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EUROVISION

Conchita to make train and tram announcements

Things are going to sound a little different on Vienna’s public transport in May - with the voice of Austrian Eurovision winner Conchita Wurst greeting people at underground stations and on trains and trams around the city during the Song Contest.

Published: 4 March 2015 11:23 CET
Conchita to make train and tram announcements
Conchita Wurst. Photo: EPA/HERBERT NEUBAUER

The Eurovision semi-finals are being held in Vienna’s Stadthalle on May 19th and 21st and the final takes place on May 23rd.

Bearded drag queen Wurst won the Eurovision Song Contest for Austria in May last year.

"Conchita Wurst will record announcements for trains and stations, in German, English and French," Wiener Linien transport spokesman Answer Lang told Austrian broadcaster ORF.

Lang said he could not yet give details as to what exactly Wurst would say. “The announcements will be concentrated particularly on public transport around Song Contest locations,” he added. They will be broadcast during the Song Contest week, and maybe earlier.

Vienna looks set to temporarily rebrand itself in May, with the slogan "City of Vienna – # 12 points" appearing on posters and billboards around the capital. It refers to the maximum number of points possible in the competition.

Alexander Wrabetz, director of Austrian broadcaster ORF, said everything will be done to ensure Vienna scores top points as a host city.

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EUROVISION

Sweden among favourites after leaping through to Eurovision final

Cornelia Jakobs, Sweden's entry to the Eurovision Song Contest, burst into tears and jumped onto presenter Mario Acampas, after shooting through to the final on Thursday night.

Published: 13 May 2022 08:09 CEST
Sweden among favourites after leaping through to Eurovision final

Jakobs was emotional at the press conference after her victory, telling the story of her progress from an “largely unknown” indie artist to the Eurovision stage. 

“There are a lot of feelings right now in this little body, an extremely large amount of feelings that can’t really fit in, so they’re exploding,” she said, before beginning to cry. “But I’m so happy and overwhelmed by all the support I’ve got from all these fantastic countries.” 

When the time came to pick lots for which half of the final she would appear in, she leapt onto Mario Acampas, the presenter asking questions at the press conference, wrapping her legs around his waist and clasping herself tightly to his torso. 

He then walked her over to the bowl where the lots were lying. 

“I want you to choose the second half,” she said to him. “Imagine that I have a pistol here and on the count of three I’m going to shoot you if you don’t choose.”

He refused to pick for her so she took one herself and got the second half. 

Jakobs, with her song, “Hold me closer”, was the clear favourite to go into the final, and will go through alongside Finland’s The Rasmus, and his song Jezebel, Serbia’s Konstrakta with “In corpore sano”, as well as entries from Belgium, Czechia, Azerbaijan, Poland, Estonia, Australia, and Romania. 

You can see her performance on Thursday in the video below. 

In the final, she will meet the other favourites, which include Ukraine, Italy, and the United Kingdom. 

The final will be shown on Sweden’s state broadcaster SVT at 9pm on Saturday. 

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