The triumph of eurovision

So much is being written about the Crewe and Nantwich result that the time has come to focus on the other poll which is receiving coverage today - the outcome of Eurovision. UK last, Russia first and our song outcompeted by assorted Balkan and FSU weirdos - all down to dastardly coalition voting. Clear that we have no coalition beyond Ireland (who gave us 8 points) and San Marino (6 points). Doesn't augur well for CAP reform. Even our oldest ally, Portugal, gave 12 points to an appalling effort from Spain and nada to us - maybe as revenge over the Lisbon treaty. (lets you are concerned this means I actually watched eurovision, I will admit only to watching the voting - certainly not the songs... which are not where the action is).

So Terry Wogan is threatening to quit; serious debate on whether we should stalk off in a huff and create an alternative competition to give Western Europe a chance as we - apart from the Norwegians who seemed to get 5 points from everyone - and other Western countries no longer have the opportunity to show their best face to the world with great songs such as Congratulations, Boom-Bang-a-Bang etc.

But in the week when Moscow had to pay host to two sets of English fans, in a League where our money increasingly prices out anyone's else's ability to compete, it seems churlish to resent giving the poorer and more marginalised countries of Europe a stage on which they can have eyes on the prize - and vote for each other if they want. Much more heartening to see Croats voting for Serbs in Eurovision (I think they did at least) than taking chunks out of each other. And we can sit back smugly and note that the Russian winner was singing in at least some sort of English - as were 95% of the other entrants. So while England may not have won, English certainly has.

So Sir Terry needs to relax and embrace the new Europe. And maybe we ought to be prepared to give up our automatic right of entry - and suffer the same fate as the Irish turkey.