Eurovision Song Contest 2024 First Semi-Final

Host country: Sweden (SVT)
Venue: Malmö Arena, Malmö, Sweden
Hosts: Petra Mede, Malin Åkerman
Date: Tuesday 7 May 2024

N.B. Any use of “tonight” or “this evening” throughout this post means Tuesday 7 May 2024. All times in this post are in BST.

The Opening

After the usual Eurovision ident, accompanied by Charpentier's Te Deum prelude, the First Semi-Final First Semi-Final began with an opening sequence, showing clips of past Eurovision winners receiving points, followed by a postcard sequence. The first official opening act featured former participants performing shortened versions of their entries, those being Eleni Foureira - “Fuego” (Cyprus 2018), Eric Saade - “Popular” (Sweden 2011) and Chanel - “SloMo” (Spain 2022). At 20:08 the hosts Malin Åkerman and Petra Mede appeared on stage to give their opening speeches.

The Songs

13 minutes after the start of the show (20:13 BST) it was time for the first song. Each song was introduced by a postcard film related to the appropriate country.

Song 1: Cyprus - Silia Kapsis “Liar”

It’s difficult being the first to perform, but someone has to sing first. The entry began with an overhead view of the stage, to show a turquoise circular pattern, which shrunk inwards. Unsurprisingly, there were some Greek style sounds during the first verse which, just like in the preview video, was sung quite softly tonight. A beat began in the first instance of the section starting “Should’ve known that you are a liar”. I particularly liked the section “Because of you”, “I'll make it through”, which appeared just before each instance of the chorus. As for the chorus itself, that was very lively and catchy, with a fast and powerful beat. The second verse also had a beat to it, and Greek style sounds could be heard during that verse. Between the second and third instances of the chorus, there was an instrumental break, with a powerful beat, and Silia fitted in a few instances of “Yeah, Yeah, Yeah”. This part of the song included considerable use of flashing lights. Altogether, a very lively, catchy song; the perfect way to start the show. During tonight’s performance, Silia managed to sing powerfully enough to overcome the beat which featured in much of the song. There were some spectacular turquoise patterns on the background screen and stage floor for much of the song, some of which included swirling and fountain effects, but for some mysterious reason these changed red for the final instance of the chorus. Unsurprisingly, there were dancers on stage, and their dance routine provided further enhancement to the performance. I’d definitely like to see this on Saturday evening, and there’s a good chance this will qualify.

Song 2: Serbia - TEYA DORA “RAMONDA”

Now for something totally different, a ballad. I liked the introduction, and the zooming through the cloud effect which appeared at the start of the performance. When Teya started singing, she was sitting on an artificial rock. However, the rippling water effect must have been graphically simulated on the stage floor. Just like in the preview video, the opening verse was sung softly. I particularly liked the way Teya sang the lines “A nema ko da vodi me”, “do svetle zvezde Danice”, which mean “And there is no one to guide me”, “Towards the bright North Star”. By the start of the first instance of the chorus, which consists of multiple instances of “Lila ramonda”, Teya was standing, but the rock could still be seen behind her. She sang this in a more powerful manner, and overhead views showed some spectacular radiating patterns on the stage floor. I question the need for the strobe lighting during the second verse, but evidently the lighting designer felt they fitted in here somehow. During the next instance of the chorus, the first two lines were sung softly, and the rest was sung more powerfully. Presumably this was a way of providing some variation in a chorus which may otherwise have been seen as repetitive. Finally, the two lines at the end, sung softly, were the perfect way to close this song. Teya sat back on the rock, and a graphically simulated flower grew on the background screen at this point. Altogether, a beautiful ballad, some of which is sung softly, but there are some more powerful parts. I’d like to see this on Saturday evening. The only problem is, I think this is a song which would do well in a jury vote, but could struggle to get votes from the public, and tonight’s result decided by public voting only.

