In the twenty-four hours since the European Broadcasting Union announced that it will offer the United Kingdom the chance to host Eurovision 2023, the good and the great of the country have chimed in with opinions on which city should get the honour. From Scotland’s First Minister to the former mayor of Wolverhampton, everyone has a preference.
And so does the British Prime Minister Boris Johnson. In a surprise to many, he wants the honour to go to Ukraine.
“The Ukrainians won it fair and square, even though we had a brilliant entry, and they should be given the chance to host it,” he said.
“It’s a year away. It’s going to be fine by the time the Eurovision Song Contest comes around and I hope they get it.”
This comment glosses over the reality that it takes a full year to organise the Eurovision Song Contest — an expensive endeavour that can run into the tens of millions of euros. Producers don’t just show up the week before the contest with some hammers and glue.
“I believe that they can have it, and I believe that they should have it. I believe that Kyiv, or any other safe Ukrainian city, would be a fantastic place to have it.”
Mr Johnson was speaking at a Royal Air force Base north-west of London shortly after returning from the Ukrainian capital Kyiv. During his time in Ukraine he met with President Volodymyr Zelensky, promising new military aid and offering to train up to ten thousand Ukrainian soldiers every four months.
Bojo’s words echo the sentiments of the Ukrainian broadcaster Suspilne and the country’s Minister of Culture, who issued a strongly worded statement on Friday that called on the EBU to reverse its decision to take the contest elsewhere.
Oleksandr Tkachenko said:
“We honestly won Eurovision and have fulfilled all the conditions within the deadlines for the process of approving its holding in Ukraine — we have provided answers and guarantees on safety standards and possible venues for the competition.”
? FLASH POLL: If #Eurovision 2023 is held in the UK, which city should host? ? ??
— wiwibloggs (@wiwibloggs) June 17, 2022
But the EBU doesn’t agree. In its statement announcing its decision, the EBU said:
“Given the ongoing war since the Russian invasion of this year’s winning country, the EBU has taken the time to conduct a full assessment and feasibility study with both UA:PBC and third-party specialists including on safety and security issues.”
“The Eurovision Song Contest is one of the most complex TV productions in the world with thousands working on, and attending, the event and 12 months of preparation time needed.”
“Following objective analysis, the Reference Group, the ESC’s governing board, has with deep regret concluded that, given the current circumstances, the security and operational guarantees required for a broadcaster to host, organize and produce the Eurovision Song Contest under the ESC Rules cannot be fulfilled by UA:PBC.”
Mr Tkachenko also claimed there was a lack of consultation, writing that “we were confronted with the fact without discussion of other options.”
But on Friday Sietse Bakker, a producer of Eurovision 2021 in Rotterdam and a member of the Eurovision Song Contest Reference Group, disputed that.
Appearing on Dutch TV show Humberto, he said there had been “extensive consultations” with Ukraine’s organising team and that they “had a chance to answer a lot of questions.”
Are you surprised by Mr Johnson’s statement? Do you agree with him? Let us know in the comments box below.
Who cares what this criminal says?
The whole Ukraine does. We even have a Ukrainian surname for him. He is loved and respected here.
What is that Ukrainian surname? Tell us.
It would be like Johnsonuk, we consider him Ukrainian at this point:) we have a cupcake named after him too
BoJo (we scots have a cruder version) and his new BFF are creating this narrative where Ukraine should host the contest but the big bad EBU won’t have it so Bozz reluctantly steps in at Vold’s request to save the day. I get the Ukrainian need to keep the world focus on the war but muppet top is trying to distract from the unholy mess his government has got the UK into.
Insanity rules the world. They are at war… War you know that thing where people kill each other and bombs and attacks and so on, but ‘they should be given the chance to host it’ and if crazy Russian Psycho decides to bomb the venue, bad luck but at least they were given the chance and arent we all supportive and open minded??
Politicians gonna politic.
We all know Ukraine hosting is a bad idea.
I’d like to see a combined BBC-ITV-C4-5 hosting
Twat from the uk
Look I really dont like Boris Johnson but this is just him trying to maintain his relationship with zelensky at a good level it is as simple as that
and Ukrainians love Boris
politicians gonna politics
Politics… He doesn’t have a say in this topic, fortunately. I hope Ukraine stops making of everything a question of state. You are at war, you are receiving help from everyone, why do you need this drama? This stubborness everyone in the Ukrainian government is showing is counterproducing. Focus on what’s really important and keep your feet on the ground.
