Eurovision Song Contest 2008

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Eurovision Song Contest 2008
Confluence of Sound
ESC Belgrade 2008.png
Dates
Semi-final 1 20 May 2008 (2008-05-20)
Semi-final 2 22 May 2008 (2008-05-22)
Final 24 May 2008 (2008-05-24)
Host
Venue Belgrade Arena, Belgrade, Serbia
Presenter(s)
Directed by Sven Stojanović
Executive supervisor Svante Stockselius
Executive producer Sandra Šuša
Host broadcaster Radio Television of Serbia (RTS)
Opening act
Interval act
Participants
Number of entries 43
Debuting countries
Returning countries None
Withdrawing countries  Austria[4]
Participation map
  • Belgium in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Italy in the Eurovision Song ContestNetherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Switzerland in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Monaco in the Eurovision Song ContestLuxembourg in the Eurovision Song ContestSpain in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Ireland in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Denmark in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Finland in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Norway in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Portugal in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Sweden in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Israel in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Greece in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Malta in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Austria in the Eurovision Song ContestFrance in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Turkey in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Morocco in the Eurovision Song ContestCyprus in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Iceland in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Croatia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Slovenia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Estonia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Slovakia in the Eurovision Song ContestHungary in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Romania in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Lithuania in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Poland in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Russia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Macedonia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Latvia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Ukraine in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Albania in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Andorra in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Belarus in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Bulgaria in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Moldova in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Armenia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Czech Republic in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Georgia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Montenegro in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Serbia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008Azerbaijan in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008San Marino in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008A coloured map of the countries of Europe
    About this image
         Participating countries     Did not qualify from the semi final     Countries that participated in the past but not in 2008
Vote
Voting system Each country awarded 12, 10, 8–1 points to their 10 favourite songs.
Nul points None
Winning song

The Eurovision Song Contest 2008 was the 53rd edition of the annual Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Belgrade, Serbia, following Marija Šerifović's win at the 2007 Contest in Helsinki, Finland with the song "Molitva". This year was the first time there were three contests; two semi-finals which were held on 20 and 22 May, and the traditional grand final which was held on 24 May 2008. The shows were hosted by Jovana Janković and Željko Joksimović at the Belgrade Arena which had a total capacity of 25,000 seats. The host broadcaster was RTS.[5]

After a total of 272 points, Dima Bilan representing Russia (for the second time) was declared the winner, with the song "Believe" written by American Jim Beanz and Bilan himself. So far this has been the only time Russia has won the contest. Russia came third in the semi-final, making it the winner with the worst semi-final result.

Ukraine were runners up for the second year running, with 3rd place going to Greece, 4th to Armenia seeing their best result so far and 5th to Norway. Host of the contest, Serbia, finished 6th.

2008 also saw, for the first time ever, Eurovision.tv streaming national finals live on ESCTV with broadcasters' permission.[6]

On 30 January 2008, Eurovision.tv revealed the theme of the Contest: "The Confluence of Sound",[7] which was inspired by Belgrade's location at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers.

Venue[edit]

Belgrade Arena, Belgrade - host venue of the 2008 contest.

Serbia gained the right to host the Contest after Marija Šerifović won the 2007 Contest in Helsinki, Finland. Since Serbia was the winner of the preceding contest, the 2008 contest was subsequently held there. The Belgrade Arena was chosen as the venue for the contest,[8] and is among the largest indoor arenas in Europe, with a total capacity of 25,000 seats. On 14 September 2007, the Mayor of Helsinki handed over the "Eurovision keys" to the Deputy of Belgrade. This ceremony is meant to be a tradition from the 2008 contest and onward, and the ring contains a key from every city that has ever hosted the competition.[9]

Due to problems and riots in Belgrade following the unilateral declaration of independence by Kosovo on 17 February 2008, the EBU held a phone conference to decide if the contest should be moved to a different country. Ukraine was considered an option since they came second in Eurovision Song Contest 2007. YLE were another option, as they hosted the previous year's competition in Helsinki, Finland.[10] Greece's Ellinikí Radiofonía Tileórasi (ERT) also offered the EBU to host the contest in Athens, Greece again.[11] It was later decided that the contest would stay in Belgrade, with the EBU giving support. RTS would gain a guarantee of safety and security from the government of Serbia for all visitors and participants of the contest.[12] The delegations of Albania, Croatia and Israel had special security.[13]

Visual design[edit]

Presenters Željko Joksimović and Jovana Janković during the first semi-final

RTS ran a competition that led to the creation of the 2008 Contest's branding, logo and the stage.[14] The theme of the Contest was based around the "confluence of sound". This was symbolic as Belgrade lies on the confluence of two European rivers, the Sava and Danube. The logo chosen, a treble clef, formed the graphical basis of the design created by Boris Miljković.[15]

The postcards in the first and second semi-final were based around the creation of the flag of the nation that was to perform next. Each post card had a short story related to each country and its people. During each postcard a short letter was displayed. All were in the national language of the artist's country, with the exception of the Serbian postcard, which consisted of "Welcome to Belgrade" and "Welcome to Serbia" in various languages and the Belgian postcard which was written in the constructed language the Belgian group performed in. The postcards were brought to an end by a stamp with this year's Eurovision logo.

According to RTS the stage represented native identities, history and modern themes, symbols and universally recognised messages. The confluence-themed stage also contained a large number of television and LCD display screens. The stage had settings for all new electronic possibilities including some movable parts of the stage.[16] It was designed by Chicago-based David Cushing.

