Alesha Dixon, singer and co-host of Eurovision 2023, shares her experience of hosting the iconic event and reveals the sentiments of the British public towards the contest in recent years.
Eurovision 2023 is considered highly successful and iconic for various reasons. It was the year when Israeli superstar Noa Kirel represented her country, when Loreen made a historic comeback and won for the second time, placing Sweden tied with Ireland for most Eurovision wins. The contest also featured numerous hits and other memorable moments that made it particularly unforgettable. Alesha Dixon, singer and co-host of Eurovision 2023, shares her experience of hosting the iconic event and reveals the sentiments of the British public towards the competition in recent years.
Alesha Dixon, an actress, singer, and judge on the popular TV show “Britain’s Got Talent,” co-hosted the event alongside Hannah Waddingham (known for her role in “Game of Thrones”), Graham Norton (a TV presenter with his own Eurovision show), and Julia Sanina (a Ukrainian singer representing the host country after Ukraine’s 2022 victory).
Dixon revealed her feelings while hosting: “There was really special energy all week, I mean, I talk about the ‘Strictly bubble’, but wow. The Eurovision bubble was next-level. It was just the most colourful, joyful, unifying world to be a part of, and I feel genuinely honoured that I got to host it. And how lovely to host alongside two other women as well.”
She then added: “It was just a week-long party – music is what brought everyone together. You know, you don’t see that often. It’s really special. I mean, we live in really turbulent times, so when we get these moments where music unifies countries and people and there’s just joy, we’ve really got to embrace those moments.”
British Eurovision Journey
As a reminder, in 2022, Ukraine won with Kalush Orchestra. Sam Ryder, the British representative, came in second place. Due to the war in Ukraine with Russia, United Kingdom hosted the Eurovision 2023 contest “on behalf of Ukraine”. In recent years, until Sam Ryder’s second place of course, the UK struggled to achieve successful results in the competition, despite being part of the “Big Five”, the countries that guarantee their place in the grand final each year due to their substantial funding of the contest.
Regaining Faith in Eurovision
In the interview, Dixon addresses the issue of British results in Eurovision: “I grew up watching Eurovision. It was a massive event in my house; we loved it. But I have to be honest – and I think a lot of people would agree with this – I think there were quite a few years where a lot of people in the UK lost faith in Eurovision, didn’t they? They kind of felt like, ‘Oh, we never have a chance'”.
The turning point came in 2022 when Ryder reached UK’s 16th second place. Although in the following two years, Mae Muller and Olly Alexander finished in low positions (25th and 18th respectively), Dixon remains optimistic. “I think since we had Sam Ryder and, obviously, the Eurovision that we hosted on behalf of Ukraine, I feel like the British public has fallen in love with Eurovision again. And actually, some of the music and the talent that came from it was just incredible. There were lots of incredible artists and, honestly, that was one of the best things I’ve ever hosted in my life. My children were listening to the soundtrack to Eurovision for months after the show finished”.
United Kingdom in Eurovision 2024
‘Dizzy’ is the name of the song performed by singer Olly Alexander, who represented the United Kingdom in the grand final of Eurovision 2024. The song only reached 18th place, having received 46 points—all from the judges. The audience did not award the British representative any points.
Source: The Mirror.
Eurovision 2025: This will be the 67th participation of the United Kingdom in Eurovision. The UK joined the competition in 1957 and has won it five times over the years. The UK’s last victory was in Eurovision 1997 with the song ‘Love Shine A Light’ performed by the band ‘Katrina and the Waves’.