He plainly does not have any idea of the processes to organise this. He can’t even arrange a legal drinks party himself – the fact a third of his party’s MPs do not support him means his opinions really don’t count for anything anymore. Well done the EBU – correct decision and UK – “You’re good to go…”
Boris Johnson: ‘We need to steel ourselves for a long war’
https://www.heraldscotland.com/politics/20220493.boris-johnson-we-need-steel-long-war/
When BJ said their entry was brilliant, they should have asked him the title of the song, or the singer’s name, or sing it. I bet he doesn’t have a clue what song UK 22 is.
He probably doesn’t know what Eurovision is either…
Don’t forget, Boris Johnson is a liar. He is unable to tell the truth. So he really meant he doesn’t want Ukraine to host in 2023.
There’s sadly no way to guarantee safety within Ukrainian borders. Should be… but isn’t. I understand the wish to showcase that Ukraine ”can do it”, even in this circumstances, but it’s immature and wreckless. I’m not claiming it’s not possible to host a contest in Ukraine, and for it to go safely. In fact, considering the massive amount of foreign celebrities there, I’d still put my money on it not being bombed. However… the chances are too high, and the risk is too big. It’s just not worth it. If they decide on doing so, in a better case scenario,… Read more »
I hope for 2 scenarios:
1) Ukraine is magically given the host rights and of course they fail miserably. EBU fine and/or ban them for some years.
2)Ukraine is not allowed to host and they withdraw as a protest.
In both of these scenarios, we won’t have another unfair Ukrainian victory, which is the most possible scenario at the moment.
I pray to ESC gods for one of my 2 scenarios to happen. This contest has put up with a lot of b*llsheet the last months.
I wasn’t satisfied with ukrainian victory either but damn you’re mean.
Surprised?! But I’m not so fab is unbearable, his scenarios are pityful and just useless as him, it’s only pure hatred nothing more so he should keep his words to talk about the odds next year, his passion, he is obsessed by it, and to overhype his country as much as he can by inventing stuffs about the staging or whatever, by inventing himself a life in fact, and by hating the others. He ridicules himself but he doesn’t understand, nothing new it’s like that since years with him so be prepared for the next season….
Ngl that with how much I’m supporting Ukraine against Russia and I loved Stefania (Even thinking that songwise it’s actually a great winner) I think that Ukraine withdrawing would be good just ti prevent the chances of another political based victory. It was good that Ukraine participated this year and Europe showed them support but if the war is going to continue for years and it’s gonna be the case until the war ends, it could harm ESC so much to the point that it could even die forever 🙁
Unless the song is great, Ukraine won’t win again. This year was simply an exception.
It’s also very weird how you’re wishing for a withdrawal or possible ban for Ukraine.
I hope that if Ukraine wins again next year so it will be with a masterpiece. But we know that even if Ukraine wins with the really best song, people will still call it political
That’s true. Whenever I see people dismissing Ukraine’s victory this year, I always think of Trump saying the 2020 presidential election was “stolen”.
I won’t be surprised if Eurovision fans decide to storm the EBU headquarters if Ukraine wins again next year.
It’s already been proven the US elections weren’t fraudulent. They’ve had multiple costly recounts in various states, none of which found any evidence whatsoever for any of Trump’s claims.
Stick to the facts and stop spreading lies.
Literally every winner of Eurovision has been accused of not deserving their trophies. It’s a non-issue.
People vote for what they what, politicians aren’t making them do it. It’s lazy to dismiss the whole episode as ‘political’.
But it was the public who voted for this ‘unfair’ victory. That’s you and me and others.
Give UA:PBC right to host and they’ll see every single delegation withdraw or use a live-on-tape performance for the sake of their safety.
That’s a great idea, actually. EBU is acting very authoritarian by making a decision on behalf of everyone. Let the delegations decide for themselves… A lot of countries already promise to participate regardless of where/how it will be held.
Because the EBU does act on behalf of every member in the union. That’s its job.
Thats a way to destroy the contest. NO.
Live-on-tape format will do the thing. In solidarity with BoJo. Let Ukraine host it with a creative format. We can even sing live from squares with live crowds in our own countries.
That’s not even Eurovision.
If Ukraine isn’t given a chance to host it, Ukrainians will be let down. Let’s not take this opportunity away from them. They want to host it so badly. They have suffered enormously. Cancelling ESC in Ukraine will only make Russia happy.
I’m not Ukrainian but I will be let down too. What difference is there if we decide to strip Ukraine off their hosting right with what Russia is doing right now to the country?
No. No. No. No. And no. Eurovision in Ukraine would eventually turn into a morbid, politicized sympathy show.
Eurovision in the UK would be memorable, unforgettable, epic; maybe even a pivot in this show’s history, who knows?
