‘They never give Ireland a chance’ – Wild Youth ‘tried our best’ but Eurovision 2023 ends in heartache

The four-piece failed to make it through to the Grand Final, despite delivering a strong performance and getting a rapturous response from the crowd.

Ireland has now not qualified for the Grand Final since 2018.

In a now deleted Instagram post, O’Donohoe shared his disappointment with fans.

“We did everything we could. Michael Kealy [RTE’s Eurovision Head of Delegation] was amazing,” he wrote. “But the truth is they never give Ireland a chance, sorry if we let you down. We tried our best.”

Earlier in the day the band had said they would be hugely disappointed if they failed to make it through, and that they had ‘given it their all’.

Wild Youth took to the stage of the M&S Arena in Liverpool’s Albert Dock to perform song We Are One.

The competition in the first semi-final was stiff and fans had dubbed it the semi-final of death.

The ten acts to make it through were Croatia, Moldova, Switzerland, Finland, Czechia, Israel, Portugal, Sweden, Serbia, and Norway.

RTE’s Eurovision boss Michael Kealy said; “We are extremely proud of Wild Youth - they put on a brilliant performance and were fantastic representatives for Ireland.”

Outside of the venue Irish Eurovision fans expressed their frustration with the result, and with RTE.

Kevin Wilson, originally from Kilkenny and now living in London, believes it’s time for Ireland to change their selection process.

Rolling out the Turquoise Carpet: Wild Youth arrival at Eurovision Song Contest 2023

“I really liked the song. It was just a shame that they didn’t get the qualification. It is disappointing as a fan because you want your country to do well and get to the final.

“The issue is that Ireland doesn’t have the same commitment to the Eurovision as other countries like the Scandinavian countries. If you look at Sweden and Finland, they have pretty intense national selection processes... Ireland doesn't.”

Neil Farren from Dundalk, who works for Eurovision news site Eurovoix, said he found the result extremely disappointing.

“I am frustrated with how RTE treats the contest,” he said. “They don’t see it for what it is - a chance to promote Irish music to an audience of 200 million people. There is so much good music and talent we are not showcasing.”

Eurovision fan Charlie Waters suggested bringing back one of our more successful past acts.

“It was a really strong semi-final, but sadly, it didn’t work out. Send Jedward for a third time - third time is a charm,” he said.

Cian O’Mahony from Cork said the performance was strong, but the song itself was generic.

“It got a great reception in the arena… I don’t know where we are going wrong. I feel like we are writing songs for Eurovision when it should just be great songs that happen to go to Eurovision.”

Sweden and Finland, both contenders to win the overall contest, provoked the strongest reactions from the crowd last night.

“Watching Loreen (Sweden) perform was like watching art,” Eurovision superfan and co-host of podcast Eirevision Conor Devlin said.

If Sweden win the contest on Saturday night, they will equal our record number of seven wins.

Loreen previously won the competition in 2012 with Euphoria. A victory on Saturday would also see her become the second performer to win the contest twice as a singer — joining our very own Eurovision hero Johnny Logan, who won in 1980 and 1987.

Finland’s Käärijä, dubbed the ‘maestro of mayhem’ and proud champion of the pudding bowl haircut, encouraged the crowds to shrug off the stress of work and throw themselves into partying with his song Cha Cha Cha.

The evening was full of vibrant and memorable moments.

Croatian act Let 3 was one of the more eye-catching performances - dancing around in y-fronts, military hats and waving giant pyrotechnic rockets.

The band described the anti-war song as stupid yet clever.

They said at a press conference afterwards that their hoped the song would spread the message ’stop f**king wars’.

They added that there were no losers in Eurovision and commended the five countries who had not made it through.

However, not everyone was a fan of Let 3’s performance.

“I am not mad about older gentlemen in their underpants,” Broadcaster Marty Whelan said. “It’s not for me. But if you didn’t have that sort of daftness out there it wouldn’t be the Eurovision song contest. It’s all about sparkle and nonsense.”

Czechia’s entry My Sister’s Crown involved six women dancing around with cascading plaits.

“It is about female empowerment and all the underdogs,” singer Patricia Kanonk said. “We want to remind people not to feel alone.”

Liverpool was staging the Song Contest on behalf of Ukraine who won last year with Kalush Orchestra’s Stefania.

The country was unable to stage the contest because of the ongoing war. This brought up mixed emotions for Sashko Krapivkin (30) originally from Kharkiv in Ukraine.

“We are heartbroken,” she said. “We are devastated that we cannot host it. Kyiv is an amazing city, and we would have been an incredible host as we have proven in the past. We know how to throw a party. But in that same sentence I will say Ukrainians are deeply grateful. Liverpool has taken on this giant challenge and has risen to it by bringing in Ukrainian art and culture around the entire city.”

All around the city yellow and blue flags hang and 12 statues of the soloveiko - the country’s national song bird and a symbol of song and happiness - had been installed.

The semi-final also included a performance by Rebecca Ferguson and Ukrainian singer Alyosha. The duet told the story of Alyosha whose husband is currently in the armed forces of Ukraine.