| Ireland in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eurovision Song Contest 2019 | ||||
| Participating broadcaster | Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ) | |||
| Country |  Ireland | |||
| Selection process | Internal selection | |||
| Announcement date | 8 March 2019 | |||
| Competing entry | ||||
| Song | "22" | |||
| Artist | Sarah McTernan | |||
| Songwriters |
| |||
| Placement | ||||
| Semi-final result | Failed to qualify (18th) | |||
| Participation chronology | ||||
| ||||
Ireland was represented at theEurovision Song Contest 2019 with the song "22", written byJanieck Devy, Marcia "Misha" Sondeijker, and Roel Rats, and performed bySarah McTernan. The Irish participating broadcaster,Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ), internally selected its entry for the contest.
The country's participation attracted some calls for a boycott due to Israel's policies towards Palestine. Prior to the contest, the entry was promoted by amusic video and live performances in Spain and the United Kingdom. Ireland competed in thesecond semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest, which took place on 16 May 2019. The song placed last at the end of voting, receiving 16 points and subsequently failing to qualify for thegrand final.
Prior to the 2019 contest,Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ) and its predecessor national broadcasters have participated in theEurovision Song Contest representing Ireland 51 times since RÉ's first entry in1965. They have won the contest a record seven times in total, the most out of any nation. Their first win came in1970, with "All Kinds of Everything" performed byDana. Ireland holds the record for being the only country to win the Eurovision Song contest three times in a row (in1992,1993, and1994), as well as having the only three-time winner (Johnny Logan, who won in1980 as a singer,1987 as a singer-songwriter, and again in 1992 as a songwriter). In2018, Ireland qualified forgrand final for the first time in five years, placing 16th with the song "Together" byRyan O'Shaughnessy.[1]
As part of its duties as participating broadcaster, RTÉ organises the selection of its entry in the Eurovision Song Contest and broadcasts the event in the country. In October 2018, it was revealed that RTÉ had confirmed its participation in the 2019 contest.[2] The confirmation came as some voices in the country began to call for a boycott of the Israeli contest due to their policies towardsPalestinians. This included a campaign from Ireland's third largest political party,Sinn Féin.[3] Additionally, a petition was created that amassed close to 3500 signatures.[4] However, Irish deputy Prime MinisterTánaisteSimon Coveney reaffirmed the Irish commitment to Eurovision, arguing that a boycott would not help the Palestinian cause.[5]
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Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ) confirmed its intentions to participate at the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 on 14 September 2018.[6] On 4 October 2018, the broadcaster opened a submission period where artists and composers "with a proven track record of success in the music industry" were able to submit their entries until 23 November 2018. In addition to the public submissions, RTÉ reserved the right to approach established artists and composers to submit entries and to match songs with different artists to the ones who submitted an entry.[7] At the closing of the deadline, 440 entries were received and 70 entries were shortlisted in January 2019. Rumours of the Irish contestant included formerOne Direction memberNiall Horan,Una Healy fromthe Saturdays and formerX Factor contestantJanet Devlin; however both Horan and Delvin denied the rumours.[8]
On 8 March 2019, RTÉ announced that they had internally selectedSarah McTernan to represent Ireland at the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 in Tel Aviv.[9] McTernan had previously attempted to representSan Marino in the Eurovision Song Contest 2018.[10] Along with the announcement that McTernan would represent Ireland on 8 March, name of the song to be performed by McTernan, "22", which was selected by various focus groups that featured music experts, journalists, Eurovision fans andBIMM students, was announced.[8][11] The song was written byJanieck Devy, Marcia "Misha" Sondeijker and Roel Rats,[10] and was released toSpotify andiTunes on 29 March.[12]
For promotion of the entry, amusic video was filmed at theDollymount Strand inDublin that features McTernan in a large pink coat by the sea.[13] McTernan's first live performance of the song took place on 10 March, during the Irish version ofDancing with the Stars.[14] She also performed at Eurovision fan events in London and Madrid.[15] Additionally, McTernan travelled to Israel to film her introductory postcard, used in the show to introduce her entry. The postcard depicts McTernan atEilot date orchard, riding a horse and dancing among the date trees.[16][17]
Prior to the contest, several groups called for Ireland to boycott the contest due to Israel's treatment of the Palestinian people. The winner of the1994 Eurovision Song Contest,Charlie McGettigan and the host of the1997 contest,Carrie Crowley, were part of a group calling on Ireland to boycott the competition.[18]Micheál Mac Donncha, who wasLord Mayor of Dublin at the time, called for a boycott of the competition, stating his belief that "the horrific ordeal of the Palestinian people needs to be highlighted",[19] while hisSinn Féin colleagueLynn Boylan of theEuropean Parliament wrote to RTÉ to encourage them not to participate that year.[20] Ireland'sTánaiste and minister for foreign affairsSimon Coveney spoke against a boycott, saying that it would "polarise things even further".