Song 3: Lithuania - Silvester Belt “Luktelk”

Eurovizija.LT 2024 Final took place on Saturday 17 February 2024, and I watched it online from the UK, on demand, one day late. The winner was Silvester Belt - Luktelk. According to the Eurovision website, Luktelk (which means ‘wait’/’hold on’) is about being stuck in limbo between two stages of barely existing and feeling alive, when you have to hold on and dance through whatever life throws at you. Tonight’s performance was staged much like the national final performance: blue / black background patterns during the verses, and red / black patterns during the pre-choruses and choruses. The colour scheme for the instrumental break was rapid flashing blue and red, just like in the in national final performance. Just like in the national final, the song was performed in Lithuanian at Eurovision. I’m glad it stayed in Lithuanian; I think performing this in English or any other language would have spoiled it. Altogether a lively, catchy song, with plenty of electronic sounds, and a powerful beat. The chorus is simple and memorable; “Luktelk luktelk, dar vieną minutę luktelk.”, which means “Wait up, wait up, Just another minute”. I’d definitely like to see this in the Grand Final, and there’s a good chance it will be there.

Song 4: Ireland - Bambie Thug “Doomsday Blue”

Ireland are trying something out of the ordinary this year. It’s unclear whether Bambie was singing or talking in the opening section. The three-line section starting “I, I, I know you’re living a lie” is very unusual, I personally don’t like this style, but presumably there are enough people in the world who enjoy this style. Anyway, Bambie was on a predominantly dark stage, with strobe lighting (which presumably simulated sheet lightning), during the first instance of this The section “I, I, I guess you’d rather have a star than the moon” to “I’m down, down, in my Doomsday blue” is more down to Earth, in that it’s what I’d call typical singing. Presumably this is a chorus, as more instances of this section appear later, but anyway, the last line of this section is where the title is mentioned. Lighting was static, and a moon appeared on the background screen during this part of the song. Later, the section “For your romance” to “Compared to the others is doom” was sung in a rather haunted manner, with some siren sounds in the background. For some reason, static red lighting featured here. Presumably this serves as a bridge. After several instances of “Blue”, accompanied by flashing blue light, the song ended with “Avada Kadavra I speak to destroy!”, which sounded as though Bambie is almost screaming, albeit very softly. Flames appeared during this closing section, and Crown The Witch, in capital letters and a rater unusual font, appeared on the background screen right at the end. Altogether a very unusual style of song; with a mixture of styles; RTE is taking a risk sending this to Eurovision. One may like this in whole, in part or not at all, depending on one’s musical taste, but time will tell how this fares tonight. I’d rather this doesn’t qualify, but mark my words, this could well slip through because it’s so unusual.

A short break followed at this point. The time was now 20:29. The hosts reappeared for a short speech. Petra mentioned some Eurovision trivia. This break ended at 20:32.

Automatic Qualifier 1: United Kingdom - Olly Alexander “Dizzy”

For the first time ever, the artists representing the countries pre-qualified for the Grand Final performed their entries live, in full, on a non-competitive basis, between competing entries in the semi-final. The first of tonight’s automatic qualifiers was Olly Alexander from the United Kingdom. At the start, Olly appeared to be upside-down sitting, and then walking around, in a box. This box consisted of what looked like tiled walls on the side panels, and illuminated squares on the top and bottom. By the first instance of the chorus Olly was upright. A spinning galaxy of stars could be seen at the back of the box, which was tilted left and right, during the chorus. This in itself must have confused some viewers. During the instrumental break the box was shown upside-down, and some background voices could be heard. When Olly was shown upright after that, an eclipsed sun could be seen at the back. During the final instance of the chorus, Olly and his four dancers were on the open stage, with spinning circular patterns. A quick burst of fireworks was the perfect end to the performance. From a technical point of view, it’s obvious that the upside-down and tilted views, seen by TV viewers were either created by turning the camera upside-down or on an angle, or alternatively the camera could have been kept upright, with the digital video images inverted or tilted using a computer, but how were the audience in the Arena able to see the inverted views? As for the song itself, the verses have a heartbeat like sound in the background, whereas the chorus is quite catchy, with a beat and what sounds like bells. All in all, this is one to be valued more for the staging than for the song itself, which could be seen as an average, radio friendly pop song. As for the outfits, Olly in his white vest and red trousers, with his four dancers topless with red shorts on, may not please some. Time will tell how this scrores on Saturday night. At least the United Kingdom doesn’t need to rely on viewers voting for this performance to get to the final.

