Life after Helsinki 2007 Eurovision

ORF and EBU have have released the participating broadcasters list for Eurovision song contest 2026 and there will be 35 of them (unless more countries will pull out at later stage due public demand) which is the lowest since the introduction of two semifinals. Five broadcasters have withdrawn (from Spain, the Netherlands, Slovenia, Ireland and Iceland) protesting Israel's inclusion while three broadcasters return all of sudden: from Romania, Bulgaria and Moldova. No sight of rumored Canada, Kosovo or Kazakhstan. Yet.  Participating broadcasters. RTSH (Albania), AMPTV (Armenia), SBS (Australia), ORF (Austria), ITV (Azerbaijan), RTBF (Belgium), BNT (Bulgaria), HRT (Croatia), CyBC (Cyprus), CT (Czechia), DR (Denmark), ERR (Estonia), Yle (Finland), France Télevisions (France), GPB (Georgia), SWR (Germany), ERT (Greece), IPBC (Israel), RAI (Italy), LSM (Latvia), LRT (Lithuania), RTL (Luxemburg), PBS (Malta), TRM (Moldova), RTCG (Montenegro), NRK (Norway), TVP (Poland), RTP (Portugal), ...

  RTP and EBU have revealed today the first design of the stage of Eurovision song contest 2018 and no surprise it continues the theme of sea conquistadores. The inspiration is drawn from navigation, sea, maps and ships, and reflects Portugal's history and culture. Once again I feel like pointing out the same approach RTP is having to YLE's back in the day. We at the far corners of the continent seem to take more pride on our own heritage over standard multinational offerings, so often present in Eurovision events.  The armillary sphere, present also in the Portuguese flag and heraldry, will be a visual key element. Sweeping waves and art of boatbuilding will be also visible and part of the design. While the old saying goes "All roads lead to Rome" next May it will be Lisbon where all the lines on map come together. All aboard! The main design is again by Florian Wieder, who has already designed several stages, including the one in Kyiv earlier this year....

Florian Wieder will be in charge for the 2017 Eurovision song contest stage design. This is already a fourth Eurovision stage for this German following the ones in 2011, 2012 and 2015. Now it's 6-6 in the past 12 years for the locals Vs. foreign designers. I have no idea who designed the Kiev 2005 stage but it surely is one of my least favorites so it can only get better :-) Florian says: "I love the idea behind Eurovision Song Contest. So many different countries and cultures come together in peace to celebrate this event that’s what truly excites me. The Eurovision Song Contest is one of the most exciting projects of my career. There are only a few like this in the world, so it is a huge honor for me to be the designer for this years show in Kyiv. My goal is to bring happiness and excitement for everyone involved. I’ve planned to incorporate some entirely new features which I will be kept as a surprise until the show. The design for 2017 will be unique and divergent...