Ground control to major Sam. United Kingdom’s Sam Ryder has touched down in Italy for Eurovision 2022 second ehearsals. The Essex-born TikTok star performed “SPACE MAN” on the PalaOlimpico stage ahead of the grand final. Did we go on an intergalactic trip, or did all hope come crashing down to Earth? Let’s find out…
United Kingdom’s Sam Ryder “SPACE MAN” — Eurovision 2022 second rehearsal
Oliver: If there was ever a time United Kingdom fans can rest easy about their result, 2022 is the year. Sam Ryder is wearing a black boilersuit; the top is bedazzled with crystals in shapes of planets and stars, while the crystal lining on the trousers mirrors the Union flag. As for the broken sun? No problem — Team UK has avoided it completely, creating their own arena-like staging for Sam. He stands centre stage on a plinth inside the industrial shell of a deconstructed spaceship, which glows a bright white light throughout. The staging is pulled apart before the final chorus, completely filling the stage. We hear a new revamped version of “SPACE MAN”, where the “Gravity keeps pulling me down” middle eight transitions to an epic guitar solo. Things look really promising for Sam and the UK.
Reaction to United Kingdom’s second rehearsal at Eurovision 2022
@wiwibloggs_official #UK’s @Sam Ryder takes us out of this world in his 2nd #Eurovision rehearsal. @jonathanvautrey watches and reacts 🇬🇧 #ESC2022 #Eurovision2022 #TheSoundOfBeauty #SpaceMan ♬ original sound – wiwibloggs
What do you think? Did Sam Ryder live up to your expectations? Sound off in the comments section below.
I love the man, his vocals are otherworldly.
The staging is superb. I wished I liked the song a bit better and it would be my winner.
Sam to WIN!! Sam and SPACE MAN! embody what Eurovision is all about. The song is amazing, the staging is incredible, and Sam’s voice is from another planet. We are so proud of you Sam…XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
U.K. now 2nd in the betting odds
I wish I lived in a country thay hyped its own entry as much as the UK, Serbia, Greece, Azerbaijan and Italy
I Will vote for the UK Sam is amazing also
his beautiful song
To the people who don’t get the hype – wait for the full performance on Thursday. Based on what the reports are saying, this performance has a lot of surprises we didn’t get in the rehearsal clip.
That’s where the hype has come from and why it’s 3rd in the odds now.
Wiwi chat is a funny old thing. On a thread about the UK, a load of people say it’s hyped and won’t win, Sweden is the winner. On the chat under the Swedish rehearsal people are slagging it off saying it won’t win Italy will win. In the chat under Italy’s rehearsal people are saying it’s a disappointment and won’t win Spain is the best. On and in it goes, song by song. We can all find fault in even the most perfect and beautiful thing in the word, In the end it’s all just down to personal taste, and… Read more »
I think he will get a lot more points that the UK usually gets, given that he CAN sing, he is a LOVELY guy, and he has a huge following on TikTok.
That being said, let’s not pretend that this could win. The European voters know that the UK still feels disdain for Eurovision…so while they will reward this positive effort, they will most certainly not make it win.
The UK does not feel disdain for Eurovision. The public here love. It gets solid ratings and there are parties galore. The problem is the left wing BBC who loathes the idea of the UK doing well at anything
That is not the problem, that is your imagination.
It absolutely isn’t the BBC being ‘left wing’. Blame them for previous song choices and catastrophic staging by all means. Inserting your desperate and provably incorrect politics just shows how desperate you are. Get a grip.
Really is there any need to get personal and unpleasant just because you have a different opinion?
But it cannot be denied that the BBC is left wing.
Yes, it can.
We don’t hate Eurovision. It’s a part of British life, one of those programmes that everyone watches and everyone has an opinion on. Don’t believe the hype. We still love our Eurovision and we are grateful that, at last, the powers that be have sent you one of our best. Go on Sam!
The UK which has hosted the contest more times than any other country? Or is willing to foot the bill to host if Australia wins and a Germany refuses. Doesn’t sound like disdain to me.
The UK have not, hosted the Eurovision the most, that accolade goes to Ireland.
That accolade actually goes to the UK who hosted in 1960, 63, 68, 72, 74, 77, 82 and 98 as opposed to Ireland’s 7 times in 1971, 81, 88, 93, 94, 95 and 1997. The UK stepped in to host on several occasions when other countries couldn’t host.
As Dan confirms, UK has hosted 8 times, Ireland 7.
They usually vote for the singer and the song atEurovision and they usually get it right so let’s take UK out of it and vote for Sam who has the Voice and the Song. This lad has an Outstanding Talent and it should be recognised. All the Best Sam it is an Honour to be British this year
The UK are guaranteed a top 10 result, possibly reaching the top 5 if the public responds well to it.
