PREVIEW/PREDICTIONS: Eurovision 2023 Final starring Loreen, Mae Muller, Käärijä, Noa Kirel & La Zarra in Liverpool

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Neil Durham

WHEN?: Saturday 13 May 2023 8pm (UK time)

WHERE?: Liverpool Arena

HOW DO I WATCH?: BBC1

The UK hasn’t won the Eurovision Song Contest for 26 years and we think this year’s entry – Mae Muller’s I Wrote A Song – is its best shot since then although it does have 2012 winner Loreen (pictured) to beat.

  • Read on for reasons including out thoughts on other acts including Noa Kirel and La Zarra
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THEATRE REVIEW: A Play For The Living In A Time Of Extinction

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Aline Mahrud

WORTH A LOOK?: ***

WHEN?: Saturday 29 April (matinee), running to Saturday 29 April 2023 (evening) and then touring the UK until autumn 2023 RUNTIME: 70 minutes (no interval)

Lydia West’s (It’s A Sin, Channel 4) stage debut is a curious mix of uncomfortable audience interaction and despair at mankind-inspired climate change and species extinction.

  • Read on for reasons including how and where to see this production as it tours England
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SONG OF THE MONTH: Tattoo by Loreen (May 2023)

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

WORTH A LOOK?: *****

The potential of a Eurovision Song Contest in Sweden in 2024 – the 50th anniversary of ABBA’s Waterloo win – rests on the shoulders of 2012 victor Loreen.

  • Read on for reasons including why we think Tattoo by Loreen is no Euphoria but is a potential 2023 Eurovision winner
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9 reasons why we can’t wait for May 2023 starring Eurovision in Liverpool

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

  1. Eurovision Song Contest 2023 from Liverpool

We have our tickets and UK Eurovision entry I Wrote A Song by Mae Muller was April’s song of the month for us and is the country’s best effort since the almighty (Ooh Aah) Just A Little Bit by Gina G. Our favourite however is Tattoo by Loreen (pictured) for Sweden. Check out our Semi 1, Semi 2 and Final predictions for the 1st Eurovision in the UK since Dana International won in Birmingham 25 years ago. Tickets Rehearsals start on 30 April and we’ll be refining our predictions as we see footage. Final predictions

  • Read on for reasons including Brokeback Mountain, Groundhog Day returns, Alison Goldfrapp LP and Eddie Izzard’s Great Expectations
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ALBUM OF THE MONTH: Fuse by Everything But The Girl (April 2023)

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

WORTH A LOOK?: ****

TRACKLIST: Nothing Left To Lose; Run A Red Light; Caution To The Wind; When You Mess Up; Time And Time Again; No One Knows We’re Dancing; Lost; Forever; Interior Space; Karaoke

Rewind 24 years to 1999 and Tony Blair’s Labour government was 2 years into power, the year before the UK had hosted its 1st Eurovision in 15 years and duo Everything But The Girl released album Temperamental.

  • Read on for reasons including how we’d love to see both Tracey and Ben tour this 1st album in 24 years
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THEATRE REVIEW: The Motive And The Cue starring Johnny Flynn, Mark Gatiss & Tuppence Middleton at the National Theatre

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: ****

WHEN?: Saturday 22 April, opens 2 May running to 15 July 2023 RUNTIME: 160 minutes (including a 20-minute interval) UPDATE: This productions transfers to the West End 9 December 2023 through 23 March 2024 at the Noel Coward Theatre Tickets

Mark Gatiss (ITVX’s Nolly) is 1 of our finest character actors and here plays Sir John Gielgud directing Richard Burton in Hamlet in 1964 on Broadway.

  • Read on for reasons including how The Motive should be more confident of its worth and rely less heavily on Shakespeare’s greatest hits
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SONG OF THE MONTH: I Wrote A Song by Mae Muller (April 2023)

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

WORTH A LOOK?: ****1/2

We have our Eurovision Song Contest tickets for Liverpool 2023 and we can’t wait to see this potential winner, the UK’s best entry since Gina G in 1996, take to the stage.

  • Read on for reasons including how this song manages to both strike a chord and be a big old cathartic bop simultaneously
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THEATRE REVIEW: For Black Boys Who Have Considered Suicide When The Hue Gets Too Heavy

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Aline Mahrud

WORTH A LOOK?: *****

WHEN?: Sunday 16 April (matinee), running to 7 May 2023 RUNTIME: 130 minutes (including a 20-minute interval) UPDATE: For Black Boys transfers to the Garrick Theatre 29 February through 4 May 2024 Tickets

WHERE?: Apollo Theatre, West End, London

Can theatre save lives?

  • Read on for reasons including how we think this production deserves to have a life after this run
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GIG REVIEW: KEiiNO, Michael Rice, Laurell & Ari Olafsson at Heaven

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: ****

WHEN?: Saturday April 15 2023

KEiiNO SETLIST: Unbreakable; Dancing In The Smoke; Would I Lie?; Praying; Mother Of The Night; Shallow; Joik solo; Nights Of Thunder; I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me); Colours; Black Leather; On A Night Like This; Monument; the Sun Always Shines On TV; Spirit In The Sky

KEiiNO may only have won the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest televote rather than the event outright but it’s testament to the band’s popularity that nearly 4 years later they can almost fill this prestigious nightclub venue in the heart of London.

  • Read on for reasons including how support acts Ari Olafsson, Laurell and Michael Rice made this a gig to remember
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