The highly anticipated Eurovision Song Contest final will take place this weekend and fans are looking forward to what is sure to be an entertaining show full of the weird and wonderful sounds of Europe.
But it turns out that the competition also has some unusual rules for judges.
Singer Sophie Ellis-Bextor has revealed she was offered the opportunity to be a judge for Eurovision but turned the role down because of the “kooky” rules that she’d be expected to follow.
Each country has its own set of industry professionals who judge acts based on their vocals, song composition and overall impression.
The judges' votes count for 50% of the country's overall scores.
Being a Eurovision judge is a serious job that comes with strict rules - here are the bizarre requirements that Sophie revealed.
What are Eurovision’s weird rules?
Sophie’s hit song Murder On The Dancefloor was the most played track in Europe in 2002.
The singer told Radio Times that due to its success she had a “conversation” about becoming a judge on the show.
But she revealed that some bizarre rules prevented her from taking the job, including a ban on babies.
She said: “I had a very small baby that I was still feeding, and they wouldn’t let me bring it along."
She then joked: “I’m pretty sure the baby would have been impartial but, you know what, I think part of what I like about Eurovision is that it has very much got its rules… it’s kooky.”
The no-babies rule wasn’t the only rule that turned Sophie away from the role; she also revealed that judges are expected to stay silent throughout the entire judging process.
Speaking about the silence rule she said: “We weren’t going to be allowed to speak while we were watching it either, and I thought, ‘I can’t watch Eurovision in silence’.”
Despite turning down the role, Sophie says she still enjoys watching Eurovision and warned British fans ahead of this year's show, saying: “We should probably brace ourselves for another ‘nul points’ score.
“There have always been political undertones (to the voting), which again, is part of the fun. We quite enjoy that, I think.”
*The Eurovision final kicks off on Saturday May 14 at 8pm on BBC One
