Photo by Austin Neill on Unsplash
Throughout the world there are events which people wait a whole year to see, or sometimes more, on the television or live (if they are lucky enough to attend). There are things such as the Football World Cup, Six Nations, Cricket World Cup, the Olympics and more sporting events, but there’s not just sports which people look forward to. There are also things such as Notting Hill Carnival, Crufts, Rio Carnival, Royal Variety Performance and probably many more which I have missed off of the list.
But they are not events which everyone looks forward to. Some people may love them, others may really not enjoy them. However, there is one event which I personally feel divides the opinions of people much more than any other do… the Eurovision Song Contest.
For those of you who aren’t familiar with the Eurovision Song Contest, it is an international song competition which takes place annually and features participants representing primarily European countries. Each participating country submits an original song to be performed on live television and radio, with the competing countries then casting votes for the others countries’ songs to determine the winner.
Now I know from listening to those around me, that Eurovision causes a real division as to how people feel about it. You have those who love it because it is entertaining, full of music and, at times, can be a bit silly. You then also have those who really don’t like it, because they find it too silly. They think that it is too cheesy and that it is a waste of time. Personally, I enjoy Eurovision and seeing the entries which are included in it, however, I do sometimes find it a bit much to sit and watch the whole evening from start to finish!
But you are probably wondering why I’m even talking about Eurovision. It’s been cancelled this year, so it’s not like I’m encouraging you to go and watch it, so what has suddenly made me talk about it?
Well I love to watch films, as you heard in my last blog, and I watched a new film last week on Netflix which was called ‘Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga’. The film follows Icelandic singers Lars and Sigrit as they are given the chance to represent their country at the Eurovision Song Contest. We see that no one really has faith in them to do this, and that Iceland have basically admitted to themselves that they have no chance this year. However, for Lars and Sigrit this was their dream, and they were determined. They would not give up and give in just because of what people are saying.
For those of you who follow Eurovision you’ll know in recent years the UK haven’t done great within the competition. But the UK don’t give up, they don’t quit and say ‘we’re not entering this year’. They continue to try. To date the UK have won the contest 5 times, however, they also hold 2 records: They have the longest run of consecutive appearances in the Grand Final with 59 times in a row and they also hold the record for 2nd place, finishing in it 15 times. Now, to me, that’s a pretty good track record! If they were to quit now due to the last few years, then they would never have a chance at getting back up into that top 3, but to date we continue to enter, and are determined.
In 2011 the boyband, Blue, were the UK’s entry for the song contest. They entered with a song called ‘I Can’ and the chorus said this:
I Can, I Will, I know I can untie these hands, and get back up again.
I’m going to finish on that and leave you with these words.
You can do anything if you put your mind to it. If you are determined and really want something, go for it. Don’t give up on your dreams, because although they may not be happening right now, you never know when you can have that breakthrough. Be like Lars and Sigrit and don’t let others words put you off.
If you’re determined, patient and proactive, who knows where it could get you!
- Antony.
This week’s resource…
Film: Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga (12 Rating)
Can be found: Netflix
About: Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga is a 2020 American musical-comedy film directed by David Dobkin and written by Will Ferrell and Andrew Steele. The film follows Icelandic singers Lars Erickssong and Sigrit Ericksdóttir (Ferrell and Rachel McAdams) as they are given the chance to represent their country at the Eurovision Song Contest. Pierce Brosnan, Dan Stevens, and Demi Lovato also star.
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