Song 5: Ukraine - alyona alyona & Jerry Heil “Teresa & Maria”

Back to tonight’s competing entries, which viewers in eligible countries can vote for. I like the introduction, including the “ooh-ooh” sounds. The song is mostly in Ukrainian, with some English lines. I like the opening verse, and the chorus sounds quite bouncy. Interestingly, the chorus references Mother Teresa and Diva Maria. The first two lines mean “Mother Teresa and Diva Maria are with us, Barefoot, as if on a blade, they walked on the ground”. The early part of the song showed what looked like flowing lava in the centre of the background screen, with cliffs either side. During the first instance of the chorus, one singer performed on what looked like a rock ramp, and golden shooting star effects, with after-trails, were shown on the background screen. I’m less keen on the rap section, and question its need, but that said, rap worked well with Ukrainian folk in Kalush Orchestra’s entry two years ago. Furthermore, I question the need for the strobe lighting during the rap section. The next instance of the chorus included gold marble like effects on the stage floor. The song closed with more eastern style sounds and some “ooh ooh” sounds. Altoghter this is the sort of style Ukraine tend to send, and it was very well sung and staged tonight. Despite my dislike for the rap, I’d still like to see this in the Grand Final, because what I like about the other parts far outweighs my dislike for the rap. In any case, this is almost certain to be there. See you Saturday alyona alyona & Jerry Heil

Song 6: Poland - LUNA “The Tower”

The opening section has a beat. The chorus is sung a bit more powerfully, and I like the way in which it’s sung, particularly the lines “Rise up, shout it louder, I'm the one who built the tower”. The most notable stage feature was two towers which represent rooks (or castles). In addition, a moon, stars and clouds appeared on the stage for much of the performance. The fireworks, during the last instance of chorus, provided the climax to this song. LUNA was joined by two others, one dressed in white and one in black, and both wore crowns. Presumably they represented bishops or kings on a chess game. A horse could be seen at some points, presumably representing a knight. On the whole, this is certainly quite a lively song, with a very catchy, easy to remember chorus, and tonight’s performance featured some amazing staging, including the chessboard effect on the stage floor. However, I think many will see this as a run-of-the-mill pop song. I think the vocals could have been stronger. Perhaps it’s best if this doesn’t qualify, but this could slip through due to the staging, and this is the sort of song which could well attract televotes.

Song 7: Croatia - Baby Lasagna “Rim Tim Tagi Dim”

I watched the Croatian national final, Dora 2024 Final live, online from the UK, on Sunday 25 February 2024. This was the hot favourite to win Dora 2024 Final during the run-up to, and throughout, the show. It’s difficult for me to judge this fairly as I don’t normally like this style. It's got a powerful beat throughout. At the time I "half liked" the chorus (but could just tolerate the rest). Having heard this a few times recently, I’m beginning to like this a little more now. According to the Eurovision website, singer-songwriter Marko tries, for those who listen carefully, to convey a deeper message about the worries and sufferings of our environment. This is reflected in the chorus with the lines “There’s no going back, My anxiety attacks”. Having previously looked at the song’s lyrics in several languages on Eurovision World, the title stays the same; therefore, it appears to me as though the title is untranslatable. Tonight’s staging included considerable use of smoke / steam jets, and flame effects during the latter stages of the song. Neon style images of farm animals, in various colours, appeared on the background screen at times, and various coloured shapes appeared on the stage floor. A burst of fireworks rounded off the performance. By far, this is definitely the liveliest of the songs so far. After tonight’s performance, I’m not sure whether I personally want this in the final or not, but this is almost guaranteed to be there. In fact, this is currently the hot favourite to win tonight, and also to win on Saturday night.

