The United Kingdom are the latest country to confirm their participation in Eurovision 2024. BBC have also confirmed that both semi-finals and the final will again be broadcast on BBC One and iPlayer.
Decision made?
The announcement also hinted that the BBC had already selected their entry for next year’s contest in Malmö, saying that the search “has taken place over the summer”. Executive producer Lee Smithurst lead the search, alongside Will Wilkin of BBC Music. Further information, including the name of the artist and their song, will be revealed in due course.
Record viewing figures
Previously, the BBC announced that a record amount of people watched Eurovision on BBC One and BBC iPlayer, and coverage across all BBC platforms reached an audience of over 30 million people on a 3-minute or higher reach.
The contest was particularly popular amongst the younger 16-34 demographic, with 2 million people tuning in to the Grand Final from that range.
The viewership of the semi finals, which were hosted on BBC One for the first time, were also the highest on current records, which began in 2002.
United Kingdom’s Eurovision Journey
The UK is one of the most successful countries at the Eurovision Song Contest. Debuting at the second edition ever of the Contest in 1957, the United Kingdom won the competition on five separate occasions. The most recent win for the UK was in 1997 with Katrina and the Waves, singing “Love Shine A Light”. The UK also holds the record for the number of second place finishes – currently at 16.
In 2023, Mae Muller represented the UK on home soil in Liverpool with her song “I Wrote A Song”. At the close of voting, the UK finished 25th in a field of 26, earning a total of 24 points. Of these, 15 points came from the jury, whilst the remaining 9 came from the televote.
Who would you like to see represent the UK in Malmö? As always, let us know what you think by commenting below. Also, be sure to follow ‘That Eurovision Site’ on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Threads and Bluesky for all the latest Eurovision news.
News Source: BBC
Photo Credit: Sarah Louise Bennett / EBU
