After organisers indicated there was no chance the event would take place in the war-torn nation of Ukraine, Britain announced on Monday that it had reluctantly agreed to step in as the competition’s hosts for the next year.
Instead, the BBC will host what it dubbed the “biggest and most difficult music competition in the world,” and it has begun selecting a UK host city in cooperation with the European Broadcasting Union (EBU).
This year’s competition, which was held in Italy, was won by Ukraine, with Britain’s effort coming in second. Despite the Russian invasion, it had asserted that it could host the next year.
However, the EBU disallowed it, and the Ukrainian broadcaster UA:PBC agreed to a UK-hosted event with a “Ukrainian spirit.”
2023: EUROVISION
The head of UA:PBC, Mykola Chernotytskyi, announced in a joint statement with the EBU and BBC that the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest will not be held in Ukraine but rather in support of Ukraine.
“We appreciate our BBC partners’ solidarity with us,” they said.
He said, it was the “strong wish” of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, according to his spokesman, for Ukraine to host the 2023 competition. Johnson considered it “very disappointing” that this was no longer possible.
The BBC intervened at the request of the EBU “and the Ukrainian authorities,” headed by President Volodymyr Zelensky, according to Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries.
Russian aggression
I’m only sorry that Ukraine, where the event should have been held, has been unable to host it owing to Russia’s ongoing carnage.
She spoke.
As hosts, the UK will respect the spirit and diversity of the competition and, most significantly, make sure it honours Ukraine’s recent success at the Eurovision Song Contest and Ukrainian ingenuity.