Song 8: Iceland - Hera Björk “Scared of Heights”

I watched the Icelandic national final, Söngvakeppnin 2024 live, online from the UK, on Saturday 2 March 2024. “Scared of Heights” is what I would call a country song. There is a regular beat during the first verse and first instance of the pre-chorus. The beat is more powerful, and varied, during the chorus, and I like the way Hera sings the chorus lines (which vary in length) in rising and falling pitch. Tonight’s performance made considerable use of golden light beams (which may have been lasers), and golden triangle images appeared on the background screen during the instances of the chorus. About two thirds of the way through, red light beecame dominant, and near the end, some fireworks appeared whilst Hera performed atop a column. Altogether a likeable song, with a really catchy chorus. However, compared to some of tonight’s other semi-finalists, this could be seen as an average, run-of-the-mill song, and not competitive enough to qualify. I wouldn’t mind this in the final, but I wouldn’t mind if it’s not there. In any case, I think it would be a miracle for this to qualify.

A short break followed at this point. The time was now 20:54. The BBC showed highlights of Liverpool 2023. Presumably these images were only seen by UK viewers. After the break, Petra spoke briefly before introducing the next song.

Automatic Qualifier 2: Germany- ISAAK “Always On The Run”

The second automatic qualifier to perform on a non-competitive basis tonight. I watched Germany’s national final, Das Deutsche Finale 2024 live, online from the UK, on Friday 16 February 2024. During the opening lines, ISAAK left a pause in place of the offensive word he had to remove. I think he should have thought of an acceptable substitute word to replace the disallowed word. There is a powerful beat after the opening lines have been performed. The chorus, which starts from the line “I'm always on the run, run, run, run” is sung in quite a powerful manner, particularly the three lines “Run-un-a-eh, run-un-a-eh”. Tonight’s staging included what looked like troughs with frames above them to resemble a room. For some mysterious reason, fire seemed to be a dominant feature of the performance. During the opening lines, a tank with fire could be seen in one corner. Flames appeared in the tanks at the start of the first instance of the chorus, and burned until the end of the second instance of the chorus. Rising flames from the stage floor also appeared during the choruses. After the second instance of the chorus was the block “Run from the silence” to “Can't do this anymore”. Two instances of this block were sung softly and slowly, presumably to serve as a bridge, and a further two instances of this block (with backing) were sung in a powerful manner (presumably to serve as an outro). Altogether, a lively, powerful song, and if nothing else, this will be remembered for considerable use of fire. It’ll be interesting to see how well (or badly) this does on Saturday night, but for now, Germany doesn’t need to rely on viewers voting for this performance to get to the final.

Song 9: Slovenia - Raiven “Veronika”

Back to tonight’s competing entries, which viewers in eligible countries can vote for. It’s unclear what type of song this is; presumably this is a power ballad. I like the way the opening section is sung softly. The first two lines mean “I hid in the river. And went into the silent night.” This clearly explains the significance of the person underwater in the preview video. However, the chorus, which has a beat, is sung in a powerful and somewhat unusual manner, which I’m not particularly keen on. The second verse (if it can be called that) seems to be louder than the opening verse, and this is followed by another instance of the chorus. As for the staging tonight, blue light streaks appeared on the background screen, and on the stage floor, during the opening section. Clouds appeared on the background screen during the first and second instances of the chorus, and sea foam and waves appeared on the background screen during the second verse. The climax was towards the end, when some flashing lights were used. I’d rather this doesn’t appear in the final. It’s questionable whether or not this can qualify; no doubt some will like this enough to want to vote for it, but I think this is destined to be a borderline qualifier.

Song 10: Finland - Windows95man “No Rules!”

I watched the Finnish national final, Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu, otherwise known as UMK, live, online from the UK, on Saturday 10 February 2024. “No Rules!” is a lively, high tempo song. After winning UMK, it was questionable whether or not Windows95man, whose real name is Teemu Keister, would be allowed to call himself Windows95man at Eurovision. Fortunately, he was allowed to perform under that name in Malmö. The chorus sung rapidly, and is highly memorable. Just like at UMK, I liked the way they had a giant egg, covered in denim, at the start, which opened to reveal Windows95man dressed in a Microsoft Windows 95 cap and T-shirt (albeit with the Windows 95 logos pixellated), and the associate singer dressed as what presumably is a bird. During tonight’s performance, some viewers may have been alarmed what Windows95man was wearing (or lack of?) below his T-shirt, until his denim shorts were within reach near the end. In fact, was the use of the clipboard as a hiding device at one point planned or an unexpected necessity? All in all, a very lively, catchy fun song, which will be difficult to forget. The question is, some may express their concern at the line “I don't even care what's wrong or right”. This is likely to pick up plenty of votes from the public, so being as tonight is televote only, this has a high chance of qualifying, but I think the professional juries may mark this down for its lyrics on Saturday.

