Musical Whacky Races with a great sense of celebration

Bizarre show nevertheless allows pride to be felt in Britain's unofficial musical epicentre Liverpool

- Beaumont

4/5

As the bucket-hatted yetis of the Kalush Orchestra open proceedings by recreating 2022’s winning song “Stefania”, with the Princess of Wales adding piano on video, that tang in the air, could it be… optimism? Since the rocket-voiced Afghan hound of British hero pop, Sam Ryder, defied this cynical writer’s expectations (almost) and (in a round-about way) brought Eurovision home for 2023, the arrival of music’s very own Wacky Races comes with a rare sense of national celebration.

Clearly suffering enough for its foot-shooting isolationism – and with its government looking increasingly like a special edition of The Wheel for self-serving incompetents – Britain has been mercifully unshackled from the bottom of the Eurovision table at last. And the cheese-pop addicts of the M&S Bank arena in Liverpool, hosting for Ukraine, greet the arrival of this year’s entry Mae Muller during the flag parade like the month’s second coronation. “It’s hit me,” says Mel Giedroyc, sitting in while Graham Norton finally gets his turn in front of the camera. “I’m emotional.”