With 25 songs to get through and plenty of elaborate stage designs in a huge arena, technical difficulties during the Eurovision Song Contest can happen. But during the 70th edition of the long-running event, one country drew the short straw.
Czechia’s Daniel Žižka was dogged by several issues during their performance of ‘Crossroads’, with the picture quality being grainy at one point before freezing. In another part, a camera operator could be seen reflected in a mirror.
Graham Norton, who commentates on the BBC’s live broadcast of the event, commented upon the blunders, saying: “A great performance vocally, but quite a few technical problems there.”
EBU / Corinne Cumming
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“That did not happen in any of the rehearsals. The distorted picture, and I think the cameraman inside the mirrors fell. I’m not quite sure. Czechia won’t be happy about that. But, the show goes on,” he added.
With Žižka’s ‘Crossroads’ being well received by fans of the contest, several viewers took to social media to express their annoyance at the various technical issues, with some suggesting they should get another shot on stage.
“Czechia needs to perform again, technical issues for the whole 2nd part of the song… it isn’t fair,” wrote one viewer on X, while another noted: “I wonder if Czechia will argue that they should sing again, that was about 30 seconds of technical issues.”
“If letting Czechia perform again due to the technical difficulties is going to take 3 minutes off of the hosts’ bullshit, I’m making a formal request then,” quipped one viewer, with another writing: “I’m actually so annoyed, Czechia you need to bring them to court.”
“Surely they have to allow Czechia to perform again? That wasn’t his fault at all,” said another viewer, while one viewer said that it was a “huge shame” about the technical difficulties given Žižka’s “stunning” performance.
Despite viewers’ wishes, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) confirmed that Žižka wouldn’t be performing again, despite acknowledging that there was a “small” issue.
EBU / Alma Bengtson
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“There was a small camera issue during the performance of Czechia’s song at the Grand Final of the 70th Eurovision Song Contest. The artist’s performance and audio were not affected so the song will not be performed again,” reads the statement (via BBC).
Czechia qualified for the Grand Final after coming through Thursday’s (14 May) semi-final, and was the 11th country in the running order for the showpiece event. Look Mum No Computer, who represented the UK, was the 14th act to perform.
The Eurovision Song Contest airs on BBC One and streams on BBC iPlayer.
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Reporter, Digital Spy George is a freelance writer who specialises in Movies and TV. After graduating with a degree in Film Studies and Journalism from De Montfort University, in which he analysed the early works of Richard Linklater for his dissertation, he wrote for several websites for GRV Media. His film tastes vary from blockbusters like Mission: Impossible and John Wick to international directors such as Paolo Sorrentino and Hirokazu Kore-eda, and has attended both the London and Berlin film festivals.