Eurovision: On again, Off again

Malta’s flirtation with the Eurovision song contest has been a highly fickle one. One minute we’re raising the profile of our country’s Europop ambassador to the skies, the next we’re telling each other not to get our hopes up and that it’s more important to participate anyway. One year we’re the darlings of the continent, the next we don’t even manage to scrape through to the final selections. So which were the entries that got our pulses racing and the champagne corks ready to pop? And what about those that made us curse the unfairness of whoever came up with the “friendly neighbourhood” voting system?

The one we affectionately make fun of: Marija l-Maltija

It was the song that introduced the Maltese to the dizzying heights of Eurovision glory only to plunge us back in the dumps unceremoniously by placing last. Everyone is guilty of unleashing a couple of unkind sniggers whenever the subject of Joe Grech’s Marija l-Maltija is raised. Yet, we can all hum it, can’t we?

The one that put us back in the running: Could It Be

Almost two decades after our first few less-than-successful attempts, Malta decided to have another go at the Eurovision with Paul Giordimaina’s and Georgina’s entry. The song placed a very respectable sixth and the hearts of hundreds of local Europhiles rejoiced with the hope of “maybe next year”.

The first two near misses

Mary Spiteri’s, Little Child and Chiara’s The One That I Love, in 1992 and 1998 respectively, gave Malta its first taste of real glory. Both placing third, the singers managed to charm the audience with their two ballads which, while being very different in style seemed to deliver a good, old-fashioned emotional tug at the public’s heartstrings.

That time we could practically touch the trophy

There were two of these: the first agonising close call was with Ira Losco’s Seventh Wonder, which placed second with 164 points.  Then in 2005, Chiara – representing Malta for the second time - practically gave the whole nation a heart-attack by constantly staying at the very top of the list during the voting process...only to be cruelly knocked down to second place when Macedonia infamously failed to give Malta even one point. 2005 was Malta’s most successful entry and also our last taste of possible glory.

The beginning of the end

In 2003 disaster struck: Lynn Chircop’s To Dream Again, after much hype based on Malta’s previous positive showing, placed second from last in Latvia. Since then, with the 2005 exception courtesy of Chiara, votes wise it’s been downhill all the way. Not even a last ditch attempt to send Chiara for the third time in 2009 managed to save the day. Despite doing everything in our power to get rid of the cloud of misfortune that seems to have settled on our Eurovision karma, we can’t seem to shake off the status quo. Will this year’s entry be the one to finally get the Eurovision fanatics cheering once again?