart is in the right place”

Eurovision this year “until the last second”.This year’s song contest has seen multiple controversies arise in the build up to the finale, which aired last Saturday (May 11).On top of the shock disqualification of Dutch entry Joost Klein, Eurovision organisers the EBU (European Broadcasting Union) had faced significant criticism for the inclusion of Israel amidst the Israel-Palestine crisis.Additionally, there were reports of a “crisis meeting” between four countries and the EBU just hours before the finale was due to begin. These four countries were later revealed to be the United Kingdom, Portgual, Ireland, and the eventual winner of this year, Switzerland.Now, Norway’s entry Gåte have spoken to Norwegian media about their own threat to pull out.

Eurovision Song Contest 2024.This year’s competition, which was ultimately won by Switzerland’s Nemo, was surrounded by controversy for allowing Israel to compete amid the ongoing conflict with Hamas in Gaza.A statement shared by the EBU to both The Mirror and The Irish Times read: “We regret that some delegations at the Eurovision Song Contest in Malmö didn’t respect the spirit of the rules and the competition both onsite and during their broadcasts. We spoke to a number of delegations during the event regarding various issues that were brought to our attention.It continued: “The EBU’s governing bodies will, together with the heads of delegations, review the events surrounding the ESC in Malmö to move forward in a positive way and to ensure the values of the event are respected by everyone.A post shared by European Broadcasting Union (@ebu_hq)“Individual cases will be discussed by the event’s governing body, the Eurovision Song Contest Reference Group made up of representatives from participating broadcasters, at its next meeting.”The statement’s release comes after the slew of controversies that took over this year’s edition of the song contest.

Jimmy Eat World have announced details of a 2024 tour across the UK and Europe. Find ticket details below.Announced today (May 13), the run of tour dates are set to kick off with an opening night at the Columbiahalle in Berlin on November 7, and continue with two more shows in Germany, before heading to the Netherlands for a show in Amsterdam on November 9.From there, the Arizona rock icons will head over to the UK for three final shows.

Eurovision ratings have apparently plunged amidst several controversies and boycott calls for this year’s edition.This year, the contest has faced criticism for its inclusion of Israel due to their role in the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict. Due to this political neutrality clause, the EBU announced they reserved the right to remove Palestinian flags and symbols, and would go on to censor Irish contestant Bambie Thug for wearing the word ‘ceasefire’ and ‘freedom for Palestine’ as a hidden message on their costume.Israel’s inclusion prompted boycott calls from the LGBT+ community towards UK entry Olly Alexander, reasoning that the competition was “providing cultural cover and endorsement for the catastrophic violence that Israel has unleashed on Palestinians.”Over 1,000 Swedish artists called for Israel to be banned this year – including Robyn, Fever Ray, and First Aid Kit – and more than 1,400 Finnish music industry professionals have signed a petition to ban the country from taking part in the contest as well.

Bambie Thug has accused Eurovision organisers of “not supporting them” over claims that the Israeli broadcasters “incited violence” against them.In an interview after their performance at Eurovision 2024, the Irish singer-songwriter claimed the Israeli broadcaster KAN “incited violence against me twice, three times.”“We brought it up to the EBU,” they told reporters. “They said they’d follow up.

Eurovision viewers have had their say after Switzerland came away victorious at the 2024 edition of the contest last night (May 11), with jokes, memes and hot takes galore.Switzerland’s representative Nemo fought off tough competition from the likes of Croatia, Ukraine and France with their song ‘The Code’, which blended elements of pop, rap, drum n’ bass and even opera and told the story of how they realised they were non-binary.Nemo also became Eurovision’s first-ever non-binary winner, which was a particularly meaningful moment for many viewers. “Europe changed tonight. It’s a different place for us non binaries now.

Bambie Thug has given an update on their Eurovision complaint, claiming that the EBU confirmed Israli broadcaster KAN had “broken the rules of conduct”.Earlier today, it was reported that the Irish Eurovision entry lodged a complaint with the Eurovision organisers due to commentary made by a broadcaster on KAN. The comments, which told viewers to “prepare your curses” and claim Bambie’s performance was “the most scary” of the night, were labelled “in breach of the rules” of the EBU by Bambie.Now, the Cork singer has taken to their social media to claim that the EBU “confirmed” KAN had breached the rules, which “contradicts” a statement they had seen from the EBU Director General Noel Curran.“Over the last few days I have raised multiple complaints to the EBU regarding instances I have experienced this week.

