What time does the Eurovision 2025 final start and who is in it?

The Eurovision Song Contest is an exciting annual music competition that brings together countries from all over Europe and beyond. This year, the contest is being held in Basel, Switzerland, and the UK's entry is a talented group called Remember Monday. This country-pop trio will perform their catchy song 'What The Hell Just Happened'. During their rehearsals, they dazzled the audience with their colorful outfits, featuring pink, blue, and yellow dresses, all while performing on a beautifully decorated stage with a chandelier and candle lighting. The Eurovision Song Contest has a rich history, having first taken place in Switzerland in 1956. The theme for this year's contest is 'Welcome Home', celebrating the event's origins. Each song must be original and cannot exceed three minutes in length. Additionally, songs cannot have been released or performed publicly before September 1, 2024. The rules also state that lead vocals must be performed live, meaning no lip-syncing or auto-tuning is allowed, and each act can have a maximum of six singers and dancers. The grand final of the contest is set to take place on Saturday, May 17, at St Jakobshalle, an indoor arena in Basel. The event will be broadcast live, with Graham Norton serving as the host. Listeners can also tune in on the radio, where Scott Mills and Rylan Clark will provide coverage. Inside the arena, the international Eurovision coverage will be hosted by Hazel Brugger, Sandra Studer, and Michelle Hunziker. The UK's jury result will be presented live by singer Sophie Ellis-Bextor. This year, a total of 37 countries are participating in Eurovision 2025, with all but one of them having taken part in last year's contest in Malmö, Sweden. Montenegro is making a return to the competition after a break since 2022, taking the place of Moldova, which withdrew due to financial and logistical challenges. While most of the participating countries are European, Australia has been a regular participant since being invited to join the celebrations for Eurovision's 60th anniversary in 2015. However, if Australia were to win, they would not be able to host the contest. Other non-European countries, such as Israel, also participate because they are members of the European Broadcasting Union. Unfortunately, Russia has been banned from the contest since 2022. Switzerland is hosting Eurovision 2025 because Nemo, a contestant from last year, won the contest with the song 'The Code'. Nemo is also set to perform as a special guest this year, despite having previously expressed concerns about the contest. This marks the third time Switzerland has hosted Eurovision, and their contestant this year is Zoë Më, who will perform her song 'Voyage'. The 'big five' nations, which include the UK, Italy, Spain, France, and Germany, automatically qualify for the final due to their financial support for the contest. Switzerland also receives a special spot in the final to honor their victory from the previous year. In the first semi-final, several countries qualified for the final, including Albania, Estonia, Iceland, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, San Marino, Sweden, and Ukraine. The second semi-final saw countries like Armenia, Austria, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Israel, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, and Malta also secure their spots in the final. Remember Monday, the UK's entry, consists of three talented members: Lauren Byrne, Holly-Anne Hull, and Charlotte Steele. The trio formed their group while attending school in Farnborough, Hampshire, and they gained recognition by appearing on the TV talent show The Voice in 2019. Lauren and Holly-Anne have also performed in popular West End shows like Phantom of the Opera and Six: The Musical. They are hoping to achieve a better result this year, as the last two UK contestants finished at the bottom of the leaderboard in 2024 and 2023. There is some controversy surrounding Israel's entry this year. Over 70 former Eurovision contestants, including the UK's Mae Muller, have signed an open letter calling for Israel's public broadcaster KAN to be banned from the contest. They allege that the broadcaster is complicit in serious issues in Gaza. Eurovision has always maintained that it is a non-political event, but many people are upset about Israel's participation. Last year, Israel's contestant faced boos during her performance, and there were protests outside the venue. The voting process for Eurovision is an exciting aspect of the contest. In the final, each participating country awards two sets of scores: one from a jury of music experts and another from fans across Europe. Fans can vote for their favorite songs through phone calls, text messages, or the official Eurovision app. They can vote for as many different acts as they like, but they are not allowed to vote for their own country. Once the voting lines close, each country will have selected a 'Top 10' of their favorite songs. The most popular song receives 12 points, the second choice gets 10 points, and the remaining songs are scored from eight to one. Additionally, viewers from countries that do not participate in Eurovision can also have their say, as their votes are combined into a single bloc known as the 'rest of the world vote'.