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1998.written.by.darren

Finally! Eurovision hits the shores of the sacred nation, my home country, and as Chiara put it, THE ONE THAT I LOVE, or maybe not! The introduction was fine, not too long, and the two presenters were not the obvious choice, a Swede and an Irishman. I hope that if the UK is ever to host the contest again, we'll have a better couple of BRITISH presenters, like Davina McCall, anyway, this introduction is getting a little long, so lets get to the songs.

1. Croatia
Yes, this song is good, strong and Danijela has a very strong voice, but I really can't understand why it has been christened the best Eurovision Song of all time. There are much better songs in the history of the contest, and it really annoys me that everyone loves it, which has made me, more than anything, start to dislike this song, despite this, it still makes my Top 5! 8.5/10.

2. Greece
I don't understand why this song did so poorly. She looked great, the song had a rocky, uptempo feel to it, she's a relatively good singer, and yet it was saved from 'nil point', by their all time lover Cyprus, I really think this deserved better, in comparison to other songs that faired better in the contest. 6/10.

3. France
Yet again I cry, why did this do so bad? 3 points? This song definately deserved to do better than the shitty Hungarians, I really can't understand what problem Europeans have in judging songs. Marie-Line looked presentable, the stage and performance of the song was good, the backing singers looked good, a bit of a mystery! 6.5/10.

4. Spain
Not the best Spainsh entry of all times, but still OK! The song was sentimental, and, as I speak Spanish, the lyrics were also quite good. Again, due to the language barrier, and the fact that it was so early in the contest, and that Spain doesn't really have any point giving friends, this held back the scoring of this song! 5/10.

5. Switzerland
NIL POINTS!!!!! I don't think so! I really don't understand why people don't like this song, it's a strong, well-performed ballad that people usually go for, was it the shoulders of the backing singers? I just don't get it, apart from her hair, Gunvor looked good, a nice tune, she's got a great voice, I really can't understand why people don't like this! It has appeared in my Top 10, but has slipped down a few places! 7.5/10.

6. Slovakia
8 POINTS!!!!!! I don't think so, oh, deja vu! This song was definately worthy of a Top 10 place, and was so much better than other rubbish that did so well, Mr. Horn, I'm looking in your direction! Katerina looked desirable on the night, a strong voice, a good strong song, should have done so much better, maybe would have done better a few years ago, instead of Martin Durinda & Tublatanka, in 1994, this song would have easily made the top 10/ Top 5. 8/10.

7. Poland
I really expected that this would have done much better. It was a good uplifting song, has a little feel of the Irish in it with the violin etc. but still scored only 19 points! I think that this song would have done a lot better in a year when there weren't as many good songs, and if the free language rule had been in place, it would have made Top 10 me thinks, anyway, a shame. 7/10.

8. Israel
What can I say? Her voice was totally crap on the night, but in the end, all the publicity gave her the win. It certainly got the gay vote. She looked quite good on the night, the performance on stage was average, with, once again, the sideward strut making an appearance in an Israeli song, but who cares? All the hype and publicity got the win, my favourite song over the UK, but on the night, I so wanted Chiara to win!!! 10/10.

9. Germany
What can I say? 2 words, Absolutely pathetic. I hated this song when I first heard it, I still hate it, Guildo should have been put in an Old Folks' Home years ago, I detest this, although the performance was slightly amusing. I remember reading in a newspaper on the Saturday of Eurovision 1998, and it saying that Germany would win because all his supporters were travelling into teh surrounding nations and voting for him! I was horrified! I am appauled at how well it did. 0/10

10. Malta
What a sweet and loving song, to follow that pile of s**t. My friend, who I usually watch Eurovision with predicted that this would do well, I laughed, but I was mistaken, she also predicted Denmark would win in 2000! I have really grown to love this song, it was in my Top 5 for a while, but has since dropped out, despite not liking this song as much, I still wanted her to beat Dana. The performance of this touching song was great, I love it! 8.5/10.

11. Hungary
I was surprised and horrified that this picked up for points, it deserved 0. What a terrible voice, terrible voice andterrible singer, I loath this as much as I loath Guildo Horn, I've only seriously watched this once, on Eurovision night. 0.5/10.

12. Slovenia
Nothing spectacular. OK, his voice was a big rough, he wasn't no oil-painting, he's a bit old, but then again, teh song is so dramatic that it cried out for attention, not memorable enough for the voters, did a little better than I think it deserved. 4/10.

