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Live Blog: Thursday 5 May

Welcome to the Eurovision.tv Live Blog for Thursday 5 May (Day 6).

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Live Blog

Day 6 is done!

It’s been QUITE a day in the PalaOlimpico – this liveblog has now been running for about eleven hours and we’re a bit cross-eyed. Thank you SO much for joining us – we’ll be back tomorrow from about 10:00 CEST for Day 7!

🚨EXCLUSIVELY ON TIKTOK – Germany’s First Rehearsal🚨

Here’s a 30-second exclusive look at Germany’s first rehearsal.

🚨EXCLUSIVELY ON TIKTOK – Spain’s First Rehearsal🚨

Check out Spain’s first rehearsal, exclusively on TikTok.

Time to follow them tomorrow...(Malta, 2013)

While we wait for the final couple of TikToks of the day, here’s what’s happening tomorrow. It’s the third day of second rehearsals, with the remaining acts from the second Semi-Final taking to the stage for the second time. Here’s the schedule – kick-off is at 10:00 CEST.

🇦🇺 Australia

🇨🇾 Cyprus

🇮🇪 Ireland

🇲🇰 North Macedonia

🇪🇪 Estonia

🇷🇴 Romania

🇵🇱 Poland

🇲🇪 Montenegro

🇧🇪 Belgium

🇸🇪 Sweden

🇨🇿 Czech Republic

The Germany gallery is up!

Here are some photos of Germany’s first rehearsal – enjoy!

🚨EXCLUSIVELY ON TIKTOK – United Kingdom’s First Rehearsal🚨

Here’s a sneak peek of United Kingdom’s first rehearsal, exclusively on Tiktok.

The Spain gallery is up!

Want to see some photos of Spain’s first rehearsal? Of course you do.

🚨EXCLUSIVELY ON TIKTOK – Italy’s First Rehearsal🚨

Check out this exclusive TikTok video of Italy’s first rehearsal.

🚨EXCLUSIVELY ON TIKTOK – France’s First Rehearsal🚨

Here’s an exclusive TikTok clip of France’s first rehearsal – enjoy!

🇩🇪 Germany take to the stage…

This is really smart performance from Malik – he works the cameras really well and makes a real connection with the audience. The staging is simple and stripped back, and the Eminem-style rap section has real intensity in contrast to the sections either side where it’s just Malik and his guitar. It’s a really confident and compelling performance and his vocal is great too – a nice change of pace after a couple of roof-raising numbers.

Malik Harris performed Rockstars, representing Germany in first rehearsal at Turin PalaOlimpico EBU / Andres Putting

And finally for today, it’s 🇩🇪Germany!

It’s time for Germany to rehearse for the first time, with Malik Harris sining Rockstars. He’s a German-American singer and rapper who’s had significant success in Germany over the past few years, so he’s no stranger to performing on stage. This song is an acoustic/rap combo that feels a really unique sound in this year’s Eurovision, we’re looking forward to seeing how he plans to bring it to Turin.

United Kingdom gallery is up!

Check out these photos of United Kingdom’s first rehearsal.

Italy gallery is up!

Please enjoy this gallery of Italy’s first rehearsal.

🇪🇸 Spain take to the stage…

Chanel’s silver matador outfit is VERY sparkly, and 'booty hypnotic’ is very much the theme of the day. Her male backing singers also have a matador thing going on, with bare chests and sparkly shoulder accents. It’s a really polished routine with three male dancers and two female, all in black, and under the stage lights Chanel’s silver outfit and thigh boots create a really memorable effect. The dancing is on FIRE – this is going to look great live and on the TV feed. Phew, we need a lie down.

It’s time for…🇪🇸Spain!

Spain are up next – this year they’re represented by singer, dancer and actress Chanel, who is rehearsing her pop banger Slo-Mo. It’s another song with a big dance routine – at some point we’re hoping for a dance-off in the Delegation Bubble between Spain, Romania and Israel. Would 100% pay to watch this.

👕👟 UK FASHION UPDATE 👕👟

We’ve done a closer costume inspection and Sam’s definitely wearing a black zip-up skydiver jumpsuit, and the trainers are actually black and white, not silver. There was quite a lot of details to take in first time round, but we’re happy to clarify…

France gallery is up!

Here are some photos from France’s first rehearsal.