I’m highly certain this won’t win, but it’s great to hear that so many people do think it will win! The fact the UK have stepped their game up is all that matters to me.
I see the toxic Spanish fans are bashing anything posted that’s positive, they are the WORST
Spanish fans this year = Maltese fans last year
Absolutely spot on!
Think this is this year’s Je Me Casse – ie massively overhyped and overrated. He is wildly oversinging here, which comes across as rather show offish and would be a turn off for viewers. I still feel the same. The juries who go for pretentiousness will vote in reasonable numbers for it but it won’t do well in the public vote. 15th or thereabouts would be my guess
I mean, Suus (Albania 2012) was also full of ‘oversinging’ and that finished 5th with juries and 8th with the televote (5th overall).
I think the UK will also place 5th overall, which would be an amazing result for them.
Uk will have a much better draw than Malta last year though. Being the only big 5 country in the second half he will for sure get a draw between 20-23 – a winning draw!
23rd or 24th would be superb but I’d settle for anything 17th upwards.
Juries go for pretentiousness just as much as the BBC is left-wing… So – not at all. Delusional. And no – this is not a difference in opinion, this is you making up stuff. Oh and if this does not do well in televoting – it’s because of Brits just like you. Own it.
I’m not nearly excited as the fans of the entry, but they for sure have a reason to be excited. Though I prefer a bunch of other songs winning, I think Sam deserves a high reward for his almost diplomatic run as a British representative.
I’m starting to think we have a winner here. The staging is BRILLIANT, so is that voice. The whole packaging is powerful and energetic and will leave a lasting impression for sure.
Also don’t count out how effective that staggering chorus can be during the recaps when people will be voting, major asset.
Can I just say I don’t get all the fuss around this song? It’s just pretty standard for me, and it took me a while to listen to its whole three minutes… Ive liked much more previous UK entries
They had good enough entries for your local supermarket in the past 4 years, if that’s what you mean. This however is, objectively, on a whole another level, utterly incomparable to UK’s recent entries.
Ànd yet, just like those other UK entries (which were dismal), this too has failed to bother even the lowest regions of the UK chart. If we don’t like it, why should Europe and Australia?
What has our music chart got to do with the rest of the world? It only reflects the appreciation (or lack of) of the UK public. Europe and Australia are entitled to like this (which they are) despite the British public not buying in to it. That’s not on them, that’s on us, the British public. The stigma is with the Brits. Everyone else is over it yet here we are saying that others shouldn’t appreciate it just because ‘we’ (the UK populous) dont
My point is, if we aren’t behind our entry why should we expect any other country to be. Also it is a good barometer. Any song that has won was riding high in the charts when it did so.
Bear in mind that unlike the days of Katrina and Gina G, this entry was chosen behind closed doors. It premiered in the top 20 (think it was 13th) before sinking fast. I’m hopeful that with a good performance on Saturday night and a TV audience of 5 million plus, it’ll rocket (pardon the pun) up those charts again.
Again lying. The song has reached the Top-20 in the UK iTunes charts and has been featured across all sorts of radio stations etc. Get a grip and stop claiming things, which are not true. Or in other words: Stop lying.
This is an absolute gem, Sam Ryder has both that laid-back, cheerful and happy personality and the talent of a global superstar. If I don’t see the UK scoring a top 5 and winning the jury vote AT LEAST, I’m gonna cry. :’))
Good luck UK, this time you deserve the best and I’ll be cheering for your win, from Greece! |<3
Thank you Greece and good luck to your song. Sending hugs and best wishes from London.
I don’t understand the hype but he deserve top 15 at least.
Brits hype it
This whole “brits hype it” thing is getting really old now. Why shouldnt they hype it, why shouldnt they be able to say they hope he wins or does well without people complaining about it. Its great to see people get behind Sam and give him some support. I dont see any reason why people need to complain about a country hyping their own song.
My thoughts are also the same. Whats is wrong with people hyping about their countries song?
They may be hyping it, but nobody has been buying it
It did very well in several fan polls. So nobody is buying it? Why LYING again?
IKR? The UK are finally behind their act for once and they’re thrilled about it, as they should be.
They should be excited and hyped about it if they genuinely think it’s good, of course. Problem is that the UK fans on this site are now just downvoting everyone who doesn’t like the song and getting defensive when somebody criticises it, behaviour that gets called out here when fans of other countries do it.
So who do you think will win ? Will Ukraine pull it off with a massive TV Vote ?
Honestly i havent seen many posts from Brits that have been defensive, rude or toxic, infact normally the Brits make fun of themselves and the fact that they are usually the butt of most Eurovision jokes. This year they are just excited to have an entry that has been received well by people and they are enjoying the eurovision hype.