13. Ireland
This song is a regular feature of my Top 5 of 1998. Again, maybe the Irish blood in my veins, enhances the love for this song I have, I just don't know, I like it, that's all. Dawn is an absolutely brilliant singer, really strong, a good song, and me thinks that it definately deserved to do better than 9th Place. 9/10.

14. Portugal
A good song, but not memorable enough for the voters, would have done better if there had been jury voting instead of Televoting me thinks. The lead singer looked OK(can't remember her name). Goo dsong, nice blend of different instruments, but nothing special in a year of good songs. 6.5/10.

15. Romania
Once again, nothing sensational, perhaps overshadowed by the UK entrant! Something had obviously gone wrong with her hair, and she did a bit of a Nayah with the necklace. Another song that would have done well a few years ago,  deserved to do better than 6 points, but not that much better. 5/10.

16. United Kingdom
RULE BRITTANIA. A WINNER if I ever heard one. I remember feeling awful at the start of the voting, when teh UK kept getting 3/4/5 points, but then we fought back, and nearly won! My favourite UK entry of All Time! Imaani looked great, a brilliantly modern song, maybe there could have been a bit more of a dance routine, but maybe that would've taken away something special from this song! Sheer Brilliance! 10/10.

17. Cyprus
I didn't really like this on the night, but it has fought it's was out of my bottom 5 and is now a Top 10 challenger. Michalis obviously got a few girlie votes, but the song was no doubt a very strong one. The thunder and lightning effects really made this song stand out, another casualty of the language barrier. A good song, with a good choir! 7/10

18. Netherlands
My favourite on the night, the one I voted for, could have won in a number of different years, 94, 95, 96, maybe come second in 97, just couldn't beat those three songs. It's still in my Top 3, and hasn't been out of it since the contest. Edsilia looked as if she were wearing a maternity dress though, it should have been something like Ruth Jacott's black suit. The backing singers were all brilliant as well, if the Netherlands keep on producing material like this, I can't see them going wrong! 10/10.

19. Sweden
Another song that could have won many other contests. A really strong song that should have easily beaten Norway, Germany, Belgium and Croatia, and battled for a place in the top 5 with Ireland. Jill looked fab, teh backing singers were all fantastic. Jill had a really strong voice, the backing singers underlined this, should have done much better. 9.5/10.

20. Belgium
My second favourite of the night has since dropped out of my Top 5, and at one stage out of my Top 10. But it's back in!!! A really good upbeat song, hard to describe, somewhat gentle, a foot-tapper! The stage layout was good, and Melanie's outfit was great. Maybe did a little better than it deserved, but still deserved a Top 10 place, it's a shame the Belgians have dropped out of Eurovision 2001, but that's what happens when you send something like Envie de Vivre. Anyway, 8/10.

21. Finland
The best Finnish song to hit the ESC ever!!! (Although that wouldn't be if Oot Voimani Mun had been chosen for 2000!) I hadn't heard this song before the contest, but apparently Marika Crook had a cold during ESC week, and her voice was effected by this during the night, but to be honest, I still thought she was strong, definately strong enough to get a Top 10 place! Marika looked good, and Terry Wogan was right, there was a Greek feel to it! 8/10.

22. Norway
Not one of my favourites, and I was quite surprised at how well he did on the night. Lars sang very well on the night, but it's simply not my kind of song, Sorry! 4.5/10.

23. Estonia
Oh My God, HOW BORING!!!! This is easily a candidate for Bottom 5 and I cannot understand to this day how he managed to do so well, the song offered absolutely nothing, not memorable at all, the Estonian entry not to make my Top 5 from 1996-2000! I hate it. 3/10.

24. Turkey
And the quality of songs just keeps getting worse. This is even worse than Mere Lapsed. I hate this dramatic ballad, I heard the Sebnem Paker entry to the 1998 Turkish National Final, it wasn't as strong as Dinle I feel, but it would have been a much better option than this pile of crap, I'm surprised it got into double figures during the voting. 2.5/10.

25. FYR Macedonia
A nice first entrant for FYROM, but nothing to write home about. Got what it deserved, I really like the chorus, and the instrumentals, but that's about it. Vlado is a little old, and the backing singers outfits weren't great. It didn't have enough appeal for the voters. 4.5/10.

1. Israel
2. United Kingdom
3. Netherlands
4. Sweden
5. Ireland
6. Malta
7. Croatia
8. Belgium
9. Finland
10. Slovakia
11. Switzerland
12. Cyprus
13. Poland
14. Portugal
15. France
16. Greece
17. Spain
18. Romania
19. Norway
20. F.Y.R.O.M
21. Slovenia
22. Estonia
23. Turkey
24. Hungary
25. Germany

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