Don't you just love Philipp Kirkorov? Sergey is this year's favourite and wearing a very smart suit/shirt/black tie combo and yet this guy always seems to steal the show! Why this picture and the others, I hear you ask? It was only the Opening Ceremony of this year's Eurovision yesterday, wasn't it! This Red Carpet event was held outside EuroClub for the Press to take pictures and have a quick interview, together with accredited fans being able to have selfies taken, autographs signed etc. Unlike last year's chaotic mess, this was a very slick affair of about ninety minutes that preceded the artists being whisked away to Stockholm's City Hall for the official Opening Ceremony.
You missed it and want to watch it in it's entirety? Click here for the eurovision.tv footage of the
Eurovision 2016 Red Carpet. If you just want to see some pictures that provide some highlights and lowlights of what people were wearing, continue reading! I'm not going to cover everyone as some didn't make an effort at all (the guys from Georgia and Montenegro spring to mind) and some artist's costumes didn't really jump out at me as being that noteworthy. I definitely did cover the Big 5 that attended as they all drew which half of the Final they were going to be singing in - two of those got the luck there!
Onto the pictures - first up were our hosts for the evening who provided the commentary. They did a good job, definitely better informed than those in Vienna:
The first ones on the Red Carpet were our hosts for the shows themselves plus a certain EBU/SVT bigwig. This was one of the only times they were all in shot - Petra showing what she spent all of her time doing (interviews like this one with Scott Mills, selfies etc), Christer hunting out attractive blondes like Krista Siegfrids and Måns tagging along (not strictly true, he did do a lot of interviews as well but possibly not as much as continually on-demand Petra):
Before the event, Frans posted what he would be wearing - he has a suit, who knew...
One of the first ladies to feature was Jamie-Lee from Germany - I have to say that there won't be many artists who turn up to one of these wearing a SpongeBob top with Sandy Cheeks on it! I'm not sure whether she had any idea whether drawing the
FIRST HALF of the Final to sing in was good or bad:
Is it possible for one singer to win the Barbara Dxe award THREE times in the same year? Nina Kraljić decided to wear something that was last seen during an episode of Doctor Who or Star Trek - the commentators were talking about all her outfits being designed by a particular Croatian designer, who remained nameless. I suspect that they are in hiding at the moment:
In contrast to Nina, a certain 19 year old Belgian looked very classy in a white trouser suit, which made Laura look far more mature and one of the early stand-outs during the show:
Next up was Francesca from Italy, dressed as though she was going off on a hike once she had got to the other end of the Red Carpet. I think that the wide smile belies the fact that this was the worst draw that Italy could have had, knowing they were guaranteed to be in the same half as Sweden and Germany and that her song really needed to be near the end of the Final to stand any chance of being remembered by the voting public (not that I really cared - sorry, I still don't like her song):
Now here is a lady who knows how to dress to impress - Sanja wearing a patterned grey cocktail dress from H&M (according to her), low cut but classy. She also knows how to connect with everyone she meets - a real pleasure to listen to and watch:
And onto another of the big 5 and one of the current favourites, Amir from France. Still looking uber cool in a smart suit and open shirt, he drew out FIRST HALF, which up to two years ago would have meant that he wouldn't win now - Conchita and Mr Zelmerlöw last year proved that isn't the obstacle that it once was. As long as SVT put him in 11th or 12th slot:
Onto one of the more 'woah' outfits of the day - Greta's self designed lace and nude effect trouser suit over a pair of shorts. She has a thing for this sort of design, having worn something similar during the Pre-Parties - she has got the body and confidence for it, that's for sure:
Now onto one of the smartest guys on the Red Carpet this year, Douwe Bob from The Netherlands. You could have guessed that when a guy is immaculate on stage, he is going to be even more so for an official function such as this - a very eye-catching white floral design dinner jacket and bow tie. The cufflinks give this just that finishing touch of pure class:
Jamala is always stylish on stage and so she was here tonight - it was bordering on 'negligee' at the top but this full length cocktail dress looked stunning. I cannot imagine this woman ever dressing down:
From stylish to...well, umm, not sure what to say about Samra's outfit. She is beautiful, she has very attractive 'assets' and she is obviously more than happy to have them on display. The colour of the dress is actually superb, with its fluorescence green and even blue hue but I suspect that most eyes weren't taking in the colour, more what it was (or wasn't) covering:
Back to classical beauty again, this time with Iveta from Armenia showing off (in her own pic) some 1950s elegance with her stunning classy full length dress and cape. Although it's all quite open top and bottom, this looks so graceful and hangs perfectly off of Iveta's tall frame that it doesn't look anything other than sublime:
Enough of stunning women, back to some guys who are here to have fun and be dressed as they probably always dress - as though they are going out to a club (which they were, eventually). Joe and Jake pulled out their selection and got
SECOND HALF as their prize. I'm not really sure that they were that pleased one way or the other, I am starting to get the feeling that being here, for them, is the main craic:
Out of all the Big 5 artists, Barei was the one that really seemed to understand the significance of getting the
SECOND HALF of the draw in the Final. She and the Spaniards around her were clearly delighted with the pick and she then was buoyant during all the interviews I saw her do. She had a very nice LBD on as well:
One option this year was 'Office Chic' - dress as though you are working 9-5 in a ordinary business. Gabriela went for that big time and looked stunning in this 'fitted to all her curves' white dress:
And now back to the guys - they don't normally attract my eye as much as the ladies do but for Jüri from Estonia, I'll make an exception. One of the smartest men on the Red Carpet, exuding a geeky cool aura and enjoying his time playing up to the cameras - smart checked suit plus bowtie was possibly one of the best looks last night:
And then crashing back down to the other end of the costume scale with Rykka! She's gone for mad hair yet again and she has made a jacket out of an emergency space blanket - kudos for creative skills, maybe not so much for style. The actual white dress underneath was quite beautiful and would have looked amazing on its own but Rykka is obviously the kooky one out of the Eurovision artists this year:
Onto another well dressed group, utilising their own picture to show the Bosnia & Herzegovina delegation off in all their glory. Ana is the one who really stands out her in her lovely lilac midi evening dress but I suspect that being a world renowned classical cellist, this outfit is just par for the course for her. Jala definitely enjoyed guiding her and Dalal around the Red Carpet though:
And my final choice for the evening is the delightful ZOË. I've seen enough of her now to know that she loves this style of dress - she knows that she has great shoulders and despite coming across as shy, is not afraid to hint at what she has hidden behind the top of these dresses! I was not sure that trailing Marabou feathers along the Red Carpet itself was the best logistical idea though:
Eurovision.tv produced a brief 'No Comment' on the backstage preparations:
As far as the outfits on the Red Carpet are concerned, I think that Douwe Bob and Iveta stole the show but Sanja and Jüri deserve a special mention. As for the other end of the scale? It would have to be Nina and Rykka, continuing their Barbara Dex battle off stage as they are on it!
So we are officially open! That despite having already had a week of rehearsals, but the real thing (I wonder if Highway will get some mileage out of that line of their song after the Contest) begins now.
Just the rehearsals of the Direct Finalists to review...
then onto Semi-Final One!