Totally agree. We’ve waited a long time to cheer on a good song. Don’t take it away from us.
Who else is gonna hype it? Every other countries song/artist recieves a tonne of praise and hype off their own homegrown fans, what’s so different about the UK having the same treatment? This is the trouble here. People from the UK are expected to be constantly glum about their entries all the time. The minute the fans realise the song is actually in contention, the naysayers start moaning about how the Brits are ‘overhyping it’. The hype is justified. He’s top 5 in the odds. He won the Eurojury. He came 15th with the Wiwijury, and his is currently 8th… Read more »
Much like Je Me Casse last year – that won the OGAE poll and was relentlessly.pushed by the wiwiblogg lot.
But this is nothing like Je Me Casse? Je Me Casse was hyped up purely because she was one of the favourites from the previous year (the year that covid struck and cancelled Eurovision). That energy spilled over to the following year and so much praise and hype was poured on to her song. Her staging and her outfit were awful though and it was a bit of a let down even If the song seemed loved by all. It was no surprise that it didn’t meet expectations or the ‘hype’. She did well never the less. The other thing… Read more »
If you think this is anything like “Je me casse”.. well, I have absolutely no more questions. And ‘Space Man’ did not win the OGAE poll, but did reasonably well. Hate on though.
It’s rather the opposite, and that’s a good thing.
The running order Gods shined down on the UK today. If Sweden and Ukraine get drawn first half then it’s his for the taking. I like the song and I think it’s both anthemic and an earworm chorus people will remember. Then he whips out the guitar to tell the jury “I can sing AND I’m a real musician”. The staging feels big without feeling overly messy. There’s an elegance to it. I actually think all the pieces are there for the win. I’m being totally objective as I neither love or hate this song. But this is feeling like… Read more »
Winner
Seeing the hype
i think this cuold land at least top 5.
Personally i really don’t like the song in itself.
I do not get the appeal of this song. I think it is overrated.
The staging = OK.
Song = Average
Voice = Sounds off key to me. I actually had trouble listening to it.
This isn’t constructive criticism
It’s not criticism. It’s an evaluation.
I will stipulate that it’s not an accurate evaluation. Because the staging sucks.
The butthurt on Sunday morning, after this mess comes in 14th, is going to be epic.
Just because YOU don’t like a song doesn’t make it ‘overrated’. Please stop clutching at a word that’s currently being so overused in dissing songs/artists/performances.
We get it, you don’t like it. That’s fine. No need to insult others because they love it.
British hype..
So ?
Yawn. Its no different to the ‘Greek Hype’, or the ‘Italian Hype’, or the ‘Swedish Hype’ or the (insert country here).
Stop being so pointlessly rambunctious and look at all the Jury polls, feedback the performance/hard work he has been putting in. He’s earned his praise.
No, it’s more like FOREIGN hype.
And typical sour grapes no2
I’m really happy to see UK shining this year. Sam Ryder is a star, I want to see this succeeding! Go UK, this is your year!
I think this is gonna be a big success
Nice.
I think UK will get about 100 points in total, and that’s still huge success for them and something Brits should be happy with.
Top 3 easily, I predict a win despite Ukraine
Ok, how many points will he get? 510 points? Just think about it, is it realistic? No.
acting as if the only number above 100 is 510 LMFAO stop
You all downvote comments which say UK won’t be in TOP 5 so…
It honestly doesn’t matter where he finishes. Everyone’s putting so much pressure on Sam with their exptancies and guesses as to where its going to finish. He himself put it beautifully in a press conference the other day. He’s there to change the perception that the UK can’t be bothered with sending a decent song or songer. He’s not bothered about where he finishes because they’ve shown they are willing to take this seriously. That alone is a big achievement for the UK based on the previous lack of vision/effort by the BBC.
Good luck Sam.
AGED LIKE MILK X
This outfit fits the theme but I liked the simplicity of the other one more so I hope he chooses that one. Otherwise – great staging and I think it’s totally understandable that he rose in the odds so much. Wishing him the best!!
Defo winner vibes. He has the whole package.
Whats wrong with his vocals ?
I’m actually curious but I thought I read somewhere before the rehearsals started that the uk’s staging was one to watch out for and that he would be floating? We can’t lie, the song is great, but just standing with a microphone won’t elevate a song about being ‘up in space.’ I still think that this is one of the uk’s best songs in a long time, but I just don’t understand the staging. I wish them the best of luck 🙂
I think Sam wired up to fly would be taking the metaphor too far.
