Excited fans flock to Basel for Eurovision final

British Eurovision fanatics are flocking to Switzerland for the 69th edition of the annual song contest.

Among them are Eurovision regular attendees Kevin Stephenson, Leigh Lester and Daniel Folly, from West Sussex, who were onboard a specially commissioned EasyJet flight from Gatwick to Basel.

Meanwhile, Gary Speirs, from Brighton, East Sussex, is celebrating his 34th contest and said that it was "difficult to imagine his life" without the show.

All are gearing up for Saturday's final where the UK's hopefuls, Remember Monday, from Surrey, will be competing.

Mr Speirs said the atmosphere was electric at a gathering of UK fans ahead of the second semi-final.

"There's fans from everywhere, it's quite impressive," he said.

"I've met so many people over the years. I love the international feel."

For fans like Mr Speirs, Eurovision is more than a one-night event.

"The music, the artists, the community – you get invested. It's a year-round thing for people like me," he said.

The host venue in Basel has a smaller capacity (12,400) than in Malmö, Sweden, last year (15,500).

But the 36,000 seater St. Jakob-Park outdoor arena – Switzerland's largest football stadium – is hosting a viewing party on the night of the final.

Eurovision blogger Molly O'Brien, from Cranbrook in Kent, said she will be watching the contest from a hotel in Italy this year.

"I've got friends in Basel, I'm very jealous of them," she told BBC Radio Kent.

The UK ranked third in most tickets purchased for the 2025 contest, according to the European Broadcasting Union, behind the host country Switzerland and Germany in second.

Attendees will be joined by visitors from more than 80 countries and territories, including those not represented in the competition like New Zealand, Brazil, Philippines and Japan.

The grand final of the Eurovision Song Contest will air on 17 May at 20:00 BST on BBC1, BBC iPlayer, BBC Radio 2 and BBC Sounds.

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