Eurovision 2010: Oslo

The 2010 contest was held in the shadow of the financial crisis, and it showed on the entry list and on the host’s balance sheet.

What it cost

Four countries dropped out, mainly for lack of money: Andorra, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Montenegro. Lithuania announced that it could not raise the 90,000 euros it needed, and was rescued by a Lithuanian company that put up the money. Georgia returned after its year away, and that made 39.

The host had problems of its own. To pay for staging the contest, Norwegian television sold its rights to show the 2010 football World Cup.

The show came from the Telenor Arena, just outside Oslo, under the slogan “Share the Moment”.

Rule changes

The mixture of jury and public voting that had decided the 2009 final was extended to the semi-finals. And viewers no longer had to wait for the last song: they could vote while the songs were being performed, and the lines stayed open until fifteen minutes after the final one.

Fans campaigned on Facebook to bring back the orchestra, which had last played in 1998. Norway’s radio orchestra said it was willing. Nothing came of it.

Jimmy Jump

Spain’s Daniel Diges sang second. Partway through his song an extra performer appeared on stage, in a Catalan cap, and joined in with the dancers.

It was Jaume Marquet, a Catalan pitch invader better known as Jimmy Jump. He kept going until security guards came on, then ran.

The performance carried on. Spain was allowed to perform it again, after the twenty-fifth and last entry.

Europe dances

The interval act tried to move the contest out of the hall. A seven-and-a-half-minute song by Madcon was cut together with crowds dancing to it in public squares across Europe, staged to look like spontaneous flash mobs, and with people dancing at home in front of their webcams.

The result

Germany’s Lena won with “Satellite”. She was first with the juries and first with the public, and finished on 246 points, 76 ahead of Turkey.

It was Germany’s second victory and its first since 1982 — and the first by any of the Big Four since they had been given their guaranteed places.

Romania was third. Georgia, back from its year of absence, came ninth, its best result so far.

The hosts finished twentieth. The United Kingdom was last, with ten points.

Two footnotes

Sweden failed to reach the final, for the first time since semi-finals began.

And Moldova, twenty-second, produced the night’s most durable performer. The saxophonist of its group, Sergey Stepanov, became an internet meme under the name Epic Sax Guy.