As much as I want Ukraine to host, imagine how AMAZING Eurovision in London would be?
London 2012 was one of the greatest Olympics of all time and Eurovision hosted in London would be just as great. Also, I’m sure a plethora of British artists would love to be the interval act in their home city too.
I’m getting excited for Eurovision in London already, especially after the lacklustre week we had in Turin, but I can’t help but feel sorry for Ukraine.
Boris was the champion of London 2012. Why is he attacking a good and fair opportunity for both the UK and Ukraine to promote themselves and work together?! The EBU have control over Eurovision, not Boris, so I don’t see why we should listen to him. He’s been getting worse and worse with his takes over the years.
Spain should host since they actually would’ve won
You don’t know that..!!
Donc care about who hosts the country as long as it’s not a country that is going through a war, but I think Sara is actually right about the fact that Spain would have won. Chanel was far ahead of Sam Ryder with the televote and she would have got more additional points than Sam if people didn’t vote massively for Ukraine. She would have received additional 2 pts with a lot of countries while UK would have received only one more. But if you ask me both of them were great and will be remembered by the fans as… Read more »
Agree,that’s a fair analysis!!
Unfortunately, these things aren’t based on “would’ves” and “what ifs.” However, Spain finished third, which means, if the BBC decline the hosting gig, RTVE will be next in line, so don’t be too glum. There’s still hope for Madrid/Barcelona/Valencia 2023!
No no no noooooo.
Sweden hosted it to much
Sweden is not a almighty god that we should bow down for
He probably stopped watching the rest of Eurovision 2022 after he saw Chanel’s performance.
Idiot of a man!!!
Why is Boris trying to destroy Britain
Britain has been self-destructing for a LONG LONG LONG time.
Boris isn’t trying to destroy Britain, he’s just simply speeding along the process, just like every other Prime Minister before him. At least the self-destruction of the UK means we’ll have an independent Scotland and United Ireland at Eurovision soon!
Boris hates bbc and poor people
True he hates the BBC, but not Poor People. He certainly wants to destroy Britain’s chances of hosting Eurovision for the first time in TWENTY years!
Boris has no feelings for poor people one way or the other, only himself.
He is one of the reasons why I was so adamant about the UK not hosting it.
A very good reason too, but maybe he will be gone by next year. I wish you luck.
He was a number of the Bullingdon Club after all. Tosser
Boris Johnson has an uninformed opinion, shock
It’s not his call.
Technically, it is right? Correct me if I’m wrong but the decision to host Eurovision have to go through him or the parliament at some point for budget approval and others.
No. Governments are never involved. Only the broadcaster.
I remember there was some drama between the Israeli government and the Israeli public broadcaster over the hosting of Eurovision 2019. I guess the situation was just unique to Israel.
Usually, but then there’s 2012.
AFAIK: The BBC and the UK government are bound by the broadcaster’s charter which highly emphasize the independence of the former and prohibits any form of government interference as the BBC is only obligated to serving the British public through its multiple platforms and avenues. I think only the ongoing issue of how the BBC is funded (via a license fee) is where parliament has some level of play here but for the most part, I don’t think these legislators would stoop that level of low to interfere with a UK public broadcaster’s affairs just because their PM says so,… Read more »
The chairman of the BBC Board was once Boris Johnson’s advisor, though, so really we don’t know how it all works.
Why downvote? The Tories appoint their cronies to the board, to make it easier to get what they want. This is just a fact.
They are bound by the charter which specifically stipulates that the BBC must remain editorially independent.
Any movement made that affects the broadcaster will be scrutinized by the very people it was meant to serve, the public.
The BBC is also held in high regard as it is seen as a good standard of the ideal public broadcaster. While it is not without its own problems, providing the kind of public services that the Beebs has it was many aspire to be able to do.
Of course he says so. His government does not care for BBC at all and probably would see it shut down all together
It’s fair that he should attack the BBC but NOT attacking Eurovision when we just came 2nd.
Well BBC and ESC are connected since BBC is one of the biggest contributors to ESC so if he shuts it down..
The arms supplier has arrived to blackmail Ukraine!
Rolling my eyes so hard. I get non-Eurovision fans don’t know how much planning and organisation goes into the contest but do they seriously think an event this big can be sorted out with a couple of month’s notice?!? It really doesn’t take much thought to realise it requires a lot more time than that.
Shut up, Boris !
It’s not him but a big delegation from the bbc that needs to stay in the chosen city for a few weeks.
And other countries off course. I miss the edit button 🙁
We’re suppose to care what he thinks?
No? Didn’t think so.
Does he look like a musician?