🇬🇧 United Kingdom take to the stage…

Aaaand we have the biggest prop of the contest so far – a metal structure made up of three enormous wings, like something off the set of a sci-fi movie. For scale, each section is bigger than Australia’s staircase, maybe four or five metres high? Sam’s on an illuminated circular plinth in the middle wearing a black outfit with silver trainers, giving it HUGE vocals as the structure lights up, then finally opens up. It’s visually really impressive, and Sam does a great job of connecting with the cameras too.

The final twenty seconds of this takes a turn from the recorded version, and provides an EPIC finale. Very well played, United Kingdom.

Sam Ryder performed SPACE MAN, representing United Kingdom for first rehearsal in Turin PalaOlimpico EBU / Andres Putting

🇬🇧 United Kingdom are up next!

It’s time for United Kingdom, with Sam Ryder singing his mega-ballad Spaceman. Sam is the biggest UK artist on TikTok, building his following during 2020’s UK lockdowns by creating cover versions of huge hits and catching the attention of some big global stars. He’s also a massive Eurovision fan and can’t wait to represent the UK on the Turin stage.

No pyro for Italy...

…it’s not really a pyro kind of song, to be fair. But lots of atmospheric smoke instead, which adds to Mahmood’s Neo-from-The-Matrix vibe.

🇮🇹 Italy take to the stage…

The grand piano is back, and orchestral arrangement in this song absolutely soars in this arena, with Mahmood and not-BLANCO lit by every spotlight available. Mahmood’s in a long black leather coat and white wraparound shades – with Latvia and Norway, 2022 is a big year for sunglasses.

The changes of pace and the harmonies of this song make it feel like a real goosebumps moment, and Mahmood’s vocal is as effortless as it was in 2019 – we’re really looking forward to seeing how this comes together in partnership with BLANCO. Either way, it’s a performance the host nation should be very happy with.

Mahmood & Blanco from Italy performed first rehearsal at Turin PalaOlimpico EBU / Andres Putting

🇮🇹 Italy are next to rehearse…

It’s time for Italy to rehearse for the first time – this year they’re represented by two of Italy’s most popular young artists – Mahmood and BLANCO. You may remember Mahmood from 2019’s Eurovision, when his song Soldi just lost out to Duncan Laurence’s Arcade. Can he go one better in 2022?

Just to update, there’s no BLANCO today, he’s arriving later in the week. So today there’s a stand-in, but presumably not the same guy who stood in for Flo Rida during San Marino rehearsals last year. Although we can’t 100% discount this, maybe he’s on retainer.

📺 WATCH: 🇸🇲 San Marino’ second rehearsal

Take an exclusive look at San Marino’s second rehearsal – only on YouTube.

📺 WATCH: 🇲🇹 Malta’s second rehearsal

Take an exclusive look at Malta’s second rehearsal – only on YouTube.

🔥 LE PYRO EST ARRIVÉ🔥

Apologies for not doing the heading in Breton, but Google Translate doesn’t appear to offer that option. Maybe we can get some lessons over the coming week?

Pyro-wise, France has two fire pits on each side of the stage and flame jets that shoot up whenever the bass drops. With the flashing lighting and floor graphics, it creates a really intense visual spectacle.

We’re also happy to confirm that it’s definitely a wink from Alvan at the end, and not floating stage debris.

😉 or 😆??

In the second run-through, we noticed that Alvan finished the song with a wink to camera, or it might have been something in his eye. We’ll report back after the third run-through, please hold.

🇫🇷 France take to the stage…

France have a standing stone podium with some greenery that’s very much in keeping with the general Breton/arena theme. The mix of dance and folk and traditional instruments in this song really works, and the matching black and gold costumes and vocal harmonies bring it all together in a way that makes it feel really cohesive, like Alvan and Ahez have always been a group of four.

It’s also the most bass we’ve had on any track this year, and it’s pulsing through the PalaOlimpico. The acoustics in here are amazing, and you can really FEEL this song through the floor. Even the plants in the green room are jumping.

🇫🇷 France are first up!

It’s France up first to rehearse – this year they’re represented by Alvan & Ahez, singing their electro-folk song Fulenn. Alvan & Ahez are all from Brittany, and the song is sung entirely in their native Breton language. This means that for the first time in Eurovision history, there is no French language at all in any of this year’s songs. TRUE FACT.

We're back for the Big 5!

