Norway’s NRK has just hit upgrade on the wildcard element of Melodi Grand Prix 2021. What was originally meant to be a radio announcement on a Sunday afternoon will now become a primetime TV spectacle.
Melodi Grand Prix 2021 — Wildcard special (Monday 15 February)
The wildcard or “last-chance” (Sistesjansen) broadcast will take place on Monday 15 February. Starting at 20:00 CET, it will air on NRK’s flagship channel NRK1, the NRK P1 radio station and online. The show will run until 23:00 CET with a 20-minute break for the news at 21:00 CET.
All 15 non-qualifiers from the five semis will get one more chance to reach the final. Alas, 14 will finish the night disappointed as there will only be one wildcard spot up for grabs. The remaining 11 final spots will already have been filled by the six pre-qualified acts and the five semi-final winners. NRK confirmed on Twitter that the acts will not sing again. Instead, producers will re-use performance footage from the earlier shows.
Voting will open after the fifth semi-final on Saturday 13 February with the winner being announced during the Monday night broadcast. As in the semis, the result will be determined entirely by public votes cast online.
Melodi Grand Prix 2021 — Wildcard acts
So far, we only know the identities of three of the 15 wildcard acts — namely the participants which were eliminated during the first semi-final. They are Beady Belle, Jorn and Stina Talling. The twelve remaining wildcard hopefuls will become known over the next four weeks, in the aftermath of each semi-final.
Four more acts will compete in semi-final two this coming Saturday – Raylee, Daniel Owen, Maria Solheim and Ketil Stokkan. Whoever misses the cut will head to the last chance round.
What do you think of the new wildcard round? Is it a good idea? Let us know below.
Circus for the final!
I hope Jorn wins it. It’s the most unique of all the candidates.
schools are closed though