The Eurovision Song Contest is a competition like no other, with weird and wonderful music, ambitious staging and (if you’re in the UK) scathing yet hilarious commentary from the legend that is Graham Norton.
This year’s event takes place in Basel, Switzerland, following Nemo’s win in 2024 with The Code. This year, there are some strong entries, with the quirky hit from Sweden, Bara bada bastu by KAJ (a song all about saunas) currently the bookies’ favourite.
We’ve rounded up all the information on the Eurovision Song Contest 2025, including when the show airs, how to tune in from the UK and abroad, who is taking part and more.
Eurovision
When is Eurovision?
Most people will tune into the Eurovision Grand Final, which is currently set for Saturday, 17 May 2025. Here are the times that it will kick off around the world:
- 8pm BST (UK)
- 9pm CEST (Europe)
- 3pm ET (East Coast US)
- 12pm PT (West Coast US)
It will last for several hours, probably until close to midnight when you take into account the time for all the performances, voting, guest acts and results.
The UK make it through to the final automatically as one of the Big Five. However, if you want to see all the other contenders, you can watch the semi-finals, which air at the following times:
- Semi-final 1 – Tuesday, 13 May 2025 at 8pm BST
- Semi-final 2 – Thursday, 15 May 2025 at 8pm BST
You can watch the winner of the last year’s competition below:
Who is hosting Eurovision this year?
Switzerland is the host country this year, in the city Basel:
How to watch the Eurovision Song Contest in the UK
As per previous years, you should be able to tune in to both the semi-finals and the Grand Final of Eurovision 2025 on BBC One.
You’ll also be able to watch the show live on BBC One via iPlayer and stream it shortly after the broadcast on the BBC iPlayer website or app on your tablet or smartphone.
How to watch the Eurovision Song Contest from the US
US viewers can tune in via Peacock. An ad-supported plan costs $7.99 per month, while an ad-free one costs $13.99 per month.
How to watch the Eurovision Song Contest from abroad
YouTube will be streaming the semi-finals and the Grand Final on the official Eurovision channel. You can find links to all three streams on the Eurovision website. The only issue is that the streams are not available in every single country.
If it’s not streaming where you are, never fear. You can instead tune into the UK stream by watching BBC iPlayer from abroad with the help of a VPN. By rerouting your IP address, this technology allows you to access geo-blocked websites, so you can stream as if you’re in the UK – even if you’re not.
There are plenty of VPN providers that you can use to access BBC iPlayer, but we at Tech Advisor have found NordVPN to be the best combination of reliability, user-friendliness and affordability.
You can find out more in our guide to watching BBC iPlayer abroad.
Who is presenting Eurovision 2025?
Three hosts have been chosen to present the Swiss edition of Eurovision. The group is made up of stand-up comedian and presenter Hazel Brugger, personality and host of Festival di Sanremo, Michelle Hunziker, and former Eurovision contestant, presenter and actress, Sandra Studer.
On the BBC, Graham Norton is returning for his usual hilarious commentary for the Grand Final, with Rylan and Scott Mills covering the semis.
How to vote in the Eurovision Song Contest
The easiest way to vote for your favourite act in the Eurovision Song Contest is by downloading the app onto your smartphone or tablet. It is available from Google Play, the iOS App Store and the Windows Store, and is free to download. You can also vote via the official website.
Once you’ve got the app, you’ll be able to find out more about the participants from the countries taking part, and you’ll also be able to find out the latest Eurovision news.
But more importantly, you can cast your vote using the app simply by clicking on the vote button and choosing your favourite. You can vote multiple times, but you cannot vote for the country you are voting from.
Sarah Louise Bennett/EBU
Who are the Eurovision Song Contest 2025 finalists?
37 countries are participating in Eurovision 2025, but only 26 make it to the Grand Final. Switzerland automatically gets a slot as the host.
They will be joined by the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy and Spain – members of the Big Five who automatically qualify due to being the biggest contributors to the contest.
Here is the running order for the semi-finals. Those not numbered have automatically qualified, but will still get the chance to perform:
Eurovision 2025 semi-final 1 running order
- 1. Iceland: VÆB – RÓA
- 2. Poland: Justyna Steczkowska – GAJA
- 3. Slovenia: Klemen – How Much Time Do We Have Left
- 4. Estonia: Tommy Cash – Espresso Macchiato
- Spain: Melody – ESA DIVA
- 5. Ukraine: Ziferblat – Bird of Pray
- 6. Sweden: KAJ – Bara Bada Bastu
- 7. Portugal: NAPA – Deslocado
- 8. Norway: Kyle Alessandro – Lighter
- 9. Belgium: Red Sebastian – Strobe Lights
- Italy: Lucio Corsi – Volevo Essere Un Duro
- 10. Azerbaijan: Mamagama – Run With U
- 11. San Marino: Gabry Ponte – Tutta L’Italia
- 12. Albania: Shkodra Elektronike – Zjerm
- 13. Netherlands: Claude – C’est La Vie
- 14. Croatia: Marko Bošnjak – Poison Cake
- Switzerland: Zoë Më – Voyage
- 15. Cyprus: Theo Evan – Shh
Eurovision 2025 semi-final 2 running order
- 1. Australia: Go-Jo – Milkshake Man
- 2. Montenegro: Nina Žižić – Dobrodošli
- 3. Ireland: EMMY – Laika Party
- 4. Latvia: Tautumeitas – Bur Man Laimi
- 5. Armenia: PARG – SURVIVOR
- 6. Austria: JJ – Wasted Love
- United Kingdom: Remember Monday – What The Hell Just Happened?
- 7. Greece: Klavdia – Asteromáta
- 8. Lithuania: Katarsis – Tavo Akys
- 9. Malta: Miriana Conte – SERVING
- 10. Georgia: Mariam Shengelia – Freedom
- France: Louane – maman
- 11. Denmark: Sissal – Hallucination
- 12. Czechia: ADONXS – Kiss Kiss Goodbye
- 13. Luxembourg: Laura Thorn – La Poupée Monte Le Son
- 14. Israel: Yuval Raphael – New Day Will Rise
- Germany: Abor & Tynna – Baller
- 15. Serbia: Princ – Mila
- 16. Finland: Erika Vikman – ICH KOMME
Eurovision 2025 finalists (in no particular order)
- Switzerland | Zoë Më – Voyage
- Germany | Abor & Tynna – Baller
- Spain | Melody – ESA DIVA
- United Kingdom | Remember Monday – What The Hell Just Happened?
- Italy | Lucio Corsi – Volevo Essere Un Duro
- France | Louane – maman
Who is the UK entry for Eurovision?
This year, country girl group Remember Monday is aiming for gold with their catchy tune, What The Hell Just Happened?. Both West End stars and friends since they were teenagers, these girls have been embracing the madness of the Eurovision circuit with good humour, even recreating a song from Will Ferrell’s Netflix Eurovision film in Iceland.
The video is full of theatrics and silliness in abundance, so it’ll be interesting to see how the band stages this song. You can see their entry below:
