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THREAD: Graham Norton & the impact of his commentary 
starting off, I just wanted to say that this is in no way an attack on graham, it’s just my personal opinion on how his commentary has progressed. I actually like Graham a lot however when it come to Eurovision, I am not so keen
in 2008, at the end of the contest, Terry Wogan stated that he no longer believed that Eurovision was a music contest, after the win of Russia. He was very cynical & it was clear that he was going to leave from commentating that year.
Terry had become very cynical in the 2000s, possibly to do with the continuing failure of the UK. His departure from commentating was big, as he had been commentating on the contest since 1980. The BBC needed someone fresh, but someone who could also continue to engage the viewer
Graham Norton was hired for the 2009 contest. He was known to the average viewer, and had started his popular chat show two years earlier. He was excited about starting, telling the EBU that he had arrived in a very good year, and expressed that one of his favourites was Portugal
he also seemed very excited about our entry, and his commentary in that year reflected that. He was enthusiastic, made some very good points and was funny, whilst avoiding the cynical angle that Terry had taken in the later years of his commentary.
his commentary was fresh, but also wasn’t too far away from what Terry had done, which was appealing to newer and older viewers. I believe that our placing - which was our best since 2002 & hasn’t yet been beaten - aided his enthusiasm for the job & the contest.
In 2010, Graham appeared on This Morning to talk about Eurovision. He seemed to still be in the 2009 mindset, even if he did say Fairytale was a ballad with ethnic music 
He defended the voting against Phil, who took the “Europe don’t like us!!!” route in his questioning
at the contest in 2010, he was interviewed by the hosts during the show & was supportive of our entry. He was enjoyable to listen to & was once again enthusiastic.
2011 was my first ESC year, and I really enjoyed Graham’s commentary. From 2011 - 2016, Graham’s commentary was on a steady path, he seemed to have the same style and made some very good points, as well as keeping his usual humour.
he had found his lane in commentary and seemed comfortable in the job. There are comments from 2016 that I’ve seen where people have used a VPN to listen to his commentary during the show. He also was fond of our 2016 entry, calling it credible.
2017-2018 is where I feel that his commentary began to decline. He seemed to become disinterested and wasn’t so funny or into the contest. He was supportive of Lucie, but I feel as if her doing not as well as she should’ve done (
) is a potential reason for this decline.
) is a potential reason for this decline.
NGUOY was credible, it was good, it was arguably one of the best performances of the night. and the result it got was too low. It’s understandable why you could feel disheartened doing the job when your entries are not doing well.
His commentary hasn’t become Terry style cynical, but it has become boring and tired. He doesn’t seem entirely enthusiastic anymore and can occasionally be quite harsh with his comments.
in 2019 he filmed a reaction video to some of the entries, and Idk if it was just how the video was edited, but he seemed disengaged & disconnected, like it was an effort to sit there and make comments on some of the songs. He called BTU really good & praised Azerbaijan’s entry.
2019 was clear to me that Graham wasn’t really feeling it. In comparison to the commentary provided by Scott & Rylan in the semi finals, he didn’t seem to be so into the contest or enthusiastic. his commentary was boring.
@Andiironda made a very good point when I asked for opinions (which was months ago lol). A lot of casual viewers still enjoy his commentary and agree with his comments most of the time. https://twitter.com/andiironda/status/1265460990478516224?s=21 https://twitter.com/andiironda/status/1265460990478516224
@eurovisiondiana also made a good point - we see people talk about Graham’s commentary every year, whether it’s locals agreeing with him or eurofans criticising him. He is a talking point. https://twitter.com/eurovisiondiana/status/1265459482466889728?s=21 https://twitter.com/eurovisiondiana/status/1265459482466889728
when James Newman was announced as our entry, Graham sat down with him for an interview and showed him some Eurovision songs. It seemed like Graham’s enthusiasm had returned and I was excited to see his commentary this year.
Then as we all know, Eurovision wa a cancelled (thanks corona xoxo) and therefore we got given Shine A Light & the BBC show. The BBC put on an amazing pre show to SAL and dare I say, it was better than the replacement ESC show. Graham commentated on both.
