BBC Readies Eurovision Semi Finals With 10 Final Spots Each
Eurovision semi finals begin on Tuesday 12 May and Thursday 14 May, with 10 qualifying spots in each show at stake. The two live broadcasts will decide 20 of the 25 places in the Grand Final, so the field narrows fast before Saturday 16 May.
Rylan and Angela Scanlon
Rylan and Angela Scanlon will present both semi-finals on iPlayer and One, while Sara Cox handles the radio coverage on Radio 2 and Sounds. Graham Norton presents the Grand Final on iPlayer and One, keeping the television setup split across the three live shows.
Each semi-final features 15 countries, which means the competition is as much about survival as performance. France, Germany, Italy, the UK and Austria go straight to the Grand Final, but they still have to broadcast and vote in one of the semi-finals, so the shows are not just elimination rounds for the countries chasing a place.
Voting Across Two Nights
The first semi-final includes Italy and Germany among the pre-qualified countries performing and voting, but UK viewers cannot vote that night. That changes on Thursday 14 May, when France and the United Kingdom appear in the second semi-final and UK audiences can vote.
Both semi-finals start at 8pm BST, and the broadcast options are wider than a standard television feed. Live audio description will run on iPlayer and One across all three live shows, live British Sign Language interpretation will appear on the Red Button and iPlayer, and subtitles will be available throughout One and signed coverage on iPlayer.
70 Years of Love
The first semi-final opens with a film called 70 Years of Love, followed by a 70-member choir performing a tribute to L’amour Est Bleu. Victoria Swarovski and Michael Ostrowski host the interval act in that show, with Go-Jo, Australia’s 2025 representative in Basel, Switzerland, also appearing during the interval.
For viewers, the practical takeaway is simple: the first night removes voting from the UK, the second restores it, and both shows set up the 20 qualifiers that will join five pre-qualified countries in the Grand Final. Austria, as last year’s winner and host, already has its place; everyone else has to earn one.