The first semi-final was created around a city theme. The contest opened with a panorama of the city of Belgrade forming in the stage's background with two waves sliding down the stage to meet in the centre – at the confluence, the overall theme of the contest.

The second semi-final was based around the theme of water, which was enhanced by the look of the stage during the interval act where the water formed the main colours of the stage.

The final was based on the theme of the confluence. Construction of the stage lasted several days and was carried out by various teams from across Europe. Pyrotechnics were heavily used for the entries from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Finland, Germany, Turkey, the Czech Republic, Bulgaria and Switzerland. The stage received positive feedback from the media and fans describing it as "one of the best looking stages in the history of the competition".[citation needed]

Format[edit]

Aleksandar Josipović as part of the opening act of the 2nd Semi-Final

At a press conference in Helsinki in May 2007, Svante Stockselius, executive supervisor of the Contest for the EBU, announced that the competition's format may be expanded to two semi-finals in 2008 or 2009.[17] On 28 September 2007 it was announced that the EBU had approved the plan of hosting two semi-finals in 2008.[18]

Based on research conducted by the EBU's tele-voting partner Digame, the semi-finalists were sorted into the two heats through the drawing of lots, which was seeded to keep countries that have a significant history of voting for each other apart.[citation needed] Each broadcaster had to broadcast the semi-final in which they took part, with the broadcasting of the other semi-final being optional. The draw for the semi-final allocation occurred in the Belgrade City Hall on Monday 28 January 2008 at 13:00 CET and was conducted by the hosts of the contest Jovana Janković and Željko Joksimović.

First, two envelopes with 'Semi-Final 1' and 'Semi-Final 2' were drawn. Then, three countries from each pot were chosen randomly to take part in the first semi-final and the other three in the second one. The country left in Pot 5 took part in the first envelope that is drawn. While, the country left in Pot 6 in the second one.[19]

The automatic finalist countries chose whether they would broadcast both semi-finals or just one, but viewers from these countries could only vote in one. From the draw conducted, it was decided which of the five finalist countries would broadcast and have voting rights in either of the events. The semi-finals were webcast live through Eurovision.tv.[20] The top nine songs from the televoting qualified for the final, and a tenth was determined by the back-up juries. Twenty-five songs competed in the final.[21]

Semi-final allocation[edit]

On 24 January 2008, all 38 countries in the semi-finals were separated into the following pots based on voting history and geographical location:

Pot 1 Pot 2 Pot 3 Pot 4 Pot 5 Pot 6

Running order[edit]

The draw to decide the running order of the songs in each Semi-Final and the Final was conducted at the Heads of Delegation meeting on 17 March 2008.[22]

Participating countries[edit]

  Countries in the first semi-final
  Countries in the second semi-final
  Countries voting in the first semi-final
  Countries voting in the second semi-final

On 21 December 2007, the EBU confirmed that 43 countries would be present in Belgrade.[23] San Marino, as well as the newest EBU member, Azerbaijan, made its debut at the 2008 contest. Austria did not compete; its broadcaster, ORF, said "we've already seen in 2007 that it's not the quality of the song, but the country of origin that determines the decision."[4] Italy, which had not competed since 1997, and which would have been an automatic finalist, was again absent. Slovakia was absent due to budget problems.

The following countries competed in two semi-finals which were broadcast live on Tuesday 20 May and Thursday 22 May 2008. In addition to this, automatic finalists Germany and Spain exercised voting rights at the first semi-final. France, the United Kingdom and Serbia exercised voting rights at the second semi-final. Spain and France each broadcast only the semi-final in which they participated; Germany, Serbia and the UK screened both semi-finals (with Germany broadcasting on a delay).

Results[edit]

Semi-final 1[edit]

  • The first semi-final was held on 20 May 2008.
  • Germany and Spain voted in this semi-final.
  • Flax denotes the entry chosen by the jury to go to the final.
Draw Country Artist Song Language[24] Place Points
01  Montenegro Stefan Filipović "Zauvijek volim te" Montenegrin 14 23
02  Israel Boaz Ma'uda "The Fire in Your Eyes" Hebrew, English 5 104
03  Estonia Kreisiraadio "Leto svet" Serbian, German, Finnish 18 8
04  Moldova Geta Burlacu "A Century of Love" English 12 36
05  San Marino Miodio "Complice" Italian 19 5
06  Belgium Ishtar "O Julissi" Imaginary 17 16
07  Azerbaijan Elnur and Samir "Day After Day" English 6 96
08  Slovenia Rebeka Dremelj "Vrag naj vzame" Slovene 11 36
09  Norway Maria Haukaas Storeng "Hold On Be Strong" English 4 106
10  Poland Isis Gee "For Life" English 10 42
11  Ireland Dustin the Turkey "Irelande Douze Pointe" English, French [A] 15 22
12  Andorra Gisela "Casanova" English, Catalan 16 22
13  Bosnia and Herzegovina Laka "Pokušaj" Bosnian 9 72
14  Armenia Sirusho "Qélé, Qélé" (Քելե Քելե) English, Armenian 2 139
15  Netherlands Hind "Your Heart Belongs to Me" English 13 27
16  Finland Teräsbetoni "Missä miehet ratsastaa" Finnish 8 79
17  Romania Nico and Vlad "Pe-o margine de lume" Romanian, Italian 7 94
18  Russia Dima Bilan "Believe" English 3 135
19  Greece Kalomira "Secret Combination" English 1 156

