Julia Morris, a BBC journalist, courageously exposes archival footage showing a Eurovision artist kissing and touching her against her will during an interview. The artist admits, “I was very drunk… maybe someone should have intervened.”
Julia Morris (BBC journalist) courageously revealed this week how a Eurovision artist harassed her on camera. At Eurovision 2005 in Kyiv, she interviewed the Norwegian band Wig Wam’s lead singer, Åge Sten (stage name Glam), sharing footage from that interview showing Sten straddling her on a couch, kissing her multiple times against her will, and touching intimate areas.
Amid the ongoing legal battle between the Municipality of Sanremo and RAI, the Italian national broadcaster is already planning ahead: Which city could be the next to host the Sanremo Festival?
The prestigious and long-standing Sanremo Festival, from which Italy’s Eurovision representatives are selected, may depart from its legendary city for the first time in 75 years due to a fierce dispute between RAI, the Italian national broadcaster, and the Municipality of Sanremo. According to recent reports, the parties are embroiled in a public legal and financial battle that remains unresolved, and several potential host cities have already been identified, including Turin, which hosted Eurovision 2022 and is considered the favorite by the national broadcaster.
“Being Sexually Assaulted live on Tele was all i needed”
At the start of the conversation, Morris says, “Oh! Hello, darling,” despite Sten immediately straddling her as the interview began. Morris quickly shifted her legs as a sign of distress. Afterwards, Sten sat very close next to her with his arm around her shoulder and a glass of alcohol in hand. Trying to change the subject, Morris excitedly noted they both wore matching silver shoes and waved her legs.
“I was trying to show that it wasn’t a sexual moment,” Morris told news.com.au. Throughout the interview, she held herself together despite feeling very uncomfortable. The artist repeatedly crossed boundaries by touching her breasts, kissing her cheeks, and stroking her leg.
Moreover, Morris revealed she had suffered a miscarriage the week before. When she shared the video on social media this week, she wrote:
“Eurovision 2005, Kiev. BBC. What a treat to turn up to work and be touched and disrespected by an all time fuckwit. Looking like I’m having fun is part of my job but my not flinching is how common this behaviour was. I had a miscarriage the week before this so being SA’d live on Tele was all i needed.”
הצגת פוסט זה באינסטגרם
In retrospect, after her two young daughters pointed out to her that Sten was indeed behaving like a “douchebag,” Morris‘ perspective on the interview has changed. “The more you go through the system, the more you’re really just behaving,” she said. “You don’t have a voice. You certainly don’t have a choice of ‘Don’t speak to me like that.’ A lot of young people now are like, ‘We’re the first to speak up about this.’ And it’s like, ‘No, we all tried, we just got fired.’”
Åge Sten responds: “Maybe someone should have intervened”
To the Norwegian tabloid Se og Hør, Åge Sten expressed shock upon seeing the footage and emphasized that it should never have escalated to that extent:
“It’s obviously not okay, and I am fully aware of that. I’m the first to admit it. Here you just have to swallow your pride and apologize – which I did on the BBC the following year… So I swallowed my pride 19 years ago, and I’m doing it again now.“
Although he insists it is no excuse, he wishes someone around him had possibly stopped him before the interview took place.
“The BBC shouted that I was wanted in the interview chair. Julia wanted to interview me. It was an after-party interview. It was late in the evening, and unfortunately, I was very drunk – something they were well aware of… So maybe someone should have intervened.”
“In hindsight, they definitely should have. What may have been intended as a joke and a fun stunt unfortunately went too far. And I certainly would not behave like that today – not sober, and definitely not drunk. She claims I touched her inappropriately, but that is absolutely not true.”
Sexual harassment at Eurovision – another risk ahead of the contest?
As Julia Morris stated, sexual harassment, even at events of such scale, was unfortunately common. In recent years, with more disturbing archival footage emerging, women and men feel safer to open up about their experiences, hoping such incidents will be avoided in the future. While the primary security concerns at Eurovision in recent years have been of a different nature, it is vital to remember that incidents like this can recur, and we must not stand by silently.
Eurovision 2026: This will be Norway’s 64th participation in Eurovision. Norway joined the competition in 1960 and has won three times over the years. Their last win was in Eurovision 2009 with the song “Fairytale” performed by Alexander Rybak.
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Tal Dahan – Journalist, radio broadcaster, and Eurovision content creator.
Tal Dahan is an Israeli journalist and editor specializing in the Eurovision Song Contest, working with the EuroMix editorial team for four years. Since 2022, she has provided regular on-site coverage of Eurovision from the host city, and from 2023 has also reported directly from the press room—offering the Israeli audience live updates, exclusive interviews, and in-depth commentary.
Tal is a member of the Eurovision tribute and parody band “EuroFalsh,” a radio broadcaster, and a student of political science and communications.
She is considered one of Israel’s leading young Eurovision experts. In addition to covering the main contest, Tal has reported from Eurovision pre-parties and national selection events across Europe (in Thessaloniki, Stockholm, Madrid, and more), been interviewed by major media outlets in Israel and internationally, and presented Eurovision-themed podcasts and radio shows.
