Mark your calendars: Eurovision pre-party season is upon us

Organised by fans for fans, Eurovision pre-parties are back ahead of the 68th Eurovision Song Contest happening in May.

From Spain to Scandinavia, there's a whole calendar of Eurovision-themed events to get excited about in the weeks leading up to Malmö. And not only do we have some much loved pre-parties returning for another year of live music and dancing, we also have some newcomers rocking up to the party too. 

Below, we've gathered together and given a rundown on 7 of the biggest pre-parties that fans are expected to flock to over the coming weeks. 

And so whether you want to see your favourite artist from this year's Contest, an act that you rooted for on Eurovision night two decades ago, or a beloved national-final performer that has yet to make it to the Contest - chances are, you'll find what you're looking for at at least one of these glorious gatherings. 

Just remember folks... stay hydrated, try to siesta before the fiesta, and brush up on the lyrics once more ahead of the inevitable mass sing-a-long of Love Shine A Light.

PrePartyES, Madrid, 28-30 March

Pre-party season kicks off in spectacular style over in the Spanish capital of Madrid, as a tempting trinity of nights out awaits party-goers.

The PrePartyES organisers have managed to gather together 28 of the 37 artists competing in the 68th Eurovision Song Contest, as well as 25 guest performers, who will be well-known to fans from either having competed in Eurovision Song Contests past, Junior Eurovisions past, or national finals in recent years.

It all starts with the opening party on Thursday night, with DJs getting revellers in the mood via dancefloor-ready party pleasers. Then, on the Friday night it's the Welcome Party, with performance by 11 of this year's Benidorm Fest artists, plus 2023's Benidorm Fest 'ganadora' Blanca Paloma, and guest performances by Eurovision alumni Go_A (Ukraine 2020 and 2021), Tamta (Cyprus 2019), Kati Wolf (Hungary 2011), Marta Roure (Andorra 2004) and Tamara Todevska (North Macedonia 2008 and 2019).

Saturday night's Eurovision 2024 Concert lives up to its name - with 28 artists stopping by ahead of their trip to Malmö next month. 

More info on PrePartyES right here.

Barcelona Eurovision Party, 4-6 April

One weekend after all the Madrid merriment, we head east across Spain to Barcelona, for another three-night programme of Eurovision-themed entertainment.

An opening party on Thursday 4 April promises to go on until 5am on the Friday morning, and later that day the second part of the celebrations begin. Friday night's offering features an ESC Young event for famlies, which invites past participants of Junior Eurovision to come along and perform. Later in the evening, the Barcelona Eurovision Party team has organised Euro Justice - a night where national-final faves get the opportunity to perform to fans, before another late-hours party gets going. 

Saturday night will see the main event take place - the Barcelona Eurovision Party 2024. A wide selection of our Malmö artists will be performing their songs for attendees, with some guest performers coming along for the party, too. Barcelona boppers can expect a friendly 'hola' from the likes of Herreys (Sweden 1984), Las Ketchup (Spain 2006) and Albina (Croatia 2021).

Everything you need to know about the Barcelona Eurovision Party is right here.

London Eurovision Party, 7 April

No sooner has the Barcelona party wrapped on the Saturday night (well, the Sunday morning, let's face it), the London party team will be getting everything ready over at its new venue - Outernet on Charing Cross Road.

Events kick off in the early afternoon, with performances and a party going on until late at night. Currently, the London Eurovision Party has 23 of our Eurovision 2024 artists confirmed, including the United Kingdom's own Olly Alexander, with more names still to be announced.

There's also a crowd-pleasing lineup of guest performers confirmed, including Rosa Linn (Armenia 2022), Gustaph (Belgium 2023) and Conchita Wurst (Austria 2014).

Plus, we'll be hearing from the United Kingdom's 2016 artist, Lucie Jones - who will not only be performing, but also hosting the event alongside Paddy O'Connell. They'll be joined by two guest hosts - the BBC's Eurovision Song Contest Semi-Final commentators Rylan and Scott Mills.

All the details on London Eurovision Party right here.

Eurovision In Concert, Amsterdam, 13 April

It's off to the Dutch capital on Saturday 13 April, as the Eurovision In Concert 2024 comes to us from AFAS Live in Amsterdam, hosted by Cornald Mass and Eurovision winning pop sensation Charlotte Perrelli.

A whopping 29 of the 37 artists competing at the 68th Eurovision Song Contest will be in attendence on the night, each performing their music for Malmö to the crowd and getting everyone hyped for May.

Once the Class of '24 have done their thing, it's onto the official afterparty, with more performances in store from the likes of Alexander Rybak (Norway 2009), Jedward (Ireland 2011 and 2012) and Efendi (Azerbaijan 2020 and 2021). 

Read all about the event right here. 

Nordic Eurovision Party, Stockholm, 14 April

Sunday 14 April sees the arrival of a newcomer on the pre-party circuit.

Berns in Stockholm will host the very first Nordic Eurovision Party, where a broad selection of Malmö 2024's artists have already been confirmed to be taking their first of two very special trips to Sweden in April!

As well as the Eurovision 2024 artists, the team behind Nordic Eurovision Party have also invited guest performers from Contests past.

Already booked and brimming with excitement are Selma (Iceland 1999 and 2005), Rosa López (Spain 2002) and Senhit (San Marino 2011, 2020 and 2021).

For more info on the Nordic Eurovision Party, you can head to their website right here. 

Eurovision Night, Oslo, 20 April

Another first-timer appearing on the pre-party calendar for 2024 is Nordic Music Celebration's Eurovision Night, which is being held at Oslo's Rockefeller Music Hall on Saturday 20 April.

Here, some of Norway's most iconic Eurovision artists have been booked to perform, such as Bobbysocks, Alexander Rybak, Subwoolfer and JOWST. And there'll also be plenty of fan faves from Norway's Eurovision pre-selection Melodi Grand Prix entertaining the audience too, such as JONE, Skrellex, Mileo, Farida and Melodi Grand Prix 2024 winner and Norway's act for Malmö - Gåte. 

The organisers have promised a stellar constellation of Eurovision stars from around the rest of Europe too, with names like Sunstroke Project (Moldova 2010 and 2011), Krista Siegfrids (Finland 2013) and Luke Black (Serbia 2023) already attached to the event.

You can get acquainted with Nordic Music Celebration's Eurovision Night right here.

Copenhagen Eurovision Party: Malmöhagen, 4 May

For our last Eurovision pre-party of the season, we fast-forward to May. It's the inaugural year of Copenhagen Eurovision Party: Malmöhagen - a new event that aims to unite all the 'Rest of World' guests with Europe in a day and night programme throughout the Saturday on the opening weekend of Eurovision week.

On Saturday 4 May, just one week before the Grand Final of the 68th Eurovision Song Contest takes place, the very first party will happen just 30 minutes from Malmö Arena - at Volume by DISIE in Copenhagen. 

The Malmöhagen party will gather together a host of artists that are competing at Malmö 2024, along with some extra special Eurovision icons plus some pre-selection favourites. Names already announced include Emmelie de Forest (Denmark 2013), Suzy (Portugal 2014) and Sheldon Riley (Australia 2022).

Across 3,745 square metres of space and two stages, the 10+ hours of entertainment will also include an audience vote, karaoke and quiz competitions with prizes. Plus, there is a 'Scandinavian Songbook' pre-show with three DJs and three bars. 

For the full lowdown on this brand-new event, you can get perusing what's what right here.