Semi-final 2[edit]

  • The second semi-final was held on 22 May 2008
  • The United Kingdom, France and Serbia voted in this semi-final.
  • Flax denotes the entry chosen by the jury to go to the final.
Draw Country Artist Song Language[24] Place[25] Points
01  Iceland Euroband "This Is My Life" English 8 68
02  Sweden Charlotte Perrelli "Hero" English 12 54
03  Turkey Mor ve Ötesi "Deli" Turkish 7 85
04  Ukraine Ani Lorak "Shady Lady" English 1 152
05  Lithuania Jeronimas Milius "Nomads in the Night" English 16 30
06  Albania Olta Boka "Zemrën e lamë peng" Albanian 9 67
07   Switzerland Paolo Meneguzzi "Era stupendo" Italian 13 47
08  Czech Republic Tereza Kerndlová "Have Some Fun" English 18 9
09  Belarus Ruslan Alekhno "Hasta la Vista" English [B] 17 27
10  Latvia Pirates of the Sea "Wolves of the Sea" English 6 86
11  Croatia Kraljevi ulice and 75 cents "Romanca" Croatian 4 112
12  Bulgaria Deep Zone and Balthazar "DJ, Take Me Away" English 11 56
13  Denmark Simon Mathew "All Night Long" English 3 112
14  Georgia Diana Gurtskaya "Peace Will Come" English 5 107
15  Hungary Csézy "Candlelight" English, Hungarian 19 6
16  Malta Morena "Vodka" English [C] 14 38
17  Cyprus Evdokia Kadi "Femme Fatale" Greek 15 36
18  Macedonia Tamara, Vrčak & Adrian "Let Me Love You" English 10 64
19  Portugal Vânia Fernandes "Senhora do mar (Negras águas)" Portuguese 2 120

Final[edit]

The finalists were:

  • the big four France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom
  • the host country Serbia
  • the top nine countries from the first semi-final plus one wildcard from the juries (marked in flax)
  • the top nine countries from the second semi-final plus one wildcard from the juries (marked in flax)

The final was held on 24 May 2008 and was won by Russia.

Draw Country Artist Song Language[24] Place Points
01  Romania Nico and Vlad "Pe-o margine de lume" Romanian, Italian 20 45
02  United Kingdom Andy Abraham "Even If" English 25 [D] 14
03  Albania Olta Boka "Zemrën e lamë peng" Albanian 17 55
04  Germany No Angels "Disappear" English 23 [D] 14
05  Armenia Sirusho "Qélé, Qélé" (Քելե Քելե) English, Armenian 4 199
06  Bosnia and Herzegovina Laka "Pokušaj" Bosnian 10 110
07  Israel Boaz Ma'uda "The Fire in Your Eyes" Hebrew, English 9 124
08  Finland Teräsbetoni "Missä miehet ratsastaa" Finnish 22 35
09  Croatia Kraljevi Ulice and 75 cents "Romanca" Croatian 21 44
10  Poland Isis Gee "For Life" English 24 [D] 14
11  Iceland Euroband "This Is My Life" English 14 64
12  Turkey Mor ve Ötesi "Deli" Turkish 7 138
13  Portugal Vânia Fernandes "Senhora do mar (Negras águas)" Portuguese 13 69
14  Latvia Pirates of the Sea "Wolves of the Sea" English 12 83
15  Sweden Charlotte Perrelli "Hero" English 18 47
16  Denmark Simon Mathew "All Night Long" English 15 60
17  Georgia Diana Gurtskaya "Peace Will Come" English 11 83
18  Ukraine Ani Lorak "Shady Lady" English 2 230
19  France Sébastien Tellier "Divine" English, French 19 47
20  Azerbaijan Elnur and Samir "Day After Day" English 8 132
21  Greece Kalomira "Secret Combination" English 3 218
22  Spain Rodolfo Chikilicuatre "Baila el Chiki-chiki" Spanish, English 16 55
23  Serbia Jelena Tomašević feat. Bora Dugić "Oro" (Оро) Serbian 6 160
24  Russia Dima Bilan "Believe" English 1 272
25  Norway Maria Haukaas Storeng "Hold On Be Strong" English 5 182

Voting during the final[edit]

The voting order and spokespersons during the final were as follows:[26]