Yeah you’re right. I guess he is in a spacesuit. I just had high hopes for his staging because of the article I read. Maybe they’ll photoshop an image of him on the moon and project it onto the led screens. Even still, I like the song enough for it to be in the top 5. As I said, I wish him all the best 🙂
You need to read the reports, there is substantially more to this performance than just standing there. Wait until the ending…
Can you send a link to these reports, I got down voted for suggesting that he couldn’t just stand there….
I don’t get the hype, the song has nothing special.
Yes the hype is coming from the uk but it’s not arrogance we think we will win. We are just really happy it won’t be in the bottom
And after 20 years of embarrassment, longer than most uk Eurovision fans can remember, aren’t we allowed to be a little bit hyped??
Most uk fans will think top 5 actually is a win for us
Honestly the non UK based fans are all happy enough to hype their own countries efforts, but the minute the Brits start to believe in themselves, we’re suddenly “overhyping” (*roll eyes*)
People are seriously clutching at straws because they themselves don’t like the song. That’s valid and fine. Everyone’s entitled to not like a song. But don’t call out others for liking it just because you dont.
Amazing!
So I just watched the UK’s clip and ummm….The UK might actually come top 5, if not 3, if not 1. I always knew this could do well but I had doubts it would stand out enough to get big scores but this staging, this styling and Sam being a flawless singer as always is just so GOOD! The UK have finally done it right! Keep it up!
Happy for UK with all my heart!
From Zero to Hero, literally.
Honestly, I’m just not seeing (or more importantly) hearing it. Even though I don’t like the song much, I was expecting the vocals to be better.
I still think the UK are going to get a good result by their standards but nowhere near what some people have been suggesting.
Yep, that’s you do good staging UK, finally!! This comes across much much better than I expected, and I although it’s not my favourite song this year this can be a well deserved winner 🙂
Almost getting overrated Sweden in the odds. So happy!
So U.K. is now rising in odds and Italy and Sweden falling . I live in U.K. and would like to see a win but I just don’t see it happening. Two more years with this same type of effort and stronger songs then it might happen.
Thats not how it works. Portugal won out of the blue. People don’t vote for last years song.
Salvador was actually the bookies favourite on Eurovision week. The live rehearsals usually elevate a lot of things. Fuego had the same thing happen shooting to 1st (and coming 2nd). Though some like Ryan O’Shaughnessy come 3rd with the bookies then come bottom half.
He didn’t become favourite until about 2 days before the final and I should know as I bet on him
Winner Vibes!! please let him win the whole thing! London here we come!!
Manchester!
Ok I’ve just seen the clip. Dislike me as much as you want, but this does not feel winner to me and I think they had stronger and more intimate performance in 2017.
You’ve not even seen the whole performance yet because the final is next weekend, but you’re basing your opinions on a video clip vs a whole final performance from 2017? That’s a bit mental if you ask me.
Youre entitled to not like the song. By all means that’s absolutely fine, but you can’t judge something that hasn’t happened yet and isnt finalised fully, and compare it to something that happened and was fully realised in its final form.
A bit too much?
The bookies have been on UKraine the whole time, do they need to shorten the country name in the odds instead?
For a change the UK has made an effort, lets hope those of us on the continent don’t ignore it if it is as good as the promise.
It’s weird to see the UK look like they’re actually trying for once.
Is this how folks from other countries feel when there’s actual effort put in and actively root for it? G’wan Sam lad!
I’M ALL IN FOR A WIN FOR THE UK THIS YEAR, I MAY BE BIASED SINCE THEY’RE MY FAVORITES BUT FOR THIS OCCASION, I DON’T GIVE A DAMN!!! :’D
THERE HE IS, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, THE GREATEST EUROVISION SINGER OF THE DECADE! <3
GOOD LUCK UNITED KINGDOM, YOU ALREADY DELIVERED US A MASTERPIECE MADE BY THIS GLORIOUSLY TALENTED ARTIST, NOW GO AND GET THE TROPHY! MY WINNERS FOR THE YEAR! ^^ <3<3<3
That outfit!! And a guitar!!! I can’t cope!
OMG he’s in the second half!! And now he’s second favourite on Betfair Exchange!! EVERYONE CALM DOWN
Outfit feels a little too much
Disagree
It reminds me of Chanels outfit for some reason. They’d look cute stood next to each other lol
Wow he looks FANTASTIC can’t wait to see a clip! Go Sam go!!!
What is up with the outfits this year? There are ao many bad ones. Sam strikes me as this cute down to earth hippie guy and they are making him look like a bedazzled clown.
i feel like they´re really going for those Elton vibes!
THEY’RE GIVING HIM A GUITAR NOW?! WHAT?! IS THERE ANYTHING THIS MAN CAN’T DO?!!!!