In response to these calls, RTÉ stated that the contest was a non-political event, but that it would not sanction any member of staff who did not want to travel to the contest.[21]
The Eurovision Song Contest 2019 consisted of two semi-finals held on the respective dates of 14 and 16 May and the grand final on 18 May 2019. It was held atExpo Tel Aviv in Tel Aviv, Israel.[22] According toEurovision rules, all participating nations with the exceptions of the host country and the "Big Five" (France,Germany,Italy,Spain and theUnited Kingdom) were required to qualify from one of two semi-finals in order to compete for the final, however, the top ten countries from each semi-final progress to the final.[23] On 28 January 2019, a special allocation draw was held which placed each country into one of the two semi-finals, as well as which half of the show they would perform in. Ireland was placed into thesecond semi-final, to be held on 16 May 2019, and was scheduled to perform in the first half of the show.[24]
The running order for the semi-finals was decided by the producers of the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 rather than through another draw; this was done to ensure a cohesive show and mitigate the possibility of similar songs being performed consecutively.[25] Both of the semi-finals were broadcast onRTÉ2 while the final was broadcast onRTÉ One.[26][27] The television broadcasts featured commentary by Irish television personalityMarty Whelan.[28]
On 16 May 2019, Ireland performed 2nd in the second semi final, following the entry fromArmenia and preceding the entry fromMoldova.[29] The performance was themed to fit a 1950s diner and featured McTernan spinning on a bar table and drinking milkshakes.[30] She was praised for her vocal performance.[30]
At the end of the show, Ireland was not announced among the top 10 entries in the second semi-final and therefore failed to qualify to compete in the grand final. It was later revealed that country placed last at number 18 in the semi-final, receiving a total of 16 points: 3 points from the televoting and 13 from the juries.[31]
Voting during the three shows involved each country awarding two sets of points from 1-8, 10 and 12: one from their professional jury and the other from televoting. Each nation's jury consisted of five music industry professionals who are citizens of the country they represent, with their names published before the contest to ensure transparency. The jury judged each entry based on: vocal capacity, the stage performance, the song's composition and originality, and the overall impression by the act. In addition, no member of a national jury was permitted to be related in any way to any of the competing acts in such a way that they cannot vote impartially and independently. The individual rankings of each jury member as well as the nation's televoting results were released shortly after the grand final.[32]
| Score | Televote | Jury |
|---|---|---|
| 12 points | ||
| 10 points | ||
| 8 points |  Italy | |
| 7 points | ||
| 6 points | ||
| 5 points |  Moldova | |
| 4 points | ||
| 3 points |  United Kingdom | |
| 2 points | ||
| 1 point |
|
|