People getting bombed over, but he thinking about eurovision goddamned
Oh look, BoJo the clown is back at it again
Oh look, BoJo the clown is back at it again, honestly, you don’t know how ESC works Boris, so STFU
how do you delete a comment on this website?
People of Europe showed their support to Ukraine by giving them a televoting score that I really doubt it can ever be broken. The song itself was fine, but let’s be honest, this score was mainly because people wanted to support Ukraine. I really do not understand why the Ukrainians want to spend so much money on an event that we do love but they could instead spend money on other things much more important for the Ukrainians. The Ukrainian culture will be shown no matter which city is about to host. It would be indeed nice if Ukraine could… Read more »
The fact that Ukraine has hosted recently helps their case because that means they have people who have the know-how to make further improvements on next year’s edition, just like how Eurovision 2016 is markedly better than Eurovision 2013.
The EBU drafted in the 2016 team to bail out Kyiv after the ship starting sinking fast.
As they should. Eurovision is a collaborative project and no one should be left to do the assignment alone.
Boris Johnson is an amoral con artist and nothing he says should ever be trusted or taken seriously.
Shouldn’t Zelensky be focusing on helping the Ukrainians? Why hosting seems like their highest priority at the moment??!!
Zelensky literally hasn’t mentioned Eurovision recently.
The only comments are from the Ukrainian Culture Minister which makes sense because things like Eurovision are his job and it’s not as if there’s something else he should be doing at the moment.
Also this is a Eurovision fansite so of course we’re going to be hearing more about their efforts on Eurovision but if you look at a general news site you’ll see Eurovision is barely making a blip in the Ukraine coverage.
No, they should be focusing on a song contest that could put thousands of tourist’s lives at risk and not spend a penny on the people of Ukraine.
I wonder if he would repeat it if someone actually died here during that contest.
Populist answer
Yeah, for instance if Queen Elizabeth dies during Eurovision week (and it is hosted by UK)
Boris is actually trying to be diplomatic…for once. This is obviously wider than eurovision, he’s hardly going to jeopardise the friendly relationship built with Ukraine recently over the subject of Eurovision.
Every time politicians stick their noses in Eurovision it turns into a mess, so let’s keep them away, they couldn’t care less about the contest anyway.
I can’t believe you’d get in a meeting with the president of another country and one of the things you’d talk about is about…this. Something that isn’t really important (and that already has a solution) at the moment to a country that has to focus on rebuilding itself, instead of talking about what really matters.
Art and culture is just as important as infrastructure, if not more.
Tell that to homeless people
I don’t think that matters most instead of having a nice and SAFE place to be in.
They didn’t discuss it during the meeting yesterday. The photo is illustrative…
Shove it Boris
Just when I thought I couldn’t hate Boris Johnson more
“It’s a year away. It’s going to be fine by the time the Eurovision Song Contest comes around” My guy here thinks he can predict the future, as much as I would want him to be right. And even then Ukraine would still be in reconstruction.
Take-home message: BoJo does not seem interested in the UK hosting Eurovision
Isn’t the UK currently facing its highest inflation rate right now? If the cost of organising Eurovision is the same as his lockdown party, I’m sure he wouldn’t mind.
He also thinks preparations could start in May
Yes, Boris is 100% right, he knows the real situation in Ukraine better than 98% of Ukrainians, to say nothing of the EBU people. The war will end in a few months, Kiev is a safe place than, e.g. Israel even now and Russia will have a new president quite soon too
“ It’s going to be fine by the time the Eurovision Song Contest comes around”
Why does he think he knows that for sure? Reminds me of when the 2020 contest got cancelled and fans said the EBU could postpone it until Autumn cause the pandemic would have “calmed down” then. No one can know for sure
Sustaining a military offensive is an incredibly expensive endeavour. As Russia’s economy getting more and more weak as a result of various sanctions, it’s unlikely that the situation will be worse than during the first few months of the invasion.
I don’t always agree with Boris Johson but he’s absolutely right!
The UK did a great job this year and we are all happy for them. But they should know that they do not deserve to host Eurovision—not unless Ukraine relinquish their right to it.
The UK can host Junior Eurovision 2023 though, more specifically Wales. I’m sure no one will have any objections to that.
At the St David’s Hall, or maybe the Motorpoint arena? Both way too small for the adult contest but perhaps viable for the kids?
I don’t always agree with Boris Johson but he’s absolutely wrong once again!
The UK did a great job this year and we are all happy for them. But they deserve to host Eurovision — as Ukraine are unable to do so because they are admist a warzone and the safety of their citizens comes first.
You’ll stay mad until the bitter end, huh? Cute.