Graham said Eurovision was his favourite night of the year, and was moved by Shine A Light. He said he missed the atmosphere and excitement of eurovision, and even if we haven’t done so well he still loves it. I don’t feel like Graham’s commentary could’ve been any better this -
year because Shine A Light imo was very somber and kind of a drag looking back. However it was reflective in his commentary and made the night flat. During the previews of songs, his usual commentary tone returned and it seemed to show how disconnected he was from the esc bubble
mr @leowltrs’ point here is very relevant for the next few tweets because he seemed to dislike a lot of songs or uplifted songs that weren’t so good. Graham’s expectations for songs seem to be on the floor. https://twitter.com/leowltrs/status/1265457069559332865?s=21 https://twitter.com/leowltrs/status/1265457069559332865
Graham praised:
- Attention
- Mon Alliée
(said it was rather good)
- On Fire
- Move
- Release Me
- Universo
- Alive
(compared it to Justin Timeberlake, Bruno Mars)
- Think About Things
- Violent Thing
- Fai Rumore
- Chains On You
- Attention
- Mon Alliée
(said it was rather good)- On Fire
- Move
- Release Me
- Universo
- Alive
(compared it to Justin Timeberlake, Bruno Mars)- Think About Things
- Violent Thing
- Fai Rumore
- Chains On You
- All Of My Love 
- Dont Break Me
(called it a rather good pop song)
- Story Of My Life
(said it stood a chance of winning, also said Ireland might not take part in 2021 but idk where he got that from)
he also praised What Love Is
, saying it’s a really good pop song
- Dont Break Me
(called it a rather good pop song)- Story Of My Life
(said it stood a chance of winning, also said Ireland might not take part in 2021 but idk where he got that from) he also praised What Love Is
, saying it’s a really good pop song
Graham also liked Freaky 
& said it might’ve done well.
Taste is subjective. But you would’ve thought someone who had commentated on a contest for 11 years would know songs like Freaky & What Love Is didn’t have a great reaction & probably would’ve NQd.
& said it might’ve done well. Taste is subjective. But you would’ve thought someone who had commentated on a contest for 11 years would know songs like Freaky & What Love Is didn’t have a great reaction & probably would’ve NQd.
Graham didn’t like:
- Cleopatra
- Hasta La Vista
- Da Vidna
(wasnt sure it’d qualify)
- Empires
(he was for some reason more harsh towards Alicja and not the song which was odd)
- Cleopatra
- Hasta La Vista
- Da Vidna
(wasnt sure it’d qualify)- Empires
(he was for some reason more harsh towards Alicja and not the song which was odd)
Graham also said that 2020 wouldn’t have been the year for Bulgaria, when Tears Getting Sober - which was the bookies favourite, loved by a lot of people and one of the favourites amongst fans - was arguably one of the best songs in the 2020 season.
Graham’s commentary is impactful on the local viewer because they usually agree with him & his opinions. At the end of the day, he is appealing to them, not eurofans. However his commentary can reinforce some of the typical british local opinions we all know & don’t love.
a lot of Eurofans are tired of him, which you could tell from their tweets about his commentary. As much as I’m often not a fan of Scott Mills’ commentary, I feel like him & Rylan are far more enjoyable to listen to currently. Rylan is incredibly knowledgeable.
I do feel like Graham could possibly leave in the next few years and Rylan will take over. Rylan is relevant, well known and liked. His commentary would be a new era for UK eurovision and it could be a great change.
Graham as a commentator gave a new outlook to the contest. He did a great job taking over from Terry & helping to modernise the contest to UK viewers. His commentary was a smooth transition from Terry, and no doubt it was a hard job to replace someone who had done it for 28 years
I just feel like in the new era of eurovision, a contest that has massively modernised since 2008, that commentators who take the angle like Graham & Terry don’t necessarily fit. The entries in the contest are less made for eurovision, and more made for comemercial, radio success
and when you have commentators who don’t recognise the quality in songs, you won’t be able to ever change the perception of the contest to an average viewer.
Overall, I do like Graham, I grew up loving the contest with him as a commentator and I love watching older contests with his comments. He also is very supportive of our contestants and that is a good thing. I hope if he is back for 2021, he’ll return to his old form