  1.  United Kingdom – Carrie Grant[27]
    (UK representative in the 1983 Contest as part of Sweet Dreams)
  2.  Macedonia – Ognen Janeski[28]
  3.  Ukraine – Marysya Horobets
  4.  Germany – Thomas Hermanns[29]
  5.  Estonia – Sahlene[30]
    (Estonian representative in the 2002 Contest)
  6.  Bosnia and Herzegovina – Melina Garibović[31]
  7.  Albania – Leon Menkshi
  8.  Belgium – Sandrine van Handenhoven[32]
  9.  San Marino – Roberto Moretti
  10.  Latvia – Kristīne Virsnīte[33]
  11.  Bulgaria – Valentina Voykova
  12.  Serbia – Dušica Spasić[34]
  13.  Israel – Noa Barak-Weshler
  14.  Cyprus – Hristina Marouhou[35]
  15.  Moldova – Vitalie Rotaru
  16.  Iceland – Brynja Þorgeirsdóttir
  17.  France – Cyril Hanouna[36]
  18.  Romania – Alina Sorescu
  19.  Portugal – Sabrina[37]
    (Portuguese representative in the 2007 Contest)
  20.  Norway – Stian Barsnes Simonsen
    (Co-Presenter of the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2004)
  21.  Hungary – Éva Novodomszky
  22.  Andorra – Alfred Llahí
  23.  Poland – Radek Brzózka[38]
  24.  Slovenia – Peter Poles[39]
  25.  Armenia – Hrachuhi Utmazyan
  26.  Czech Republic – Petra Šubrtová
  27.  Spain – Ainhoa Arbizu[40]
  28.  Netherlands – Esther Hart[41]
    (Dutch representative in the 2003 Contest)
  29.  Turkey – Meltem Ersan Yazgan[42]
  30.  Malta – Moira Delia[43]
    (Presenter of the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2014)
  31.  Ireland – Niamh Kavanagh[44]
    (Winner of the 1993 and representative in the 2010 Contest)
  32.   Switzerland – Cécile Bähler[45]
  33.  Azerbaijan – Leyla Aliyeva[46]
    (Later Co-Presenter of the 2012 Contest)
  34.  Greece – Alexis Kostalas[47]
  35.  Finland – Mikko Leppilampi[48]
    (Co-Presenter of the 2007 Contest)
  36.  Croatia – Barbara Kolar
  37.  Sweden – Björn Gustafsson[49]
  38.  Belarus – Olga Barabanschikova
  39.  Lithuania - Rolandas Vilkončius
  40.  Russia – Oxana Fedorova
  41.  Montenegro – Nina Radulović[34]
  42.  Georgia – Tika Patsatsia[50]
  43.  Denmark – Maria Montell

Scoreboards[edit]

Semi-final 1[edit]

Televoting Results
Total Score Montenegro Israel Estonia Moldova San Marino Belgium Azerbaijan Slovenia Norway Poland Ireland Andorra Bosnia and Herzegovina Armenia Netherlands Finland Romania Russia Greece Germany Spain
Contestants Montenegro 23 1 10 12
Israel 104 5 2 7 10 4 10 4 7 5 7 6 10 6 8 5 4 4
Estonia 8 1 7
Moldova 36 5 5 1 6 10 5 4
San Marino 5 2 3
Belgium 16 6 10
Azerbaijan 96 3 5 4 10 5 10 5 8 3 2 4 5 7 10 7 8
Slovenia 36 10 2 2 1 2 10 4 1 2 2
Norway 106 4 6 8 3 7 1 7 2 7 8 10 4 8 5 12 4 7 1 2
Poland 42 10 3 2 12 1 2 3 1 5 3
Ireland 22 1 3 7 4 1 2 1 2 1
Andorra 22 4 3 1 1 1 12
Bosnia and Herzegovina 72 12 1 6 4 12 12 3 7 8 7
Armenia 139 6 10 2 5 8 12 5 3 12 2 3 6 12 4 5 12 12 10 10
Netherlands 27 1 3 8 2 7 3 3
Finland 79 2 12 8 4 2 3 6 5 6 12 1 4 6 2 6
Romania 94 8 12 6 6 6 6 5 3 7 6 5 3 1 1 8 3 8
Russia 135 8 12 10 7 3 8 7 8 8 4 4 7 12 2 6 8 10 6 5
Greece 156 7 7 5 4 12 10 12 8 4 6 10 5 8 10 8 3 12 6 12 7

12 points[edit]

Below is a summary of all 12 points in the first semi-final:

N. Contestant Voting nation
5 Armenia Belgium, Greece, Netherlands, Poland, Russia
4 Greece Azerbaijan, Germany, Romania, San Marino
3 Bosnia and Herzegovina Montenegro, Norway, Slovenia
2
Russia Armenia, Israel
Finland Andorra, Estonia
1
Andorra Spain
Montenegro Bosnia and Herzegovina
Norway Finland
Poland Ireland
Romania Moldova

Semi-final 2[edit]

Televoting Results
Total Score Iceland Sweden Turkey Ukraine Lithuania Albania Switzerland Czech Republic Belarus Latvia Croatia Bulgaria Denmark Georgia Hungary Malta Cyprus Macedonia Portugal France Serbia United Kingdom
Contestants Iceland 68 10 3 1 2 5 4 1 2 10 7 5 1 5 8 4
Sweden 54 8 2 3 1 3 12 1 7 4 3 1 3 6
Turkey 85 6 5 12 7 3 7 8 5 4 8 10 10
Ukraine 152 6 3 12 7 1 12 12 6 7 12 7 12 8 8 10 6 12 3 8
Lithuania 30 12 10 8
Albania 67 1 7 8 3 10 1 5 10 12 2 5 3
Switzerland 47 10 5 5 12 7 1 7
Czech Republic 9 1 2 1 5
Belarus 27 10 6 5 4 2
Latvia 86 7 8 2 12 5 6 6 1 6 6 6 4 10 2 5
Croatia 112 4 4 5 7 5 3 6 3 7 7 6 3 8 10 6 10 6 2 10
Bulgaria 56 5 6 6 1 2 2 1 1 3 2 8 7 1 6 5
Denmark 112 12 12 4 8 4 5 10 4 8 3 2 3 12 4 5 3 8 4 1
Georgia 107 2 1 10 12 10 8 10 10 4 2 10 12 2 7 7
Hungary 6 1 1 4
Malta 38 3 8 6 4 4 3 4 4 2
Cyprus 36 4 2 2 8 2 5 1 12
Macedonia 64 2 7 7 8 4 12 10 2 12
Portugal 120 10 5 8 4 6 12 7 8 3 8 5 7 6 3 3 12 6 7