Bambie Thug has given a special message at the end of their gripping Eurovision performance – watch it below.The Irish Eurovision entry has been tipped as one of the favourites to win this year, with them ranking fourth on the bookie’s odds to win the contest.However, the Cork singer has also faced significant challenges throughout the competition due to their pro-Palestinian stance. It was revealed they were forced to remove the words ‘ceasefire’ and ‘freedom for Palestine’ in a medieval script from their costume due to Eurovision’s political neutrality clause.Though they were prevented from saying the words ‘ceasefire’, Bambie seemed to allude to the Israel-Palestine conflict at the end of their powerful performance.

The Eurovision Song Contest was certainly dramatic with calls for the competition to be boycotted and one act disqualified the day of the Grand Final. But despite the drama, the Contest went ahead on Saturday night in Malmo and reigning champion Loreen handed over the trophy to a new winner. Let's take a look at the final result.

At the end of a nail biting week of musical performances, the Eurovision Song Contest 2024 finally declared its winner on Saturday evening when Switzerland's Nemo won with their song The Code. The winning performance came after a tense week of surprising mishaps, in which controversy had dogged the 68th edition of the annual song contest for months in the run up to the live shows.

Ireland's very own Bambie Thug delivered a powerful six-word mantra following their Eurovision Song Contest performance. After wowing the audience with an electrifying rendition of "Doomsday Blue," complete with enchanting witchcraft visuals, Bambie Thug made sure their message was heard loud and clear. As the final note echoed and the camera closed in, Bambie Thug proclaimed: "Love will always win over hate! " The performance left fans ecstatic, prompting a flurry of support on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.

As music lovers around the world tuned into the Eurovision Song Contest’ s grand final on Saturday night, all eyes were on the 25 acts that were hoping to secure victory. Initially 26 countries had been due to compete, but following a controversial decision by the European Broadcasting Union to ban Dutch entrant Joost Klein, only 25 made it to the stage on Saturday evening.

The highly-anticipated Eurovision final is here at last. Some 25 countries will battle it out to become champion of the world's biggest music competition.

Bambie Thug has reportedly raised a complaint with Eurovision organisers due to Israeli broadcaster KAN’s commentary on their performance.An interview with broadcaster RTÉ has revealed that the Irish Eurovision entry raised the complaint with the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) over remarks KAN made about them. On Tuesday, a commentator on KAN, warned TV viewers with children that Bambie Thug’s performance would be “the most scary” of the night.The commentator also said there would be “a lot of spells and black magic and dark clothing, Satanic symbols, and voodoo dolls, like we are at Cat’s Square in Jerusalem in the mid-90s” (Cat’s Square is a square well known for the city’s nightlife in the 90s and associated with goth culture).The KAN broadcaster further claimed there was “some controversy” in Ireland about Bambie’s song ‘Doomsday Blue’, referencing a petition to disqualify the song, and further alleged Thug liked to “speak negatively about Israel”.

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

Thania Garcia Nigeria-based singer, songwriter, and producer Tems is heading out on her first headlining world tour in support of her debut album, “Born in the Wild,” slated for June 7. The Grammy-winning, Oscar-nominated artist will start the global trek on June 12 in London at Eventim Apollo, with additional stops in major markets across Europe including France, Norway, Germany, and the Netherlands. The “Born in the Wild World Tour” will start a North American leg on Aug.

Israel participated in the Eurovision Song Contest on Thursday evening, as thousands of pro-Palestinian demonstrators gathered in the host city of Malmo, Sweden, to protest against the country’s participation in the competition. 

After a year of waiting, it’s finally time to get out the fancy dress, put on a party playlist and rustle up some delicious snacks and celebrate this year’s Eurovision Song Contest.Taking place on Saturday, 11 May in Malmö, Sweden, the event is set to be one to remember as Olly Alexander hopes to become the UK’s first winner since Katrina and the Waves in 1997. However, it’s not just Olly who’s got people talking. Contestant Bambie Thug made history earlier this week when they became the first Irish Eurovision Song Contest finalist since 2018.

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.

A body language expert has analysed Prince Harry’s Invictus Games appearance, saying his visit back to the UK has made him feel "strong" and "comfortable".The Duke of Sussex, 39, returned to the UK for the 10th anniversary of the Invictus Games and body language expert Darren Stanton has analysed Harry’s body language – saying he is in a place of "comfort" and "strength". Speaking on behalf of Betfair Bingo, Darren revealed: “Harry is in a good place and it’s telling us he is genuinely interested and enthusiastic about being back in the UK. From what we can see, Harry wants to do the right thing.