Song 11: Moldova - Natalia Barbu “In The Middle”

Moldova has gone for a ballad this year. Just like in the preview video, the opening section was sung softly tonight. The chorus, which starts “I want you to be happy all of your life”, was sung in a slightly more powerful manner and a beat could be heard. I particularly liked the way the post chorus, consisting of “Tararararararararara aaua” multiple times, was sung. By far, this was the most memorable moment, and the perfect hook, for this song. As for the staging, Natalia performed on what looked like a graphically simulated island on the stage floor. After the first instance of “Tararararararararara aaua”, graphically simulated flowering plants appeared on the island, and a flowering tree “grew” on the background screen. On the second instance of “Tararararararararara aaua”, butterflies could be seen on the background screen and cubes above the stage. Just like in the preview video, Natalia appeared to play a violin during what must have been the instrumental break, but it’s unclear whether she was actually bowing it or just miming it. Anyway, giant birds’ wings appeared either side of her in the background. The song ended with a final instance of “Tararararararararara aaua”, accompanied by various background screen and stage floor images, and light beams. Altogether a pleasant song, almost far eastern style, and Natalia has a beautiful voice. The amazing, life-like background images provided further enhancement, but I have my doubts as to whether or not this can qualify. I wouldn’t mind this in the final, but I wouldn’t miss it if it’s not there.

At this point the hosts spoke for a moment before introducing the next song.

Automatic Qualifier 3: Sweden - Marcus & Martinus “Unforgettable”

The third and final automatic qualifier to perform on a non-competitive basis tonight, that being this year’s host country Sweden. I watched the Swedish national final, Melodifestivalen 2024 Final, live online from the UK, Saturday 9 March 2024. The song “Unforgettable” has plenty of electronic sounds. The chorus is catchy, albeit a bit repetitive. Just like the Melodifestivalen performance, tonight’s Eurovision performance featured plenty of grids on the stage floor, in white or cyan, with white numbers and letters on the background screen at times, though I’m mystified as to their significance. It's hardly surprising this was performed on a dark stage, in order for the lines and numbers to show up clearly. There were times when the title Unforgettable appeared on the background screen, in capital letters. Late in the song, various error messages appeared there for some mysterious reason. Altogether quite a lively host entry, but how will this fare with the juries and the public in all the other countries on Saturday? Time will tell. Whatever the line-up of countries on Saturday, we already know this will be the opening song that night. For now, Sweden doesn’t need to rely on viewers voting for this semi-final performance to get to the final.

Song 12: Azerbaijan - FAHREE feat. Ilkin Dovlatov “Özünlə Apar”

After Azerbaijan tried a 1960s Beatles / Marmalade / Dave Clark Five style rock ‘n’ roll song, with rap thrown in for good measure, only to be eliminated in their semi-final last year, İctimai has gone back to their usual sort of musical style this year. “Özünlə Apar” is a ballad, which is mostly in English, but the chorus is in Azerbaijani. During the opening section, electronic and eastern style sounds can be heard. A beat can be heard during the section starting “Hold my heart in your hands,”; presumably this must be a pre-chorus. I particularly like the way in which FAHREE sings the chorus in Azerbaijani; it consists of: “Gəl özünlə apar, Sənsiz göy mənə dar”. This means “Come take me with you, Even the sky is not wide enough for me”. The instrumental break features more eastern style sounds. After another instance of the pre-chorus, the song ended with another instance of the chorus. For the Eurovision performance, the dominant feature on the background screen was the giant head, which rose up at the start and stayed there throughout the performance. A white arch could be seen above the giant head there. In addition, giant hands were placed on the stage. Personally, I thought the giant head in the background made FAHREE look tiny at times. I question the need for the strobe lighting which appeared during the instrumental break; such lighting looks out of place in a ballad like this. Altogether a good eastern style ballad, featuring plenty of eastern style sounds, and it’s great that some use of the Azerbaijani language has been included for once. Furthermore, this was very well sung tonight. The question is, can this qualify? I think this would do well in a jury vote, but this will struggle to get votes from viewers at home in the semi-final or final, and that will be a problem because tonight’s result is being determined by televoting only. I’d very much like this in the final on Saturday, but without a jury vote tonight, it’ll be a miracle for this to qualify.

