Sam Ryder has barely come back down to Earth since his song Space Man finished second at last year’s Eurovision Song Contest – placing higher than any other UK entry since way back in 1998.
Since then, the former TikTok star has been catapulted into the big league with performances at the Queen’s Jubilee, at Wembley with Queen and in his own BBC New Year’s Eve concert.
And tonight he will be returning to the stage where he made his name alongside other past stars to perform during the Eurovision final and cheer on this year’s entry Mae Muller.
So Sam, 33, is just the man to give 25-year-old Mae advice as she gets ready to perform I Wrote A Song in Liverpool.
He says: “I actually sent Mae a message at the beginning when she was announced saying ‘Just enjoy it’."
And his verdict on Eurovision generally? Sam replies: “Let’s face it, it is bonkers. It’s carnage in the most beautiful way. And you can take something too seriously and miss all the fun in it.
“What’s important is stepping out on that stage for those three minutes and making sure that when you step back off of it, you remember what happened and come back with a memory.
“Otherwise you’ll get so nervous and so swept up in the kind of self importance that you’ve put on it, that you’ll walk off afterwards and be like, ‘What happened? I kind of feel I blacked out’. You’ll miss the whole thing.”
Sam believes that Mae will have an advantage with the contest being on home soil.
He says: “I think she’ll feel the support more. You’re there and you can see everyone rooting for you.
“I guess it might be the same as playing a football match at home or something.”
The charismatic star is rooting for Mae and knows what an incredible platform Eurovision can be – but that does not mean he wants an encore. He says: “We’ve got such a plethora of talent in the UK and I’d love to see the diversity of that talent be represented on that stage.
“Every year is precious. It’s a precious chance for someone new.
“I wouldn’t change anything about the story and the experience that we were blessed with at Eurovision, coming runner-up to Ukraine in the midst of the darkest chapter of their recent history, and all of us supporting and shedding light on that situation. It was beautiful.”
Sam is looking forward to seeing last year’s winners Kalush Orchestra again this year when he performs his new single, Mountain, at the hotly anticipated contest on Merseyside.
“No doubt I’ll catch up with those guys and hopefully get a new pink bucket hat because mine’s seen better days now,” he says in reference to frontman Oleh Psiuk’s iconic outfit last year.
“They’re amazing, I’m excited for their performance. What an honour for them as well to get to perform that track that won Eurovision last year at a home away from home. Hopefully it will feel as close to home as we can make it because they are incredible people.”
* Sam Ryder’s latest single, Mountain, is out now and on all streaming platforms.
Sandie’s a Shaw-fire hit
Pop legend Sandie Shaw is coming out of retirement to perform at the Eurovision festival today.
Sandie was the UK’s first winner of the contest in 1967 with her entry, Puppet on a String.
Now 76, she has released two new streaming versions, with profits going to Unicef for victims of the war in Ukraine.
One is a dance remix and the other a slower version, which she will sing at the Eurovision Village in Liverpool, her first stage performance in 10 years.
Sandie got the idea to remix the song after hearing a British midwife talking about the impact of the war on women and children in Ukraine. She said: “I thought, ‘What can I do for Ukraine?’ I was so upset about it.”
Sandie got listeners laughing on Jeremy Vine’s Radio Two show yesterday. As he started playing the track, Sandie could be heard saying: “I hope it’s the new one.. it’s the old one, oh for f***’s sake.”
