Let’s think big today. Countries that is. There are few, despite how small our fair continent is. But nowadays Eurovision songs don’t need to come from European countries.
I’m talking Australia. Honorary Europe for two weeks in May and one in November. They’ve almost won, as you’ll now. But in 2017 Australia’s broadcaster SBS sent today’s birthday boy Isaiah Firebrace. Hot on the heels of finishing as runners-up in 2016, Isaiah had a tough act to follow. Winning our favourite TV show would always be a mountain, but he steered his song safely through the semi-final, and managed his country’s third top 10 place in a row in the Grand Final. Televoting results were very difficult to come by for him on the Saturday night – only getting them from Denmark. A strange thing when the other 171 came from juries. What does this tell us? He had a good jury-bait song. Or the Australian diaspora in Europe weren’t watching.
Isaiah is 20 today.
Happy birthday, Isaiah!