The following members comprised the Irish jury:[32]
| Draw | Country | Jury | Televote | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P. McKenna | E. Reynolds | J. O'Brien | A. O'Connor | R. Hardiman | Rank | Points | Rank | Points | ||
| 01 |  Armenia | 16 | 11 | 4 | 10 | 7 | 9 | 2 | 16 | |
| 02 | Ireland | |||||||||
| 03 | Moldova | 15 | 13 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 16 | 13 | ||
| 04 |  Switzerland | 8 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 10 | 5 | 6 |
| 05 |  Latvia | 17 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 10 | 17 | 11 | ||
| 06 |  Romania | 14 | 9 | 12 | 15 | 11 | 15 | 10 | 1 | |
| 07 |  Denmark | 7 | 3 | 17 | 12 | 9 | 8 | 3 | 9 | 2 |
| 08 |  Sweden | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 6 | 5 |
| 09 |  Austria | 13 | 12 | 15 | 3 | 17 | 12 | 17 | ||
| 10 |  Croatia | 6 | 8 | 7 | 13 | 12 | 10 | 1 | 12 | |
| 11 |  Malta | 5 | 14 | 10 | 5 | 8 | 7 | 4 | 7 | 4 |
| 12 |  Lithuania | 9 | 17 | 8 | 7 | 16 | 13 | 1 | 12 | |
| 13 |  Russia | 12 | 10 | 9 | 11 | 5 | 11 | 4 | 7 | |
| 14 |  Albania | 4 | 16 | 14 | 16 | 15 | 14 | 15 | ||
| 15 |  Norway | 1 | 7 | 6 | 4 | 13 | 4 | 7 | 2 | 10 |
| 16 |  Netherlands | 2 | 4 | 1 | 8 | 4 | 3 | 8 | 3 | 8 |
| 17 |  North Macedonia | 11 | 6 | 5 | 9 | 2 | 5 | 6 | 14 | |
| 18 |  Azerbaijan | 10 | 5 | 11 | 6 | 3 | 6 | 5 | 8 | 3 |
| Draw | Country | Jury | Televote | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P. McKenna | E. Reynolds | J. O'Brien | A. O'Connor | R. Hardiman | Rank | Points | Rank | Points | ||
| 01 | Malta | 13 | 16 | 17 | 6 | 9 | 11 | 15 | ||
| 02 | Albania | 11 | 24 | 21 | 25 | 24 | 22 | 25 | ||
| 03 |  Czech Republic | 23 | 12 | 20 | 14 | 10 | 19 | 16 | ||
| 04 |  Germany | 3 | 23 | 11 | 19 | 16 | 9 | 2 | 23 | |
| 05 | Russia | 15 | 7 | 10 | 16 | 7 | 8 | 3 | 6 | 5 |
| 06 | Denmark | 10 | 9 | 25 | 18 | 15 | 14 | 12 | ||
| 07 |  San Marino | 24 | 18 | 26 | 23 | 22 | 25 | 22 | ||
| 08 | North Macedonia | 9 | 6 | 5 | 8 | 3 | 6 | 5 | 17 | |
| 09 | Sweden | 6 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 9 | 2 |
| 10 |  Slovenia | 25 | 20 | 23 | 26 | 25 | 26 | 19 | ||
| 11 |  Cyprus | 18 | 17 | 13 | 9 | 20 | 18 | 20 | ||
| 12 | Netherlands | 2 | 3 | 2 | 10 | 4 | 3 | 8 | 3 | 8 |
| 13 |  Greece | 26 | 15 | 24 | 11 | 23 | 21 | 26 | ||
| 14 |  Israel | 22 | 25 | 18 | 3 | 18 | 12 | 18 | ||
| 15 | Norway | 1 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 14 | 5 | 6 | 1 | 12 |
| 16 | United Kingdom | 12 | 19 | 12 | 13 | 12 | 16 | 8 | 3 | |
| 17 |  Iceland | 17 | 10 | 15 | 12 | 21 | 17 | 5 | 6 | |
| 18 |  Estonia | 19 | 13 | 22 | 7 | 17 | 13 | 10 | 1 | |
| 19 |  Belarus | 14 | 22 | 16 | 24 | 19 | 23 | 21 | ||
| 20 | Azerbaijan | 5 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 7 | 13 | |
| 21 |  France | 16 | 21 | 8 | 22 | 11 | 15 | 14 | ||
| 22 | Italy | 7 | 14 | 9 | 20 | 8 | 10 | 1 | 7 | 4 |
| 23 |  Serbia | 21 | 11 | 19 | 15 | 13 | 20 | 24 | ||
| 24 | Switzerland | 4 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 10 | 4 | 7 |
| 25 |  Australia | 8 | 4 | 4 | 17 | 6 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 10 |
| 26 |  Spain | 20 | 26 | 14 | 21 | 26 | 24 | 11 | ||