The Scoop

Ryan O’Shaughnessy jokingly says: ‘RTE must be happy I lost’

No need to host in 2019, no problem.

After 4 unsuccessful bids,  Ryan O’Shaugnessy finally brought Ireland back to the Eurovision grand final. In a recent interview, he didn’t seem upset about not winning and he jokes that RTE isn’t either. 

Everyone was happy, RTE included

Ryan O’Shaugnessy represented Ireland in Lisbon last month with his melancholic entry Together. He managed to bring the country back to the grand final for the first time since 2013 and achieved the country’s best result since 2011. When interviewed by the Irish newspaper Herald.ie, the 25-year-old  singer expressed his satisfaction about his Eurovision adventure saying:

“It was great, it was super – I don’t think you can prepare for the bubble you find yourself in when you’re there,”

He was also happy about his rapid rise in the bookmakers, who previously thought he wouldn’t qualify, while also feeling some pressure.

“We went from 250/1 to 7/1 with the bookies, so we had a bit of success when it comes to that kind of thing – we got through the semi-finals.

He ended the interview joking that RTE are probably not too disappointed he didn’t come home with the trophy so they don’t have to worry about hosting.

“I think everyone was happy, and RTE were happy we didn’t win it so we don’t have to host it next year!”

One of the most talked-about performances of 2018

Ryan’s performance at Eurovision featured two dancers (Alan McGrath and Kevin O’Dwyer) who acted as a same-sex couple. It made the performance one of the most talked-about of the year. His performance was censored by the Chinese station Mango TV as it violated Chinese regulations. As a result, EBU ended its collaboration with them and prohibited them from broadcasting the rest of the 2018 shows.

Songwriting key for victory

Although Ireland has yet to confirm whether it will participate in Israel, Ryan believes that in order for Ireland to win they need to focus on the songwriting process. He also thinks that they don’t need to look far from home to find quality writers saying:

“There are amazing writers in Ireland”

Ireland in the Eurovision Song Contest

Ireland first participated at Eurovision back in 1965, represented by Butch Moore with “Walking the Streets in the Rain”. In total, they participated 52 times, only missing out twice in 1983 and 2002. Ireland still holds the record of most wins, having won 7 times in 1970, 1980, 1987, 1992, 1993, 1994 and 1996. Recently their success at the contest has been frail. In 2013 they placed last in the grand final with just 5 points and failed to qualify every year between 2014 and 2017. This year, Ryan O’Shaughnessy turned their fortunes around and qualified for the final, placing 16th. Let’s enjoy his emotional performance once again:

Did you like Ryan O’Shaughnessy’s song and performance? Do you think it deserved a better result? Can Ireland win again soon?
Let us know in the comments below or on social media @ESCXTRA.

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