We’ve had a coffee break, and now we’re BACK in the arena for a few hours this afternoon for first rehearsals from the Eurovision Big 5 – France, Italy, United Kingdom, Spain and Germany.

In the interests of full disclosure, your Live Blog team are British and Spanish respectively, so we’re not entirely uninvested in this afternoon’s proceedings. But of course we’ll make sure you get a full run-down of every performance because there’s nothing about Eurovision we don’t love. Keep an eye out for photo galleries and 30-second TikTok clips too – we’ll get these up as soon as possible.

Our last second rehearsal of the day...and it's 🇸🇲 San Marino

San Marino’s Achille Lauro is back with his glam rock lace cowboy outfit, his pom-pom feather boa and his red bucking bronco. No significant changes in staging from Monday, and still a must-watch performance from start to finish.

Malta into San Marino might be the most stark contrast in this year’s contest – whatever you think of Eurovision, you can’t deny that there’s definitely something for everyone…

Achille Lauro, San Marino, Second Rehearsal EBU / Andres Putting

📺 WATCH: 🇬🇪 Georgia’s second rehearsal

Take an exclusive look at Georgia’s second rehearsal – only on YouTube.

Time for a short break...☕️☕️☕️

We’re taking a break before Big 5 rehearsals begin in fifteen minutes or so, which gives us time to drink a coffee and run down to the arena Green Room for the Big 5. Don’t go away!

📺 WATCH: 🇸🇲 San Marino’ second rehearsal

Take an exclusive look at San Marino’s second rehearsal – only on YouTube.

📺 WATCH: 🇦🇿 Azerbaijan’s second rehearsal

Take an exclusive look at Azerbaijan’s second rehearsal – only on YouTube.

Second rehearsal time for...🇲🇹 Malta!

Malta’s Emma Muscat is back on the stage for her second rehearsal of I Am What I Am, and she’s kept the same outfit and staging as we saw in first rehearsals on Monday. It looked and sounded great then, and it still does now – a performance as polished as that piano.

Emma Muscat, Malta, Second Rehearsal EBU / Andres Putting

📺 WATCH: 🇷🇸 Serbia’s second rehearsal

Take an exclusive look at Serbia’s second rehearsal – only on YouTube.

Here's a one-second reminder...

…of every song in the second Semi-Final, only on the Eurovision TikTok channel. Enjoy!

🇬🇪 Georgia is on the stage!

Georgia’s Circus Mircus are back for their second rehearsal, and it’s still as surreal and upbeat as it was on Monday. There’s a lot of detail in this performance that you only really appreciate on screen, and they’ve changed some of the camera angles from the first rehearsal so we have lots more close-ups. We’ll share a video soon!

Circus Mircus, Georgia, Second Rehearsal EBU / Andres Putting

Armenia's Rosa Linn paid us a visit...

And wrote a (very intriguing) message for her fans.

“Thanks for inspiring me <3 ……JUNE 22!!”

🇦🇿 Azerbaijan are rehearsing now!

The giant steps are back on stage, and this clever staging works just as well on the big screen as it did on stage on Monday. Another really powerful performance of Fade To Black from Nadir Rustamli, and amazing use of the lighting and stage.

Nadir Rustamli, Azerbaijan, First Rehearsal EBU / Andres Putting

A message from The Rasmus...

Fresh from their dance class, Finland’s The Rasmus came by to share a message from their fans.

“We’re so excited to be here, we played two gigs on the street in Turin yesterday and made one euro and sixty cents! We’re getting ready for the big show next week, and hopefully the Grand Final!”

Meanwhile, back in the dance studio...

…Finland’s The Rasmus are teaching the Subwoolfer dancers how to rock out 🤘. We love the co-ordinating outfits – could this be the beginning of a supergroup? Subrasmus? Raswoolfer?

It's Serbia's turn to rehearse...

Konstrakta, owner of the cleanest hands at Eurovision, is back on stage for a second rehearsal. It’s retained the same staging as the first rehearsal, with some changes to the lighting. It still feels like a really hypnotic, unique performance.

onstrakta from Serbia, Second Rehearsal EBU / Andres Putting

📺 WATCH: 🇮🇱 Israel’s second rehearsal

Take an exclusive look at Israel’s second rehearsal – only on YouTube.

It's Question Time....