12 points[edit]

Below is a summary of all 12 points in the second semi-final:

N. Contestant Voting nation
6 Ukraine Belarus, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Georgia, Portugal, Turkey
3 Denmark Hungary, Iceland, Sweden
2
Georgia Cyprus, Ukraine
Macedonia Croatia, Serbia
Portugal France, Switzerland
1
Albania Macedonia
Cyprus United Kingdom
Latvia Lithuania
Lithuania Latvia
Sweden Denmark
Switzerland Malta
Turkey Albania

Final[edit]

Televoting Results
Total Score United Kingdom Macedonia Ukraine Germany Estonia Bosnia and Herzegovina Albania Belgium San Marino Latvia Bulgaria Serbia Israel Cyprus Moldova Iceland France Romania Portugal Norway Hungary Andorra Poland Slovenia Armenia Czech Republic Spain Netherlands Turkey Malta Ireland Switzerland Azerbaijan Greece Finland Croatia Sweden Belarus Lithuania Russia Montenegro Georgia Denmark
Contestants Romania 45 1 6 3 12 4 4 12 3
United Kingdom 14 6 8
Albania 55 12 1 3 4 1 8 1 10 8 7
Germany 14 12 2
Armenia 199 1 7 6 6 2 12 8 8 5 8 10 2 1 12 4 12 5 12 10 12 10 12 2 7 12 1 12
Bosnia and Herzegovina 110 5 5 12 2 10 10 1 7 6 2 7 3 6 12 10 10 2
Israel 124 5 3 5 4 5 10 2 7 2 6 6 6 3 3 5 3 6 3 1 7 1 8 2 4 3 6 5 3
Finland 35 10 1 7 4 4 2 7
Croatia 44 2 1 2 10 5 3 1 3 8 2 3 1 2 1
Poland 14 4 10
Iceland 64 6 2 4 7 8 4 6 7 8 12
Turkey 138 8 7 4 10 8 10 10 4 5 10 8 2 5 10 6 12 4 3 2 6 4
Portugal 69 3 4 6 5 1 6 8 10 8 5 10 3
Latvia 83 10 7 4 8 2 3 2 7 12 4 3 10 3 2 6
Sweden 47 2 3 2 1 1 3 7 1 1 12 5 1 8
Denmark 60 3 3 2 7 12 5 12 2 2 4 1 5 2
Georgia 83 8 5 8 2 7 3 1 10 4 4 5 4 4 6 5 7
Ukraine 230 5 4 4 3 8 1 10 7 6 10 6 7 5 3 12 6 6 10 2 5 8 7 8 10 6 10 6 3 7 10 6 8 4 10 7
France 47 2 6 3 8 1 3 1 4 2 4 8 5
Azerbaijan 132 8 10 1 7 4 3 3 8 2 12 7 7 1 10 2 12 3 8 7 10 7
Greece 218 12 3 2 12 1 7 12 8 12 10 8 5 12 4 3 12 8 8 3 6 8 5 3 6 7 2 4 5 6 5 1 2 3 6 4 3
Spain 55 1 1 4 4 5 10 12 1 3 4 8 1 1
Serbia 160 10 8 12 5 4 5 1 2 7 7 6 7 4 12 3 6 8 1 12 2 5 10 6 1 4 12
Russia 272 6 12 7 12 4 6 3 12 6 10 12 8 10 1 10 6 5 10 5 6 7 12 7 5 1 5 8 5 8 7 10 6 12 12 8 8
Norway 182 7 6 8 2 7 2 7 6 1 4 7 5 10 5 2 4 1 8 7 6 4 2 3 7 5 2 12 1 12 5 4 5 5 10
Vertically, the table is ordered by appearance in the final. Horizontally, the table is ordered by voting order.

12 points[edit]

Below is a summary of all 12 points in the final:

N. Contestant Voting nation
8 Armenia Belgium, Czech Republic, France, Georgia, Greece, Netherlands, Poland, Russia
7 Russia Armenia, Belarus, Estonia, Israel, Latvia, Lithuania, Ukraine
6 Greece Albania, Cyprus, Germany, Romania, San Marino, United Kingdom
4 Serbia Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Slovenia, Switzerland
2 Azerbaijan Hungary, Turkey
Bosnia and Herzegovina Croatia, Serbia
Denmark Iceland, Norway
Norway Finland, Sweden
Romania Moldova, Spain
1 Albania Macedonia
Germany Bulgaria
Iceland Denmark
Latvia Ireland
Spain Andorra
Sweden Malta
Turkey Azerbaijan
Ukraine Portugal

Other Awards[edit]

Marcel Bezençon Awards[edit]

The Marcel Bezençon Awards were first handed out during the Eurovision Song Contest 2002 in Tallinn, Estonia honoring the best competing songs in the final. Founded by Christer Björkman (Sweden's representative in the 1992 Eurovision Song Contest and current Head of Delegation for Sweden) and Richard Herrey (member of the Herreys, Eurovision Song Contest 1984 winner from Sweden), the awards are named after the creator of the annual competition, Marcel Bezençon.[51] For the only time, the awards were divided into 4 categories; Press Award; Poplight Fan Award; Artistic Award; and Composer Award.[52]

