They need to bring back the judging panels or some other method that isn't open to misuse quite that blatant.

(Not that I wanted the UK to win - our song was, obviously, naff - but some of the western European countries deserved to place better.)

I watched the tape of the heat with my bandmate earlier the same day, then watched the show live with him and his bro.

Being able to say "She just said 'how are you' and they said 'fine thanks'" was fun. (I kinda wish I didn't have this number-blindness. I can't count backwards from three, apparently, without getting a couple of them the wrong way 'round.)

Not much to say about the entries... I saw a lot of Ruslana-esque adorableness sloshing around, a face type that is seemingly deliberately designed to get round my stoic filters, which was a little disturbing. And Sweden, well, eye candy yay.

Really most of the actual songs fell flat for me. I have secret luv for Denmark's Drama Queen, but because of the aforementioned imbalance it didn't get through the semis. For me, Germany and Iceland should have won or come close. Hungary close on their heels. I was eager to like Finland (naturally) if only her song had been anywhere near catchy. I was frightened of Belarus (but the dancers on the white things were fun). Spain and Greece were surprisingly good and, well, Switzerland, what can you say... except "go away, WOD nerds"?

About the winner? I sort of half-assedly wave a "yay lesbians" flag, but really, it was just so blah!

Terry Wogan (a Radio 2 DJ and the English Eurovision commentator) told an ancedote on the radio about his first arrival in Finland, when someone apparently told him that the way to say "Sorry, I don't speak Finnish" is "minä rakastan sinua". He said it made him popular instead of getting punched, so I am slightly skeptical...

Oh, and finally - JOULUPUKKI WTF?