The author of a new book on Ireland’s illustrious - and then not so illustrious - Eurovision history has said that Nicky Byrne should qualify for the grand finale of the contest but may struggle on the big night this Saturday.
After two years of failing to qualify for the final, Ireland is pinning its Eurovison hopes on Byrne, who will perform the Irish entry, Sunlight, on Thursday night’s semi-final in the hope of making it to showdown on Saturday.
However, Laois man Mick Lynch, who has just published What’s Another Year: Ireland’s First Five Decades at Eurovision, is cautious about the former Westlife singer’s hopes in the final.
“When I heard the song I didn’t think much of it and neither did the Irish public,” Lynch told TEN. “It barely made the top 70 in the charts but having seen it a few times since - because, unfortunately, presentation is now a big part of Eurovison - I think it’s good enough to get out of the semi but he hasn’t a hope in the final. That’s my personal view and of course I want to be proved wrong."
Lynch added: “I think too many people are patriotic and say oh it’s gonna do well, it’s gonna do great. I’m just calling it as I see it. I’ve listened to seven or eight other songs that I think are way better than our entry."
“We weren’t in the last two finals and I think personally for us if we do get into the final it would be great for us, for viewing figures and everything, it would be a great achievement. I think Nicky’s odds for getting through the semi-final are good and we have the UK voting on our semi and I hope the whole Westlife fanclub will be voting for him but I just don’t think it’s a winning song. It’s an average song.”
Author Mick Lynch pictured with two-time Eurovision winner Johnny Logan
Lynch, who also co-wrote the acclaimed 2009 book The Beatles in Ireland with Damian Smyth, added that Ireland’s failure to make it beyond the semi-final for the past two years is down to the method of choosing the song for the Eurovision.
“Well, all our seven winners in the past were never picked by a public vote,” Lynch says. “They were all done by jury. I’m not impressed that the contest to choose an Irish entry for Eurovision is slotted into half of The Late Late Show.
“I know certainly in countries like Sweden, they take it very seriously. I think you need to hear the winning song more than two or three times before it’s chosen by the public. It’s fine to use the public for a referendum but the public chose Dustin.
Lynch with 1975 and 1977 Eurovison greats, The Swarbriggs
“I still don’t like the idea of two semi finals and a final in the space of four or five days. If you’re going to do that send all 46 songs into the EBU and let them have a jury who picks the best 26 for the final because unfortunately the five countries that contribute to the EBU the most are Britain, France, Italy, Germany and Spain and they get automatic entry into the contest every year no matter how shite the song is. Money dictates of course.”
What’s Another Year: Ireland’s First Five Decades at Eurovision covers Ireland’s magnificent seven winners in some detail and also examines Eurovision events, major and minor, including the bomb threat at the Point Depot in Dublin in 1997, how Bill Whelan funded Riverdance, “Gogan, Logan and Wogan”, and Buck Fizz’s eye-raising dance routine in 1981.
Lynch says he wrote the book as a labour of love after years of hearing only the winners’ stories at Eurovision. “As Maxi says in the book, just because you don’t win does that mean you lose?” he says. “Everybody gets something out of taking part in Eurovision. OK this is our 50th year entering and we’ve had seven winners but 43 have done just as good a job, OK they didn’t finish as well. I think they deserve to have their story told as well.”
What’s Another Year: Ireland’s First Five Decades at Eurovision is out now on Liberties Press
