British Eurovision hopefuls Remember Monday have a distinct edge in this year’s competition, according to commentator Graham Norton.
The trio, comprised of school friends Lauren Byrne, Holly-Anne Hull, and Charlotte Steele, stand out as the first all-female group to represent the UK since Precious in 1999.
Norton believes their unique sound gives them a significant advantage in a diverse field.
Remember Monday will face stiff competition in Saturday’s grand final in Basel, Switzerland.
Among the frontrunners are Sweden’s Kaj with their sauna-themed anthem Bara Bada Bastu, Austria’s JJ (Johannes Pietsch) performing the poignant Wasted Love, and Israeli singer Yuval Raphael with the ballad New Day Will Rise.
On Saturday, Remember Monday will be eighth to compete – meaning they will follow Raphael, Norway’s Kyle Alessandro, the youngest Eurovision act this year at 19 years old, Estonia’s Tommy Cash with the Italian parody Espresso Macchiato, and Ukraine’s Ziferblat.
Graham Norton, the Irish talk show host and seasoned Eurovision commentator, will once again provide his witty commentary for the BBC broadcast.
He said: “Remember Monday have a great advantage in that they are unlike any other act this year.
“Their vocals and harmonies are flawless, the song has a very strong hook and the trio are hugely likeable. With a decent place in the running order they should do very well indeed.”
Norton said that successful acts have good songs that have a “hook” and “interesting staging”.
He added: “It doesn’t have to be complicated, just clever and fresh.
“Lastly, and this is the hardest of all, the act needs to be likeable and somehow get their personality across to the audience. Not forgetting great vocals.”
Speaking about the entries this year, he said: “It’s a big year for party anthems and the two that stand out for me are Miriana Conte representing Malta, and Emmy (Kristiansen) for Ireland with an unlikely banger about an immortal dog (unfortunately they didn’t make it through to the Grand Final).
“Cutting through all the noise I think Italy might have a good year with a classic rock ballad performed by Lucio Corsi.”
Norwegian singer Kristiansen failed during Thursday’s semi-final to get enough votes for Laika Party, which imagines the Soviet space dog as alive, while Malta’s high-energy diva Conte did progress to the final with Serving.
As one of the “big five” along with the UK, Spain, France and Germany, Italian singer Corsi did not have to compete in earlier bouts.
He did perform his glam rock track Volevo Essere Un Duro (I Wanted To Be A Tough Guy) on Tuesday night.
Norton said: “I know nothing about the plans for the grand final yet, but when it’s a country like Switzerland that haven’t hosted for 36 years, I suspect they are going to pull out all the stops. I can’t wait to see what they have in store.”
There has been some speculation that Canadian singer Celine Dion, who won for the Swiss with Ne Partez Pas Sans Moi in Dublin 1988, would perform in the grand final.
One confirmed act is last year’s winner Swiss singer Nemo, who triumphed with The Code, and will perform their new song Unexplainable during the event.
Norton said: “To be honest I love everything about Eurovision. It’s scale and sincerity are unmatched.
“The extreme range of musical styles and talents in the contest combined with the coming together of countries and fans makes it a contest like no other.”
The winner will be determined by a combination of points from national juries and viewer votes in the participating 26 countries, along with a separate rest of the world vote.
TV coverage for the final is provided by Norton, on BBC One at 8pm BST on Saturday, while British audiences can listen to BBC Radio 2 and BBC Sounds for live coverage with presenters Rylan Clark and Scott Mills.
