Sophie Ellis Bextor reveals she turned down opportunity to be a Eurovision judge

Eurovision hero Sam Ryder brought the United Kingdom together as we dreamt of our first Eurovision win in a quarter of a century over the weekend. The 32 year old singer came out on top in the jury votes but was pipped to the crown by Ukraine's Kalush Orchestra when the public's scores were added. The Ukrainian act – who were given special permission to leave their war-torn country and perform at the contest – received 431 points from a maximum of 468 in the public vote, giving them an emotional victory in Turin, Italy, on Saturday night.

UK Eurovision hero Sam Ryder closes the gap on Harry Styles overnight in the race to become this week's Official UK Number 1 single.After placing second to Ukraine's Kalush Orchestra and their winning track Stefania in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 last weekend, Essex singer and songwriter Sam Ryder continues to rocket up the midweek Official Singles Chart with SPACE MAN.

Alan Carr and his ex-husband Paul Drayton enjoyed some quality time together over the weekend as they watched Eurovision today. Despite their shock split this year, the pair have remained good friends and in videos posted on social media, they were having a wonderful time as they joined the nation in watching the UK's entry Sam Ryder finish in second place. Paul, 50, shared some hilarious clips of the Chatty Man star parading around in a white kaftan-style dress paired with a long brunette wig.

Eurovision entry Subwoolfer have shared a ‘Jolene’ parody about their time in Turin.The duo, who comically donned yellow wolf masks in this year’s tournament, were 50-1 to win in Italy with their track ‘Give That Wolf A Banana’.They finished the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 in 10th place with 182 points, some way off the winners, Ukraine’s Kalush Orchestra and UK runner up Sam Ryder.Now, to mark their time in Italy they have posted a video of themselves, which you can view below, goofing around in Turin performing a parody of Dolly Parton‘s famous hit ‘Jolene’.The clip sees the duo on the streets of the city, changing the lyrics of the track to: “These yellow ears beyond compare, we’re breathing in Italian air, we’re eating pizza almost every meal / We’re saving grandmas everyday, we ate a few along the way but Italian grandma skin is hard to peel,” before they declare: “Turin, Turin, Turin, Turin, we’re begging of you – join us to the moon.”Meanwhile, UK Eurovision runner Sam Ryder, has announced details of a new 2022 London show at brand new venue Outernet on November 24. Tickets for the event go on sale this Friday (May 20) at 9am here.In Ukraine meanwhile, their win was said to bring “incredible happiness” to a country under invasion by Russia.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Instagram that the courage of the war-torn country “impresses the world” and congratulated Kalush Orchestra on their victory.He then went on to promise to host Eurovision in the future in a “free, peaceful and rebuilt” Mariupol, a city currently largely under Russian control.

“That was an incredible, incredible, rewarding journey. “I hope you enjoyed it!” He also told Metro.co.uk he was frustrated by the “negative stigma” attached to relations between the UK and the rest of Europe.Sam specifically made reference to the view perpetuated which suggests that Europe “doesn’t like” the UK.He added: “There’s other countries like Norway, they’ve lost 11 times. “God bless Norway – but they don’t have that.

Eurovision entry Sam Ryder has announced details of a new 2022 London show.Ryder came second during the weekend’s Eurovision Song Contest in Turin, with Ukraine’s Kalush Orchestra winning the event with a massive 631 points. It was the UK’s best performance result since 1997.Viral TikTok sensation Ryder went into the competition as the bookmakers second-favourite to win with his song ‘Space Man’.He will now play brand-new London venue Outernet in London on November 24.

Eurovision success.The British singer, 32, stunned the nation over the weekend by finishing in second place in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 with his single 'Space Man'.After sweeping the jury votes, Sam finished runner-up to Ukraine after the TV votes were revealed.Appearing on The One Show on Monday (May 16), Sam was asked by presenters Alex Jones and Jermaine Jenas about his feelings as the unexpected results came in.In reply, Sam said: "When the results started coming in - before that, [me and the band] were already stoked - there was nothing that we needed more."We had got everything from the experience.

He gave an absolutely stellar performance in the Eurovision final on Saturday but singer-songwriter Sam Ryder hasn't just been praised as a talented performer. Describing him as "positive, energetic and humble", his fans praised him in his latest TV appearance.

BirminghamLive reports that the singer today told BBC Radio 2: "I don't know just I felt so much, just encouragement and support and love from home. And not just home, but in the Eurovision community in general, because there's so much love, sitting in that arena is like being in a church, it is just incredible. READ MORE: Newcastle United set to confirm pre-season schedule for first overseas summer tour since 2019 "I can't explain it, and I can't even begin to do it justice, the feeling that you have when you're there.

Florence + The Machine and Kendrick Lamar are battling it out for this week’s Number One album in the UK.Florence Welch’s band’s fifth studio album ‘Dance Fever’ is currently ahead of Lamar’s ‘Mr Morale & The Big Steppers’ after clocking up over 26,000 chart sales so far in the midweek album chart, according to the Official Charts Company.The Black Keys are not far behind at Number Three with their new LP with ‘Dropout Boogie’ and Bear’s Den are currently at Number Four with ‘Blue Hours’.If Florence + The Machine do go to Number One it’ll be their fourth chart topper after 2009 debut ‘Lungs’ follow up ‘Ceremonials’ and 2015’s ‘How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful’.Reviewing the record, NME awarded it four stars and described it as “the triumphant sound of a singer reborn”.If Lamar scores this week’s Number One album, it will be his first since 2015’s ‘To Pimp A Butterfly’. His current record ‘Mr Morale & The Big Steppers’ his first in five years, was awarded a whopping five stars by NME and was described as a “cathartic, soul-bearing autobiography”.Welch also received a writing credit on the record for the song ‘We Cry Together’ for its use of a Florence + The Machine sample.Elsewhere, in the UK singles chart, Sam Ryder has climbed up to Number Three following his success in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022.