Song 13: Australia - Electric Fields “One Milkali (One Blood)”

Australia has gone for an upbeat song this year. Just like in the preview video, the song was sung in quite a powerful manner tonight. Notable features of the song itself are a powerful beat most of the way though, a lively and catchy chorus and didgeridoo sounds late in the song. In fact, someone appeared to be playing (or miming) a didgeridoo on stage during the song tonight. A red and yellow starry effect appeared on the background and stage, which formed a spiral effect at times. Near the end of the song, some lyrics appeared on the background screen and cubes above the stage. Right at the end, Milkali La, with One Blood underneath, appeared on the background screen in block capitals. All in all, a powerful and memorable song, and very well sung tonight, but I think there was room for improvement with the staging, e.g. background images. I’d like to see this in the final, but if recent bookmakers’ odds of this qualifying are anything to go by, I think this will be very much borderline between just scraping through or just missing out. Will enough viewers want to vote for this tonight, or will people see this as too run-of-the-mill or average to want to vote for this? Time will tell.

Song 14: Portugal - iolanda “Grito”

The Portuguese national final, Festival da Canção 2024 Final, took place on Saturday 9 March 2024, and I watched it on demand, online from the UK, the following evening (10 March 2024). The winner, out of 12 finalist songs, was “Grito”, sung by iolanda. The song began by being sung in a slow and gentle manner, but gradually built up to a comparatively lively middle section. That middle section had quite a powerful beat. Just like at Festival da Canção, iolanda was accompanied by dancers tonight. Their dance routine fitted that middle section of the song well. Near the end, this drew to a close by returning to singing at a gentler and slower pace. Altogether quite an unusual song, it’s great to hear Portugal bring its traditional musical style to Eurovision. Interestingly, iolanda and her dancers all wore white for tonight’s performance. I’d definitely like to see this in Saturday’s final, but I think this is another song which will do well in a jury vote, but struggle in a public vote, so in tonight’s televote only semi-final, I have my doubts as to whether or not this can qualify.

Song 15: Luxembourg - TALI “Fighter”

It’s wonderful, if not unthinkable, to see Luxembourg back for the first time since 1993. I watched the Luxembourgish national final, Luxembourg Song Contest 2024, live, online from the UK, on 27 January 2024. Just like in the national final, the song was performed in a mixture of French and English tonight. The French lines were sung rather fast; it seemed as though Tali wanted to cram a lot of French into the permitted time. The choruses are powerful and lively, with a good beat. Just like in the national final, tonight’s performance featured flame effects on stage during the first instance of the chorus. Strobe lighting was used towards the end of the first two instances of the chorus. At the start of the second verses, mountains were graphically simulated on the background screen, though I’m mystified as to their significance. At the start of the second instance of the chorus, cheetahs (or leopards) appeared on the stage graphically (presumably, augmented reality), but I’m mystified as to their significance. Just like the preview video, tonight’s performance drew to a close with a soft, slow version of the chorus, on a predominantly dark stage (with spotlights), followed by the usual lively version of the chorus on a fully lit stage. More flame effects appeared on stage during the final lively instance of the chorus. “Et voilà” provided the perfect ending for this song. Altogether, a lively, catchy song, with an unforgettable chorus, and very well staged and performed tonight. As if that wasn’t enough, the dance routine, performed by the five dancers, provided further enhancement. The question is, will this qualify tonight? Will some see “Fighter” as another generic pop song, and thus not vote for it, or will they like it and vote for it because they genuinely feel it’s a good song, or might they vote for Luxembourg on sympathy grounds to welcome them back after their exceptionally long absence? Time will tell. I for one definitely want to see this on Saturday night, not just because this is their first entry since 1993, but because I feel this is one of the better songs tonight which genuinely deserves a place in the Grand Final. However, I think this could be another maybe qualifier.