Category Country Song Performer(s) Composer(s) Final result Points
Artists Award
(Voted by previous winners) 		 Ukraine "Shady Lady" Ani Lorak Philipp Kirkorov, Dimitris Kontopoulos
Karen Kavaleryan 		2nd 230
Composer Award  Romania "Pe-o margine de lume" Nico and Vlad Andrei Tudor
Andreea Andrei, Adina Şuteu 		20th 45
Poplight Fan Award
(voted by fans on the Swedish website poplight.se)[53] 		 Armenia "Qélé, Qélé" Sirusho H.A. Der-Hovagimian
Sirusho 		4th 199
Press Award  Portugal "Senhora do mar (Negras águas)" Vânia Fernandes Andrej Babić
Carlos Coelho 		13th 69

OGAE[edit]

Further information: OGAE

Organisation Générale des Amateurs de l'Eurovision (more commonly known as OGAE) is an international organisation that was founded in 1984 in Savonlinna, Finland by Jari-Pekka Koikkalainen.[54] The organisation consists of a network of 40 Eurovision Song Contest fan clubs across Europe and beyond, and is a non-governmental, non-political, and non-profitable company.[55] In what has become an annual tradition for the OGAE fan clubs, a voting poll was opened allowing members from different clubs around the world to vote for their favourite songs of the 2008 contest. Below is the top five overall results, after all the votes had been cast.[56]

Country Song Performer(s) Composer(s) OGAE result
 Sweden "Hero" Charlotte Perrelli Bobby Ljunggren, Fredrik Kempe 308
  Switzerland "Era stupendo" Paolo Meneguzzi Paolo Meneguzzi, Mattias Brånn, Vincenzo Incenzo 216
 Serbia "Oro" Jelena Tomašević feat. Bora Dugić Željko Joksimović, Dejan Ivanović 178
 Iceland "This Is My Life" Eurobandið Örlygur Smári, Paul Oscar, Peter Fenner 145
 Norway "Hold On Be Strong" Maria Haukaas Storeng Mira Craig

Barbara Dex Award[edit]

Further information: Barbara Dex Award

The Barbara Dex Award has been annually awarded by the fan website House of Eurovision since 1997, and is a humorous award given to the worst dressed artist each year in the contest. It is named after the Belgian artist, Barbara Dex, who came last in the 1993 contest, in which she wore her own self designed dress.

Country Song Performer(s) Composer(s)
 Andorra "Casanova" Gisela Jordi Cubino

Broadcasting[edit]

Semi-finals broadcasts[edit]

As stated above, a country only has to broadcast the final and the semi-final when it is one of the competitors or voters. The United Kingdom,[57] San Marino, Greece, Croatia,[58] Ireland, Germany,[59] the Netherlands,[60] Norway,[61] Malta,[62] Serbia,[63] Finland,[64] Bosnia and Herzegovina,[65] Denmark,[66] Portugal,[67] Cyprus,[68] Israel,[69] Estonia,[30] Turkey,[70] Latvia,[71] Slovenia,[72] Russia,[73] Ukraine,[74] Lithuania, the Czech Republic,[75] Andorra,[76] Albania,[77] Bulgaria, Iceland,[78] Sweden,[79] Romania[80] and Australia confirmed they would broadcast both semi-finals (some in delay and some live).

International broadcasts[edit]

 Australia
Although Australia was not eligible to enter, the contest was broadcast on SBS. The first semi-final was broadcast on Friday 23 May at 19:30 local time, with the second semi-final on Saturday 24 May 2008 at 19:30 local time, and the Final on Sunday 25 May 2008 at 19:30 local time,[81] amongst a weekend of Eurovision-themed programming.[82] SBS local host Julia Zemiro provided introductory and concluding segments with SBS otherwise broadcasting the BBC's coverage and commentary.[83] In recent years the contest has been one of SBS's highest-rating programmes in terms of viewer numbers.[84] The final rated well for SBS with 427,000 viewers tuning in for the final with 421,000 for the second semi-final and 272,000 for the first semi-final.[85]
 Austria
In Austria, ORF broadcast the contest live and received extremely high TV ratings, despite its withdrawal. However, it did not broadcast the semifinals on 20 and 22 May, though Austrians were able to watch these on German television via ARD.[86]
 Italy
No Italian broadcaster proper showed the contest, but San Marinese SMRTV, which broadcast live the full event on both TV and radio, is available in some parts of Italy: Romagna (and a small part of Emilia, including Bologna), northern Marche, and southern Veneto, including Venice.[87]
 Worldwide
A live broadcast of the Eurovision Song Contest was available worldwide via satellite through European streams such as TVRi, ERT World, ARMTV, TVE Internacional, TRT International, TVP Polonia, RTP Internacional, RTS Sat and SVT Europa. The official Eurovision Song Contest website also provided a live stream without commentary via the peer to peer medium Octoshape.

High-definition broadcasts[edit]

RTS broadcast the event in 1080i high-definition (HD) and 5.1 Surround Sound. The new high-definition television system was in place at the Belgrade Arena by April 2008.[88] This is the second year that the event was broadcast live in HD. BBC HD broadcast the contest in High Definition in the United Kingdom. Swedish broadcaster SVT broadcast both the semi-final and the final on their HD-channel SVT HD. Lithuanian broadcaster LRT broadcast both the semi-final and the final in 1080i high-definition (HD) on their channel LTV. The same occurred on Swiss HD channel HD suisse; on this channel viewers were able to choose the language of the commentary while viewing a semi-final or final of the Eurovision Song Contest. However, all other countries broadcast the show only in standard definition, and the event will only be available to buy on a standard-definition DVD; it will not be released on HD-DVD or Blu-ray Disc.