SAM Ryder received a hero's welcome as he arrived back in the UK waving a Union Jack after his Eurovision success. The 31-year-old ended decades of humiliation for us by coming runner-up to Ukraine - although at one point it looked like he'd go all the way.

WHILE the nation bit its fingernails as the final Eurovision votes came in, our hero contestant Sam Ryder was laughing and joking around with his girlfriend. Even being on the verge of becoming the first Brit to win the contest for a quarter of a century didn’t faze this hippy from Essex during Saturday night's memorable competition. Numerous setbacks have not quenched the 32-year-old singer’s two-decade long ambition to make it in the music industry.

Sam Ryder has detailed how he prepared for the hit singing competition Eurovision on Saturday 14 May, explaining that he didn't have a single drink in the lead up to the big event.The 32 year old TikTok sensation left the UK in a state of immense pride as he sang Space Man and came in second behind Ukraine's Kalush Orchestra, who played Stefania. Now, Sam has spoken out on how "laser-focused" he was in preparing to represent the UK as he told Radio X's Chris Moyles: "I didn’t drink whatsoever.

Sam Ryder's SPACE MAN continues it's exciting journey up the midweek Official Singles Chart post-Eurovision, breaking into the Top 5 and surging past its placement on yesterday's First Look.

Eurovision Song Contest is always one of the most magical and memorable music events of the year, but sometimes it's the singer's sexy outfits that steal the show.The famous song contest is hosted in the biggest cities in Europe every year, but no matter where the competition takes place, it's usually home to some of the most alluring outfits on the planet.It was only last year that Italy's topless stars Måneskin were crowned Eurovision winners after gracing the stage in their tight leather trousers.This year, Ukraine's Kalush Orchestra won the contest in an international show of support following the country's war against Russia.The UK managed to soar to second place under the wing of Space Man singer Sam Ryder, one of Britain's best rankings in recent history.However, this year it was Spain's stunning singer Chanel who stole the show in the glamour department.As we bid farewell to the contest for another year, Daily Star have rounded up the hottest moments in Eurovision history.Spain's act Chanel dropped jaws when she stepped onto the stage in a jewel-encrusted dress with assless chaps.The sizzling Cuban singer showed off her killer curves in the racy outfit as she danced seductively to a track - SloMo - that's sure to be a summer pop anthem.She risked a major wardrobe malfunction right at the start of her dance when she did the splits in the skintight outfit, which was slashed around her thighs and peachy derriere.The brunette bombshell rolled around the stage as she sang sensual lyrics such as: "booty hypnotic / make you want more".It's safe to say Chanel left viewers hot under the collar with her choreography on Saturday (May 16), and some said the "Latin Queen" was the best act of the night.The pop star still

supports HTML5 videoFor those of us not lucky enough to have watched Eurovision in person, despair not, for we’ve got a view of the action that shows just how pandemonium ran through the audience when Kalush Orchestra was announced the winner on Saturday night.The folk-rap group beat UK’s Sam Ryder, who was an early leader with his banger Space Man, on Saturday night in Turin Italy, coming out on top with 631 points to Ryder’s 466 with their song Stefania.And boy did they celebrate.

The fun and games of Eurovision are over for another year, and what a night it was. If you decided to give it a miss because you thought that the UK would end up with “nil points” for yet another year, you really did miss out, as Sam Ryder and his hit Space Man ended up coming in second place to Ukraine’s Kalush Orchestra.

Sam Ryder has said he "couldn't be happier" to return home after his record-breaking success at Eurovision over the weekend. 

Eurovision Song Contest runner-up Sam Ryder broke his silence on Monday after making history for the UK on the international talent show.MORE: How to get your hair like the stars of Eurovision - from the stylists who made themThe Essex-based singer, who became popular during lockdown with his impressive vocals, blew Europe away with his epic performance on Saturday night, scoring a staggering 466 points for his homeland.WATCH: Eurovision 61 years of contestantsTaking to his Instagram, the 32-year-old shared a jubilant snap of himself and Team UK. Captioning the photo, he wrote: "Still up in Space, Man!READ: Why Eurovision fans can't stop talking about Meghan Markle's hairSEE: Eurovision's most memorable contestants"Thank you all for blazing with love, positivity and kindness throughout this wild and euphoric experience.A post shared by SAM RYDER (@samhairwolfryder)Sam became a TikTok sensation during the pandemic"We completely felt your support and we so deeply appreciated it.

Sam Ryder said he felt “fantastic” and that he would have a family curry as soon as he arrived home as he touched down in the UK a day after coming second in the Eurovision Song Contest.

Graham Norton has shared the moment he met a delighted Sam Ryder backstage after his Eurovision triumph. The UK's Eurovision Song contest host tweeted a video of the celebrations in Turin, Italy, as a jubilant Sam entered the room after coming in second place after Ukraine on Saturday night.