The BBC have announced details of their upcoming Eurovision schedule this year, including the EBU Show ‘Eurovision: Europe Shine a light’ aswell as a host of documentaries and compilation shows across the BBC.
The BBC’s Eurovision website reads:
The contest might not be going as planned this year, but we are promising plenty of Eurovision content across TV, Radio and Online in celebration of the biggest music competition in the world.
From a night of special programmes celebrating this year’s contest on BBC One, to revisiting classic moments on BBC Two and a host of specially themed programmes and treats from the archives to enjoy on BBC Radio 2, there will be a wealth of Eurovision content for you to look forward to this May.
Highlights include:
Eurovision: Come Together – 6.30pm on Saturday 16 May on BBC One
Graham Norton will give UK viewers the opportunity to take part in a live vote to crown their favourite Eurovision performance from an eclectic short list compiled by experts and celebrity super fans. Graham will also have a chat with James Newman, the act who was due to fly the UK flag in The Netherlands in 2020.
Details of how you can get involved can be found by clicking here.
Eurovision: Europe Shine A Light – 8pm on Saturday 16 May on BBC One
As we reported last month, the EBU will be broadcasting ‘Eurovision: Europe Shine a Light’ which the BBC will show on their channel BBC One.
The show will honour all 41 songs that would have competed this year, but in a non-competitive format, as well as providing plenty of surprises for fans and viewers at home.
Just like the contest itself, the live show will be simultaneously broadcast across Europe and beyond and will be hosted by the original Dutch presenters for Eurovision Song Contest 2020 Chantal Janzen, Edsilia Rombley and Jan Smit from The Netherlands.
The show will feature a sing-a-long where fans from across the world will dress up and form a huge Eurovision choir performing Johnny Logan’s winning song for Ireland in 1980, ‘What’s Another Year’.
Graham Norton will provide live commentary.
The A-Z of Eurovision – 10pm on Saturday 16 May on BBC Two
TV and Radio Presenter Rylan Clark-Neal will narrate a guide to all things Eurovision in a new compilation of highlights as he takes a sideways look at the Eurovision.
Moving through the alphabet, Rylan will be taking us from A, beginning with Abba & Azerbaijan but also animals – featuring Francesco Gabbani with the gorilla and Dihaj’s backing dancer wearing a horse’s head through to Z for Måns Zelmerlöw.
TOTP2 Goes Eurovision! 10.30pm on Saturday 16 May on BBC Two
First shown ahead of the 2007 Contest, Steve Wright introduces a special Eurovision-themed edition of the show, featuring archive songs by stars of the famous competition. Artists include Cliff Richard, Lulu, Bucks Fizz, Sandie Shaw, Brotherhood of Man, Johnny Logan and Abba, plus 2007’s UK entrants, Scooch.
Eurovision at 60 – 9.30pm on Friday 15 May on BBC Four
First shown to celebrate the Eurovision Song Contest’s 60th anniversary in 2015, BBC Four joins the celebrations with their show ‘Eurovision at 60’.
The documentary explores the songs and singers aswell as the many events that have happened since Eurovision first began.
The documentary features interviews with Eurovision singers and songwriters. Graham Norton, Conchita Wurst, aswell as the late Sir Terry Wogan.
Dana – The Original Derry Girl – BBC One Northern Ireland on Monday 11 May at 10.45pm and 11pm on Friday 15 May on BBC Four
As we announced previously, ‘Dana – The Original Derry Girl’ is a look back at that young schoolgirl’s incredible life story, retracing her steps to the stage of the RAI theatre, where against the odds she became Ireland’s first Eurovision winner.
Eurovision 2020 The Cancelled Coronavirus Year – BBC Radio 1 Newsbeat – available from 6am on Monday 11 May on BBC iPlayer
Filming for this exclusive behind the scenes documentary began back in February , before it was revealed that the 2020 Eurovision was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.
BBC Radio 1 Newsbeat follows James Newman as he prepares to be unveiled as the UK’s Eurovision representative, filming him in rehearsals, and backstage at his first public performance of his Eurovision entry, accompanied by his brother, artist John Newman and their Mum.
Following the cancellation of Eurovision, James shares what this means for him and he speaks to some of this year’s other contestants in other countries about their experiences and future plans. The documentary features commentary from artists who have worked with James, including Olly Murs, Mollie King and Piers from Rudimental.
BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2 will be bringing the spirit of Eurovision to listeners with a number of shows, and the programmes will also be available on BBC Sounds.
Ken Bruce
On Ken Bruce’s mid- morning weekday show, the featured album of the week will be Eurovision 2020 – the official compilation album of the artists and songs from the contest – plus clips from previous winners and their entries will be broadcast (Monday 11th May, 9.30am-12pm).
Graham Norton
Ahead of his TV show on Saturday night, in the morning Graham Norton will be getting listeners into the Eurovision spirit by playing some of contest’s finest songs, both past and present (Saturday 16th May, 10am- 1pm).
Later that night will be another chance to hear ‘Graham Norton, Douze Points’ in which he looks back on his first ten years as UK Commentator of the Eurovision. From Moscow in 2009, to last year’s show in Tel Aviv, Graham remembers the big winners and the artists the UK sent, from Blue to Electro Velvet. Along with super fan Paddy O’Connell, Graham also recalls the controversies and triumphs, aswell as SuRie’s stage invasion in 2018 (Saturday 16 May, 9-10pm,).
Eurovision Kings and Queens of Pop
After Graham, Rylan Clark-Neal will present ‘Eurovision Kings and Queens of Pop’ where he’ll be selecting his choice of the greatest Eurovision moments and his favourite songs that would have been a part of this year’s event in Rotterdam.
The show will also be packed with nostalgic tracks featuring Abba, Sandie Shaw, Bucks Fizz, Mans Zelmerlow, Netta, Celine Dion, Gina G, Dana International, Katrina and The Waves, Conchita Wurst, and last year’s winner Duncan Laurence who triumphed for the Netherlands with his song, Arcade. Plus there will be hand-picked archive clips from the BBC vaults (Saturday 16th May, 10pm-midnight).
Eurovision Collection
If all of the above wasn’t enough, the BBC will also be having a Eurovision Collection broadcast on Radio 2 and on BBC Sounds, featuring fantastic programmes from the archive.
In ‘From ABBA to Azerbaijan (56 Years of Eurovision)’, Maria McErlane is the listeners’ tour guide to 56 years of the Eurovision Song Contest (Saturday 16th May, 3-4am); ‘Ken Bruce’s Ultimate Eurovision Chart‘ celebrates 60 years of the Eurovision Song Contest, counting down the Top 40 all-time favourite Eurovision winning songs as voted for by Radio 2 listeners (Sunday 17th May, 2-4am); and ‘Let’s Abba Party’ marks the twentieth anniversary of hit stage musical, Mamma Mia!, with Nicki Chapman presenting a two-hour special featuring a non-stop mix of classic hits, covers, and selections from the cast recordings and film soundtracks (Sunday 17th May, 5-7pm).
All programming will be available on catch-up on the broadcasters catchup service BBC iPlayer aswell as BBC Sounds.
Which show are you most looking forward to? Let us know in the comments section below!