Returning artists[edit]

Artist Country Previous year(s)
Roberto Meloni (part of Pirates of the Sea)  Latvia 2007 (part of Bonaparti.lv)
Dima Bilan  Russia 2006 (Runner-up)
Charlotte Perrelli  Sweden 1999 (winner, as Charlotte Nilsson)

Commentators[edit]

Most countries sent commentators to Belgrade or commentated from their own country, in order to add insight to the participants and, if necessary, provide voting information.

Participating countries

The commentators of the 43 participating countries are as follows:

Country SF1 / SF2 / Final Commentator(s)
 Albania All Leon Menkshi (TVSH)
 Andorra All Meri Picart (RTVA)
Josep Lluís Trabal (RTVA)
 Armenia All Felix Khacatryan
Hrachuhi Utmazyan
 Azerbaijan All Isa Melikov (İctimai Televiziya və Radio Yayımları Şirkəti)
Hüsniyyə Məhərrəmova (İctimai Televiziya və Radio Yayımları Şirkəti)
 Belarus All Denis Kurian (Belarus 1)
Alexander Tikhanovich (Belarus 1)
 Belgium[89][90] All Jean-Pierre Hautier (French, La Une)
Jean-Louis Lahaye (French, La Une)
Patrick Duhamel (French, La Première)
Corinne Boulangier (French, La Première)
Bart Peeters (Dutch, één)
André Vermeulen (Dutch, één)
Michel Follet (Dutch, Radio 2)
Sven Pichal (Dutch, Radio 2)
 Bosnia and Herzegovina[91] All Dejan Kukrić (BHT1)
 Bulgaria All Elena Rosberg
Georgi Kushvaliev
 Croatia[92] All Duško Čurlić
 Cyprus[93] All Melina Karageorgiou (RIK 1)
 Czech Republic[94] All Kateřina Kristelová (ČT1)
 Denmark[95] All Nikolaj Molbech (DR1)
 Estonia[30] All Marko Reikop
 Finland[96] All Jaana Pelkonen (Finnish, YLE TV2)
Mikko Peltola (Finnish, YLE TV2)
Asko Murtomäki (Finnish, YLE TV2)
Sanna Kojo (Finnish, YLE Radio Suomi)
Jorma Hietamäki (Finnish, YLE Radio Suomi)
Thomas Lundin (Swedish, YLE FST5)
 France SF2 Peggy Olmi (France 4)
Yann Renoard (France 4)
Final Jean-Paul Gaultier (France 3)
Julien Lepers (France 3)
François Kevorkian (France Bleu)
 Georgia All Bibi Kvachadze
 Germany[97] All Peter Urban (Das Erste)[98]
Tim Frühling (Hessischer Rundfunk)[99]
Thomas Mohr (NDR 2)[100]
 Greece[101] All Maggira Sisters (NET)
 Hungary[102] SF2 & Final Gábor Gundel-Takács (M1)
 Iceland[103] All Sigmar Guðmundsson (Sjónvarpið)
 Ireland[104][105] All Marty Whelan (RTÉ One)[106][107]
All Larry Gogan (RTÉ Radio 1)[108]
 Israel All No commentator
 Latvia All Kārlis Streips
 Lithuania All Darius Užkuraitis
 Macedonia All Milanka Rašik
 Malta[109] All Eileen Montesin
 Moldova All Lucia Danu
Vitalie Rotaru
 Montenegro All Dražen Bauković (TVCG2)
Tamara Ivanković (TVCG2)
 Netherlands[110] All Cornald Maas (Nederland 1)
 Norway[111] All Hanne Hoftun (NRK1)
Per Sundnes (NRK1)
 Poland[112] All Artur Orzech (TVP1)
 Portugal[113] All Isabel Angelino (RTP1)
 Romania All Andreea Demirgian (TVR1)
Leonard Miron (TVR1)
 Russia SF1 & Final Dmitry Guberniev(Rossiya 1)
Olga Shelest (Rossiya 1)
 San Marino All Gigi Restivo (SMRTV)
Lia Fiorio (SMRTV)
 Serbia[114] All Dragan Ilić (RTS1)
Mladen Popović (RTS1)
 Slovenia[115] All Andrej Hofer
 Spain[116] SF1 & Final José Luis Uribarri (La 1)
 Sweden[117][118] Final Carl Bildt (guest) (SVT1)
All Kristian Luuk and (SVT1)
Josef Sterzenbach (SVT1)
Carolina Norén (SR P3)[119]
  Switzerland[45][120] German Patrick Hässig (First Semi-Final) and Sven Epiney (Second Semi-Final and Final) (SF zwei)
French Jean-Marc Richard & Nicolas Tanner (TSR 1)
Italian Sandy Altermatt (RSI La 2)
 Turkey[121] All Bülend Özveren (TRT 1)
 Ukraine All Timur Miroshnychenko (First National TV Channel)
 United Kingdom[122][123] Semi-Finals Paddy O'Connell (BBC Three)
Caroline Flack (BBC Three)
Final Terry Wogan (BBC One)
Ken Bruce (BBC Radio 2)
Non-participating countries

