They say that Eurovision is like the World Cup for pop culture, and we concur. After all, the event gathers nations across the continent (and our beloved Australia) every year, through music alone. And just so that a reigning country can claim that highly coveted glass mic trophy (and a whole load of street cred of course).
If you’re a bit of a Eurovision stan you’re probably dressing your dining room with Union Jacks and bunting as we speak. Or perhaps you’re putting together a sparkly number for your mates’ viewing party if you’re not one of the lucky few attending the event in Liverpool’s M&S Bank Arena IRL.
Whichever tribe you’re in, and whoever you’re rooting for to win, beware that you’re about to embark on a historic day for European Pop culture.
I went backstage at the Eurovision 2023, with Moroccanoil – who is the official presenting partner of Eurovision – and here’s the tea.
What date is the Eurovision 2023 final?
The event consists of two semi-finals and then a grand final taking place on May 13th *tomorrow night.
As you may know this year’s Eurovision is particularly special as it marks the first time the UK has hosted the competition since 1998. This is of course thanks to Sam Ryder’s historic runner-up finish in last year's final, seconded only to Ukraine’s Kalush Orchestra.
Unfortunately, due to the ongoing war in Ukraine, they were unable to host this year's competition as stated by the hosting rules. However, as runner’s up, the UK has graciously stepped in to make it happen, and the home hub of The Beatles – Liverpool – won the bid.
What’s happening backstage
GLAMOUR got first dibs to experience the explosive and electric energy backstage and learned a whole lot.
Firstly, the show would be nothing without the 1800+ people working together like a well-oiled and well-lit machine. In fact, for every spotlight shining on your favourite act, or those colossal moving props, there is one lighting engineer or a Liverpudlian student-intern moderating it, and keeping the show on track.
Liverpool took its duties as the host very seriously, and it has accommodated Ukraine’s history and heritage through and through – from the logo colours representing the Ukrainian flag to 12 giant Soloveiko Song birds dotted across the city (symbolising different Ukrainian regions bringing their songs and stories to the city) and stage lights resembling a big warm hug. It’s all very thought out.
Ivona Kostyna discusses the mental turmoil of war, supporting a husband on the frontline and, importantly, her hope for the future.
Backstage organisation ran like a military mission. I was quickly made aware of human traffic, as there are people literally running around the narrow backstage corridors and there are no speed limits set in place. I made myself small to not get in the way and I felt like a true fly on the wall.
Security is tight, passports are mandatory for entry passes, and collecting accreditation was like going through airport security. Safety first.
Once you through, the world of glam is masked by trailers, grey walls and then the shining light that is The Bubble. The Bubble is the safe space dedicated for the delegations and contestants to get ready, chill, eat, drink and just exist in chaotic peace (a paradoxical safe haven).
We can't wait to hear her perform at this year's contest in Liverpool.
This is where you will find Mae Muller, the young Brit representing the UK in this year's contest. You will also brush shoulders with the likes of Ted Lasso’s Hannah Waddingham and Graham Norton, who looked relaxed and in incredibly good spirits. Who wouldn’t? This event really does bring out the joy in anyone.
While in The Bubble, you will also find a colossal sized glam room. Moroccanoil, being the main headliner of the event, has decked out the space with 18 styling stations and 31 stylists; there was no shortage of hairdos being whipped up left, right and centre.
And get this – the brand has already used a whopping 15,000ml of Moroccanoil Treatment Oil, over 12,000ml of Texture Sprays, 53k millilitres of hairspray and 25k ml of dry shampoo. And it’s not even the final yet.
That’s the thing about Eurovision: there are a lot of full-on hair styles, and with that comes great haircare and a whole load of hairspray.
Speaking to Kevin Hughes, Moroccanoil's Global Artistic Director, I learnt that the hairstyle people were most obsessing over was Czechia’s performers, who all sported XXL length braids that doubled up as hairstyle and prop.
“The intricacies that go with it, the slick back centre part are super in right now,” says Kevin. The band, who also mirrored each other's moves and looks, twirled, swung, whipped, and danced with the braids, and even though they were not their own, they stayed put. The secret?
“We used synthetic hair to build the 6 foot ponies and each girl had two stylists: one separating the hair and the other person incorporating it into the artist’s natural hair,” says Kevin. “No pins were used – the trick was to create a super tight ponytail and use the elastic base as the anchor to feed the hair through.” So it’s super secure.
Clap to that I say, as losing a whole ponytail in the middle of a performance sounds kinda iconic at best but a bit annoying at worst.
Other big hair trends included blonde bobs, like Lithuania’s Monika Linkytė, or the super long modern shag cut from Sweden’s Loreen. Luckily for the artists, the trailers are closely dotted around the hair stations.
The first trailer I spotted is labelled Peppa Pig. If you watched the first semi, you may recall a mention of this on the live show. Peppa Pig had mysteriously taken over TV presenter Rylan Clark’s dressing room and we can only assume she must have been looking for a new haircut, as Rylan’s trailer has a prime position by the glam room entrance.
Or like me, Peppa was simply mesmerised by people getting their touch ups by the experts.
I sat attentively watching Austria’s satirical singers (who appear to be among the favourites to win this year) getting a wet hair look and some bouncy curls put in. “Poe, Poe, Poe, Poe, Poe… There's a ghost in my body”. They sure did come up with a catchy chorus for their clever “Who The Hell Is Edgar?” entry song that has a few hidden meanings and political statements (apparently “Zero dot zero zero three” is in reference to Spotify’s $0.003 royalty rate that artists receive for one listen of a track. Eeek).
I tapped my feet to the imaginary beat while watching the stylist apply those Ol’ Hollywood curls on Salena, and that’s all I could think about…That, and the amount of hairspray being used.
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As you walk about, you will find the monitoring room, the camera room, the lighting room – which had a hidden corner with closed curtains and a handwritten sign saying “The Crying Corner.” Its purpose? Well, that’s pretty self explanatory – as much joy as this event brings to us viewers, it can get intense being backstage in the darkness creating this epic show. It’s streamed to 200 million of us, one wrong move and that’s a lot of people to explain yourself to.
In the corridors, you can see contestants having mics fitted, mean stage outfits being altered last minute – some that required x4 people to carry (I’m specifically referencing Iru Khechanovi who represented Georgia here, with her long sweeping cape and diamantes placed across the temples of her face that ran all the way down her hair). Very MET Gala meets camp energy.
Speaking of energy, it’s electric before the show but tense. You can feel the nerves, but also the excitement seeping through the concrete walls and trailer doors. One thing you are not short of backstage? A smile. Even if you get a little shoved around as the lighting guy squeezes through, you’ll be greeted with a polite and pleasant interaction.
Contestants are seen interacting with their competition, which is refreshing to witness, and considering how many people there are roaming backstage, the chaos seems controlled and everyone just appears to be having a blast. I could see why.
Showered with sparkle, I couldn’t wait to get front-of-house and sit by the audience to soak up that IRL electrifying atmosphere. Seeing all the prep turn into an epic and effortless-looking execution, makes you appreciate every detail that goes into Eurovision even more.
If this is what the semis are giving us, I can’t even imagine what we will be treated to in the finals.
Are you going to be watching?
For more from Glamour UK Beauty Writer Shei Mamona, follow her on Instagram @sheimamona