…with Felix Bergsson – Iceland’s Head of Delegation and member of the Eurovision Reference Group. He’s doing an AMA on Reddit from 2pm – head over and ask him anything!

Give those Systurs a dance class...

Currently eating a sandwich in the Delegation Bubble, watching Subwoolfer’s dancers teach Iceland’s Systur the dance routine from Give That Wolf a Banana.

Just another normal day at Eurovision…

🥗 Time for lunch! 🥗

Everyone’s taking a short break here in the PalaOlimpico – back in an hour! ⏰

📺 WATCH: 🇫🇮 Finland’s second rehearsal

Take an exclusive look at Finland’s second rehearsal – only on YouTube.

It's 🇮🇱 Israel's turn to rehearse...

Israel’s Michael Ben David is back on stage for his second rehearsal of I.M, and it’s really great to see how this comes across on screen after watching the live version in the arena on Monday. It’s such a fun combination of vocal performance and polished dance routine – how could anyone NOT want to sing and dance along to this? Michael is an absolute pro, and this is a certified bop. Video coming soon…

Michael Ben David from Israel, Second Rehearsal EBU / Andres Putting

WATCH: 🇦🇲 Armenia’s second rehearsal

Take an exclusive look at Armenia’s second rehearsal – only on YouTube.

📺 WATCH: 🇳🇴 Norway’s second rehearsal

Take an exclusive look at Norway’s second rehearsal – only on YouTube.

🇫🇮 Finland's The Rasmus are back on stage...

It’s pouring with rain in Turin again today, so we’re all wishing we had The Rasmus’s yellow waterproofs. They’re rocking the PalaOlimpico once again this morning with their song Jezebel – we’re in the Delegation Bubble watching the broadcast version, and it comes across really powerfully on the big screen.

The Rasmus from Finland, Second Rehearsal EBU / Corinne Cumming

📺 WATCH: Iceland’s second rehearsal

Take an exclusive look at Iceland’s second rehearsal – only on YouTube.

It's second rehearsal time for...🇦🇲 Armenia!

Armenia’s Rosa Linn is back in her sticky note bedroom, with Snap sounding just as great as it did in the first rehearsal on Sunday. Rosa is such a cool, confident performer – feet are tapping in the Delegation Bubble…🦶🦶

🇳🇴 Norway's Subwoolfer are back on stage...

No costume or routine changes from Norway’s Subwoolfer, because that would be WILD at this stage in proceedings. It’s such a fun song and a really polished performance – it’s going to be so interesting to see how the Eurovision fan universe reacts to this on Tuesday, when many of them will be experiencing it for the first time.

You can find out more about Subwoolfer and Give That Wolf A Banana in the story below. Yum yum yum, etc.

Wait, you want a TikTok Day 5 update too?

Oh, go on then. Here’s some backstage Day 5 fun!

Need a Day 5 recap?

If you missed the first round of second rehearsals yesterday, fear not – we’ve made a handy YouTube recap for you. Enjoy!

Second reheasals have begun...with 🇮🇸 Iceland!

Iceland’s Systur are on stage right now, easing us into Thursday with style and class and beautiful harmonies. We’ll post a video later, but in the meantime you can find out more about the meaning of Með Hækkandi Sól in the story below.

Systur Iceland performing their second rehearsal EBU / Corinne Cumming

It's Day 6, and we're back!

Good morning Europe, and welcome to the official Eurovision Live Blog for Day 6. It’s a day of two halves today – this morning it’s another round of second rehearsals for the remaining acts from Semi-Final 1, and the first seven acts from Semi-Final 2. Then from 3.30 CEST, it’s time for the first rehearsal from the Big 5 – France, Italy, United Kingdom, Spain and Germany.

It’s Heidi and Victor with you all day today – we’ll be sharing backstage breaking news and second rehearsal updates this morning, then we’ll be heading back to the Green Room later when the Big 5 are on stage. Stay with us!

Today’s rehearsal schedule!

🇮🇸 Iceland

🇳🇴 Norway

🇦🇲 Armenia

🇫🇮 Finland

🇮🇱 Israel

🇷🇸 Serbia

🇦🇿 Azerbaijan

🇬🇪 Georgia

🇲🇹 Malta

🇸🇲 San Marino

🇫🇷 France

🇮🇹 Italy

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

🇪🇸 Spain

🇩🇪 Germany