The Official Opening Ceremony for the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 is going to be held this evening in Malmö Opera - and our very own hopeful Ryan Dolan and the Irish delegation will be gracing the red carpet at precisely 19:27!
The 27- year- old Strabane native had an early start today (May 12) as he continued to meet- and- greet more Eurovision hopefuls - in particular Emmelie from Denmark who is tipped to win the competition.
Irish Eurovision contestant Ryan Dolan and Danish hopeful Emmelie have fun posing for photos in a playground
Speaking about meeting Emmelie, Ryan said: "It was lovely to meet Emmelie this morning. We strolled down to a local park and hung out at the playground. There were lots of kids out playing in the sunshine with their parents so it was nice to meet them, sign autographs and pose for photos. We even bumped into a woman who lived in Howth for two years so she promised to vote for me! Emmelie presented me with a gift of a red flute."
He added: "Her song has flute music in it and it has an almost Scottish/Irish feel to it. Emmelie lives in Copenhagen just across the Oresund bridge so she hasn't had too far to travel and has lots of local support. We chatted about the opening ceremony tonight. I'm really looking forward to hitting the red carpet and meeting all the fans and press at the Malmo Opera House.
"Our bus is arriving at 6:30 - they're very punctual here so we all have to be on time. We're due to hit the red carpet at exactly 19:27! The event starts at 21:00 and there will be speeches and performances for 30 minutes and then it's off to the Euroclub for some dancing. We won't stay out late tonight though as all the team want to be well rested for the Jury Vote dress rehearsal tomorrow night."
In the back row dancers Alan McGrath and Colm Farrell and drummer Nicky Bailey. Front row (L-R)backing vocalists Leanne Moore, Alison Vard Miller, Ryan Dolan and the entry from Denmark Emmelie De Forest
Derek Mooney and his team arrived today. They will broadcast on Radio One from Malmo Arena from tomorrow.
Ryan Dolan will perform for Ireland in the Eurovision Song Contest Semi-Final in Malmo, Sweden on Tuesday May 14.