The commentators of the non-participating countries are:

Country SF1/SF2/Final Commentator(s)
Australia Australia[84] All Julia Zemiro (SBS)
 Austria[124] Final Andi Knoll (ORF2)

Official album[edit]

Eurovision Song Contest: Belgrade 2008
ESC 2008 album cover.jpeg
Compilation album by Eurovision Song Contest
Released 12 May 2008
Genre Pop
Length
  • 62:49 (CD 1)
  • 66:10 (CD 2)
Label EMI, CMC
Eurovision Song Contest chronology
Eurovision Song Contest: Helsinki 2007
(2007) 		Eurovision Song Contest: Belgrade 2008
(2008) 		Eurovision Song Contest: Moscow 2009
(2009)

Eurovision Song Contest: Belgrade 2008 was the official compilation album of the 2008 Contest, put together by the European Broadcasting Union and released by EMI Records and CMC International on 12 May 2008.The album featured all 43 songs that entered in the 2008 contest, including the semi-finalists that failed to qualify into the grand final.[125]

CD 1
No.TitleArtistLength
1."Casanova" (Andorra)Gisela2:54
2."Zemrën e lamë peng" (Albania)Olta Boka2:59
3."Qélé, Qélé" (Armenia)Sirusho3:01
4."Day After Day" (Azerbaijan)Elnur and Samir3:08
5."Pokušaj" (Bosnia and Herzegovina)Laka3:04
6."O Julissi" (Belgium)Ishtar2:34
7."DJ, Take Me Away" (Bulgaria)Deep Zone and Balthazar3:04
8."Hasta la Vista" (Belarus)Ruslan Alekhno3:01
9."Era stupendo" (Switzerland)Paolo Meneguzzi3:07
10."Femme Fatale" (Cyprus)Evdokia Kadi3:00
11."Have Some Fun" (Czech Republic)Tereza Kerndlová2:58
12."Disappear" (Germany)No Angels3:03
13."All Night Long" (Denmark)Simon Mathew2:56
14."Leto svet" (Estonia)Kreisiraadio2:54
15."Baila el Chiki-chiki" (Spain)Rodolfo Chikilicuatre2:55
16."Missä miehet ratsastaa" (Finland)Teräsbetoni3:02
17."Divine" (France)Sébastien Tellier2:56
18."Even If" (United Kingdom)Andy Abraham3:05
19."Peace Will Come" (Georgia)Diana Gurtskaya3:04
20."Secret Combination" (Greece)Kalomira3:03
21."Romanca" (Croatia)Kraljevi ulice and 75 cents3:01
Total length:62:49
CD 2
No.TitleArtistLength
1."Candlelight" (Hungary)Csézy2:56
2."Irelande Douze Pointe" (Ireland)Dustin the Turkey2:57
3."The Fire in Your Eyes" (Israel)Boaz Ma'uda3:03
4."This Is My Life" (Iceland)Euroband3:03
5."Nomads in the Night" (Lithuania)Jeronimas Milius2:45
6."Wolves of the Sea" (Latvia)Pirates of the Sea3:04
7."A Century of Love" (Moldova)Geta Burlacu3:03
8."Zauvijek volim te" (Montenegro)Stefan Filipović3:01
9."Let Me Love You" (Macedonia)Tamara Todevska, Vrčak & Adrian2:49
10."Vodka" (Malta)Morena3:03
11."Your Heart Belongs to Me" (Netherlands)Hind3:03
12."Hold On Be Strong" (Norway)Maria Haukaas Storeng3:06
13."For Life" (Poland)Isis Gee3:03
14."Senhora do mar (Negras águas)" (Portugal)Vânia Fernandes3:04
15."Pe-o margine de lume" (Romania)Nico and Vlad3:03
16."Oro" (Serbia)Jelena Tomašević feat. Bora Dugić3:04
17."Believe" (Russia)Dima Bilan3:05
18."Hero" (Sweden)Charlotte Perrelli2:58
19."Vrag naj vzame" (Slovenia)Rebeka Dremelj2:54
20."Complice" (San Marino)Miodio3:03
21."Deli" (Turkey)Mor ve Ötesi3:05
22."Shady Lady" (Ukraine)Ani Lorak2:58
Total length:66:10

Charts[edit]

Chart (2008) Peak
position
German Compilation Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[126] 5

Notes[edit]

  • A ^ "Irelande Douze Pointe" is mostly in English, but includes words and phrases in French, German, Italian and Spanish.
  • B ^ "Hasta la Vista" is in English, but contains three words in Spanish.
  • C ^ Vodka" is in English, but also includes 2 Russian words excluding 'vodka': На здоровье/Na zdorovye (Cheers).
  • D ^ Poland, the United Kingdom and Germany all received a total of 14 points. Whilst the rules of the contest describe mechanisms to break a tie should it be for first place, it is ambiguous as to whether the procedure applies to other rankings. Should the rules apply, Germany having received more twelve points than the others would be ranked 23rd, Poland having scored more ten points than the UK would be ranked 24th, leaving the UK in 25th and last place. A table located at the contest's official website, Eurovision.tv, shows the ties as broken, however in all previous years the same source has shown unbroken ties. Since 2009 the rules have stated that all ties, regardless of position, are now broken.[127]

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External links[edit]

Coordinates: 44°49′14″N 20°27′44″E / 44.82056°N 20.46222°E / 44.82056; 20.46222

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