It's Eurovision time again!

[Timster]

I would shag Julia.

[The Hen]

She is quiet shaggable, and she has a great sense of humour which for me is a big turn on.

[Sean]

Azerbaijan.... Azer ... bai .... fucking... jan....

How in the hell did that happen???

Coming pretty much right off the back of the most sublime episode of Doctor Who ever .... Euroviz did a complete deep dive into the ridiculous.

C'mon Dizz, you know the score! There are so many Eastern European and former Soviet countries all voting for each other one of them is bound to win. We were watching the scoring and I was predicting who would get the big marks from each jury with about 80-90% accuracy here...

[SisterMaryFellatio]

Love Julia too...Wogan will always be a fave because thats what I grew up with (Radio 2 breakfast show in our house apparently Radio 1 was to common for us, in a council estate ) but have to admit Julia does a great job and comes in pretty close to Tezza!

[Gob]

Eurovision as a political force?

But light-hearted Eurovision camp sits uneasily with Azerbaijan's human rights record.

When it comes to media freedom, Azerbaijan is ranked 171 out of 191 countries by the Freedom House NGO. In March and April, hundreds of people were detained in peaceful protests against the government. And, according to Amnesty International, increasing numbers of journalists and youth activists are being imprisoned on fabricated charges.

One of those, Amnesty says, is 20-year-old Jabbar Savalan, who at the beginning of May was convicted to two-and-a-half years in prison on drugs charges, after calling for anti-government protests on Facebook.

Human rights activists are now hoping that Eurovision will bring more than just upbeat jingles to the Azeri capital, Baku.

"This victory will now put Azerbaijan in the spotlight which could mean that the government starts treating its citizens better," says Baku-based political analyst Tabib Huseynov.

"The Azeri government cares about its international image. And when you are in the spotlight you behave better."

The authorities in Azerbaijan refute accusations of human rights abuses. When asked by the BBC why peaceful protesters are arrested, government officials said demonstrations are allowed, but only in permitted areas outside the city centre.
Ell and Nikki return home to Baku, 17/5/11 Ell and Nikki made a triumphant return home to Baku on Tuesday
Denial

It is unlikely that international attention during a song festival will necessarily lead to the release of government critics. After all, condemnation from the European Parliament and the European Court of Human Rights has so far not led to that. But the hope is that Azerbaijan will at least try to avoid international criticism which could mar the celebrations.

But Arastun Orujlu, head of the East-West Research Center in Baku, says Eurovision is actually being used to shore up the government's position.

"President Aliyev is promoting the Eurovision win as a success of the government," he said.

"Officials are not prepared to accept there are any problems with democracy, media freedom or human rights. If they deny these problems even exist, it's clear they are not ready for democratic development.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-13431093