LA La La. Boom Bang-A-Bang. Ding-A-Dong. It's that time again.
The Eurovision song contest, a shameless celebration of pure kitsch with its tacky songs, camp singers and outrageous outfits, will culminate with a glitzy finale in the Serbian capital of Belgrade on May 24. But however trite the lyrics get and however shamelessly Eastern Europeans keep voting for each other, the annual mishmash of power ballads and bubblegum pop shows no sign of flagging.
"The more people knock and criticise it, the bigger Eurovision gets," says John Kennedy O'Connor, author of an official history of the contest.
"It is the biggest one ever this year, with 43 countries compared to just seven in the first one in 1956. It is growing and growing," he said before flying out to Belgrade for Eurovision 2008.
Winning can even do wonders for a state's morale.
Marija Serifovic's victory in 2007 caused an outpouring of national pride in Serbia, more used to rebuffs over its wartime past than to accolades. Serbs took to the streets with flags, tooting horns and chanting her entry, Molitva (Prayer), until the early hours.
Sweden's Abba were Eurovision's most famous winners, Ireland's Johnny Logan won three times -- twice as a singer, once as a composer. Celine Dion won for Switzerland.
Spain triumphed in 1968 with a song using the word "La" 138 times - and now it is ranked as a notorious winner.
A Spanish documentary claimed British singer Cliff Richard was robbed of victory after Spanish dictator Francisco Franco fixed the vote.
The bane of 21st-century Eurovision is tactical voting, but O'Connor insists it is cultural, not political.
"With the Balkans, I genuinely don't think it is political allegiance, as 10 years ago they were trying to wipe each other off the planet," he said.
Eurovision's official king of trivia says "I take it all with a pinch of salt. I enjoy lots of the songs but about half I never want to hear again".
So who'll win in Belgrade?.
He proudly boasted: "I get it right every year . . . This year it is between Ukraine, Russia and Ireland." - REUTERS