Televoting and Recap

After the songs finished, the hosts reappeared to announce the start of the voting at 21:37 BST. Some fireworks appeared at the back of the stage, and a message “Start Voting Now” appeared on the background screen. A recap of the songs followed. The UK voted in tonight's semi-final, and therefore UK viewers saw the voting numbers at the bottom of the screen during the recap.

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My Preferences

Here are my preferences, based solely on all of tonight's performances:
Definitely want to qualify: Cyprus, Serbia, Lithuania, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Australia, Portugal, Luxembourg.
Wouldn't mind qualifying: Croatia, Iceland, Finland, Moldova.
Prefer not to qualify: Poland, Slovenia.
Definitely don't want to qualify: Ireland.

So, these are the ones I want to see Saturday night: Cyprus, Serbia, Lithuania, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Australia, Portugal, Luxembourg, plus two (and no more) of Croatia, Iceland, Finland, Moldova.

The UK voted this evening; I voted for: Lithuania, Ukraine, Cyprus, Portugal, Azerbaijan, Luxembourg, Australia.

My Qualification Predictions

Here are my predictions of which countries will and won’t qualify, based solely on all of tonight's performances:
Almost certain qualifiers: Lithuania, Ukraine, Croatia.
Likely qualifiers: Cyprus, Ireland, Finland.
May qualify: Serbia, Poland, Slovenia, Moldova, Australia, Portugal, Luxembourg.
Highly unlikely to qualify: Iceland, Azerbaijan.

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Eurovision Song Contest 2024 First Semi-Final Results

Here are the results, which were announced in a random order before 22:00 BST. Any use of "tonight" still means Tuesday 7 May 2024.

My desired qualifiers: Cyprus, Serbia, Lithuania, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Australia, Portugal, Luxembourg, plus two (and no more) of Croatia, Iceland, Finland, Moldova.

Actual qualifiers (in order of announcement): Serbia, Portugal, Slovenia, Ukraine, Lithuania, Finland, Cyprus, Croatia, Ireland, Luxembourg.

Bold entries represent the actual qualifiers that match my “Definitely want to qualify” preferences, and italic entries represent the ones that match my “Wouldn't mind qualifying” preferences.

OUT: Poland, Iceland, Moldova, Azerbaijan, Australia.

I’m overjoyed that Luxembourg is through; as far as I’m concerned, it would have been a shame of them to fail to qualify after their long absence, especially as their entry was so lively, catchy and well-performed and staged. They genuinely deserved a place in the final. I’m glad Cyprus and Lithuania as they too had lively, catchy entries. I’m also glad Serbia, Ukraine and Portugal qualified as their songs reflected their own cultures. Although I thought Ukraine’s entry was among the ones most likely to qualify tonight, I had my doubts about Serbia and Portugal qualifying, as I thought their ballads would struggle to get votes from the public. Evidently there are plenty of other people besides me who decided to vote for their beautiful ballads.

The one song I didn’t want in the final was Ireland, because their entry “Doomsday Blue” is not my taste at all. Some parts are okay, but some parts I really can’t stand. Still, plenty of people evidently liked it enough to want to vote for it tonight. At least this is Ireland’s first time of qualifying to the Grand Final for the first time since 2018.

So that means six of my eight “Definitely want to qualify” countries’ songs went through. Not bad I suppose. The only ones which didn’t qualify were Azerbaijan and Australia. At the end of the day, I cannot expect to have all the songs I want in the final.

Anyway, no matter how I personally feel about which countries' songs went thorough and which ones didn't, all the artists who performed tonight deserve equal respect. Congratulations to the ten countries which qualified to the final, and commiserations to the five which failed to reach the final. So, that means sixteen finalists are now confirmed and five countries have been eliminated. Another sixteen countries will battle it out for the ten remaining places on Thursday evening.

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