Joel Creasey and Myf Warhurst host Australia’s decision on who should win 2020 Eurovision
SBS’s Big Night In is the Eurovision countdown you have when you can’t have the famous global music contest. This is how it will work, who the serious contenders are and how fans can vote.
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The Eurovision: Big Night In telecast on Saturday will be remarkable for achieving a feat of technical wizardry not seen on Australian television.
Hosts Joel Creasey and Myf Warhurst will miraculously be height adjusted.
The considerable discrepancy of centimetres between tall comedian Creasey and short music guru Warhurst has always posed a headache for producers but thanks to social distancing requirements and some clever camera trickery, the pair won’t be so far apart during the telecast as they countdown viewers’ votes for the 41 entries in the 2020 competition.
“I am so super tech savvy … but apparently we’re using some sort of augmented reality to keep me and Myf together,” Creasey reveals.
“We will be in the same studio but filmed within the confines of the COVID-19 distancing requirement.
“Usually I stand with my hip just behind her and we’re just touching because that is the only way the cameras can shoot us together. We are the worst duo in terms of height.”
The 2020 Eurovision Song Contest was due to be held in Rotterdam in The Netherlands this weekend but was cancelled in early April as countries closed their borders and international travel was banned.
The European Broadcasting Union, which has run the annual contest for the past six decades, has announced that in place of the Grand Final they will stage the Eurovision: Europe Shine A Light concert, which SBS will also broadcast on May 17.
But SBS decided to also unite disappointed Eurovision fans in Australia by giving them an opportunity to vote on the entries – which were all finalised before the pandemic shut down the contest – and will count them down during a three-hour show hosted by Creasey and Warhurst on May 16.
It will include our representative, avant garde pop sensation Montaigne, re-creating the performance of her song Don’t Break Me she had planned for the Rotterdam stage.
“I can’t wait to see what Montaigne has planned. Australia set the bar high with Kate Miller-Heidke last year,” Creasey said.
“I am pretty sure Kate and Montaigne are quite close, that Kate has been a bit of a mentor, so it will be something special.”
Warhurst has been pouring over the 2020 songs, which have attracted thousands of votes from Eurovision diehards in Australia, who usually have to get up at 5am to watch the action live from Europe.
Like many of us who would have loved the opportunity to vote Australia to No. 1 in the mock 2020 contest, she admits to a little frustration SBS decided to follow the strict Eurovision rules and not allow Australian fans to vote for Montaigne for Big Night In.
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“I’ve been going through all the songs and I gotta say Montaigne’s song is just killer and I’m sad for her she doesn’t get to perform it in Rotterdam,” she says.
“I think the songs are very ballad heavy this year whereas Don’t Break Me was interesting and clever in its pop sensibility.
“But she will get her chance in 2021 and I’m sure the new song she writes will be just as great because she’s so damn talented.”
The Melbourne based hosts will head to Sydney on a tour bus during the week to film the Big Night In special.
“Just me and Joel socially distanced on a big bus,” Warhurst says, laughing.
“He’ll bring the chips and I’ll bring the wine. We honestly didn’t think anything like this show could happen so there’s so much joy for us and the fans, and it’s a celebration for Montaigne because she deserves it.”
A special week of Eurovision programming kicks off on May 11 with the Road To Rotterdam on Viceland. From Monday to Friday, SBS will broadcast the Eurovision grand finals from 2015 to last year, which all featured Australian contestants – Guy Sebastian, Dami Im, Isaiah, Jessica Mauboy and Kate Miller-Heidke.
Eurovision: Big Night In kicks off on Saturday May 16 from 7.30pm and then Eurovision: Europe Shine A Light will air on May 17 at 8.30pm.
Here’s some of the entries in contention to check out before Big Night In on Saturday.
Lithuania: The Roop – On Fire
This will be a TikTok sensation by the end of the broadcast. And revive the magnifying glass as a creative tool.
The minimalist electro pop song is big on harmonies and has been a favourite among polls and tipsters to win the contest before it was cancelled thanks to coronavirus.
The video is wonderfully wacky with the kind of dance moves which should launch a million Tik Tok challenges.
You would imagine The Roop trio and Lithuanian delegation are particularly bummed about the lack of an official contest this year as a win would have been a first for the Baltic nation.
Iceland: Dadi and Gagnamagnid, Think About Things
Looking like the Icelandic version of Arcade Fire, this group won their country’s selection show with a quirky abut sweet pop song about a father’s unconditional love for their child.
But they went viral courtesy of the Devo-esque fake keyboards which double as saxophones, restrained yet quirky foot-tapping and hand gesture choreography and the Bold and the Beautiful-worthy over-emoting of frontman Dadi, who is 208cm tall.
Russell Crowe revealed himself to be a Eurovision fan, tweeting “Song” when they won the Iceland selection in February.
They have also attracted some intriguing conspiracy theories including one suggesting Netflix may have been behind the song going viral a part of its promotion for the upcoming Eurovision film starring superfan Will Ferrell starring as an Icelandic contestant.
Bulgaria: Victoria, Tears Getting Sober
The Eastern European nation took a year off last year and were definitely set for a berth in the grand final in Rotterdam with this comeback.
A beautiful slice of whimsical pop addressing mental health is exactly the kind of well-crafted pop song which would have found favour with the juries and fans.
Maybe it could score a second life in Australia because it would fit nicely on a Triple J playlist with more than two million views already for the official video.
Russia: Little Big, Uno
Oh, those Russians. They also clearly got the Tik Tok memo for the 2020 Eurovision Song Contest. Bring kitsch choreography or go home.
Looking like they stepped out of a 70s variety show time capsule, the big group of dancers, hip swivellers and knee knockers would have delivered the party anthem of the year in Rotterdam.
The fake moustaches are also a nice touch of strange here. Russia wouldn’t have won the crystal trophy this year but this performance would have been unforgettable.
Azerbaijan: Efendi, Cleopatra.
Efendi was bringing the sexy to Rotterdam. Her electro pop tribute to that Egyptian feminist icon had absolutely everything you could want in a Eurovision banger.
It was also winning fans among diehard fans for its queer-friendly opening verse declaring “Cleopatra was a queen like me, Just like me, Yeah just like me, Straight or gay or in between”.
Originally published as Joel Creasey and Myf Warhurst host Australia’s decision on who should win 2020 Eurovision