Hey all! My name is Jonathan and I am TES’ newest team member. I was born and raised in Hong Kong, but have been in the UK since 2010 and am now living my best life in South-East London. I work in tourism, producing audio tours, and also play and produce music with friends. Outside of Eurovision I’m either playing bass, playing or watching football, messing about on trains across Europe, trying to get better at speaking languages, and helping make sure my cat is well looked after.
Name: Jonathan
Age: 27
Pronouns: He/Him
Socials:
Instagram: @jonathan.casewell
Twitter: a_eurocasewell
How did I get into the Eurovision Song Contest?:
Although I was aware of Eurovision growing up, as my sisters would return from university in the UK with magical stories about a weird musical competition, I didn’t start watching it until 2010. I was with my cousins, in a safe family setting, and it set something off in my brain. I watched on and off for the next few years, then when I was an adult started having get-togethers for it and it became a bit more of a staple in my life.
At what point did I consider myself a Eurofan?:
Probably not until 2020. That’s when I was meant to go to my first contest. I had been getting pretty overboard with it during 2019, when it started marrying with some of my more academic interests, but when the pandemic hit and Eurovision Again started, I found the fandom, felt this sense of community and fun, and began to engage with Eurovision as thing to a fan of all year round. I wrote an essay for my masters on it, started writing and filming political analysis videos the year after, and here I am!
How has my life changed since becoming a Eurofan?:
It’s become arguably a bit more fun; thankfully it hasn’t cost me too much as 2020 was cancelled, I couldn’t make it to 2021 or 2022, and my family lives near Liverpool so 2023 was a pretty easy affair for me. It’s been a good outlet for me, and introduced me to literally a whole world of awesome artists that I get to enjoy, and new scenes to explore.
What are my favourite Eurovision songs and countries?:
I don’t think there’s a single country that I don’t like at least a couple of songs from, but I generally like it when countries take risks. I really appreciate Lithuania and Croatia’s approach to the competition and how their public really tries to give a good account of their local music industry. As I lived there I always root for Switzerland, despite the fact that I on the whole found their output a bit too middle of the road for me. I’m always fascinated by how Moldova manages to have such a great approach to the competition, despite their size, and I can’t say no to a big Albanian ballad. My list of favourite songs changes with alarming regularity, but here are some songs I think are great and fun:
- ๐ธ๐ช Sweden (2015) – Mรฅns Zelmerlรถw with “Heroes”
- ๐ฑ๐น Lithuania (2010) – InCulto with “Eastern European Funk”
- ๐ง๐ช Belgium (1977) – Dream Express with “A Million in 1 2 3”
- ๐ง๐ฌ Bulgaria (2010) – Miro with “Angel Ti Si”
- ๐ฒ๐จ Monaco (1967) – Minouche Barelli with “Boum Badaboum”
What are my favourite national final songs?:
My commitment to national finals has traditionally been hampered by the fact that me and my wife generally don’t listen to any Eurovision songs until one day in April, where we get drunk and listen to them all in one go to make our rankings. Nevertheless, having watched a couple and heard a few on ESC Radio in the last couple of years, a few have really stuck out:
- ๐ซ๐ท Pauline Chagne with โNuit Paulineโ (Cโest Vous Qui Dรฉcidez 2022 โ France)
- ๐ฎ๐น La Rappresentante di Lista with “Ciao Ciao” (Festival di San Remo 2022 – Italy)
- ๐ฑ๐ป Raum with “Fake Love” (Supernova 2023 – Latvia)
- ๐ฉ๐ฐ Fuld Effekt with “Rave Med De Hรฅrde Drenge” (Dansk Melodi Grand Prix 2022 – Denmark)
- ๐ญ๐ท Harmonija disonance with “Nevera (Lei, Lei)” (Dora 2023 – Croatia)
What am I looking forward to in the new national final season?:
What else but discovering new artists? I generally find the contest part of the Eurovision Song Contest to be my least favourite, but national finals are a great way to see what’s happening in different nations across the continent, and my On Repeat and Discover Weekly both get a bit more interesting in the winter and spring.
What do you think of Jonathanโs favourites? Want to learn more about our team? Let us know in the comments below or on social media. Donโt forget to follow โTHAT Eurovision Siteโ over at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, BlueSky and Threads as we gear up for the next Eurovision!
News Source: That Eurovision Site
Photo Credit: Jonathan C
