Princess of Wales Kate Middleton has made a surprise appearance in the opening segment of the Eurovision grand final.
Key points:
- Liverpool hosted the contest on behalf of Ukraine because it is fighting Russia's invasion
- The 26 acts that qualified for the grand final span musical styles from ballads to heavy rock to rap
- Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was barred from addressing viewers of the contest
The grand final of Eurovision 2023 kicked off on Saturday (local time) with last year's winner Kalush Orchestra performing on video in Ukraine and live in Liverpool.
The Princess of Wales was featured in the video with last year's winners, playing piano in a blue dress.
"A Eurovision surprise. A pleasure to join Kalush Orchestra in a special performance of last year's winning Eurovision entry. Enjoy the show, Liverpool," The Prince and Princess of Wales tweeted.
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The northern English city hosted the contest on behalf of Ukraine because it is fighting Russia's invasion.
Organisers of Eurovision have walked a tightrope between reflecting the situation in Ukraine and steering clear of overt politics that are not allowed in the contest, which attracted 37 countries this year.
The 26 acts that qualified for the grand final span musical styles from ballads to heavy rock to rap.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was barred from addressing viewers of the contest. The contest last year had 160 million viewers around the world join in to watch the show.
Organiser European Broadcasting Union said granting Mr Zelenskyy's request would be against the non-political nature of the event and its rules prohibiting making political statements.
Fans arriving at the arena on the banks of the river Mersey were draped in the flags of Ukraine, Britain and the other 24 contenders.
The arena can hold around 6,000 people and thousands more can watch in a fan zone.
Liverpool support worker Pam Minto said she was proud of her city and hoped it was doing Ukraine proud.
"We've just loved the whole event right across Liverpool from start to finish, it's just been amazing," she said.
Ukrainian Anastasiia Iovova, who is currently living in Leeds, said Liverpool felt like home abroad.
"We're so proud to be here, so proud that people in UK are supporting us in everything and we are so grateful about this," she said.
The winner is decided by a combination of points awarded by juries and viewers in each competing country, plus for the first time viewers in other countries, who will carry the weight of one participating country.
Reuters
https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMiSmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmFiYy5uZXQuYXUvbmV3cy8yMDIzLTA1LTE0L2thdGUtbWlkZGxldG9uLWV1cm92aXNpb24vMTAyMzQzOTU40gEoaHR0cHM6Ly9hbXAuYWJjLm5ldC5hdS9hcnRpY2xlLzEwMjM0Mzk1OA?oc=5
2023-05-14 01:53:50Z
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