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Eurovision Song Contest 2013 Grand Final: Get the lowdown on the 26 countries competing in Malmö

 

Matilda Battersby
Saturday 18 May 2013 19:13 BST
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Amandine Bourgeois singing 'L'enfer Et Moi' Bourgeois won French Pop Idol La Nouvelle Star in 2008 and has since released two albums. The 33-year-old says she uses "her inner emotions to sing, to write and to feed her inspiration". Her competition entry is a slow-tempo blues-influenced pop song composed by David Salkin and Boris Bergman.
Amandine Bourgeois singing 'L'enfer Et Moi' Bourgeois won French Pop Idol La Nouvelle Star in 2008 and has since released two albums. The 33-year-old says she uses "her inner emotions to sing, to write and to feed her inspiration". Her competition entry is a slow-tempo blues-influenced pop song composed by David Salkin and Boris Bergman. (Getty Images)

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The moment we have all been waiting for has arrived: the European Song Contest 2013 is live from Malmö in Sweden in a matter of hours. Who will take Europe's quirkiest singing honour this year? And which countries will suffer the ignominy of "nil points"? Which extraordinarily bad song will win most from the judges on political grounds alone?

From Finland's Bridal-themed offering "Marry Me" (featuring the first Eurovision lesbian kiss) to Romania's Dracula-inspired operatic ballad "It's My Life" and Armenia’s metal entry written by Black Sabbath’s Tony Iommi, we give you the lowdown on each of the 26 countries competing in this year's.

Click here or on "View Images" for pictures of the contestants as they'll appear in tomorrow's final

Watch the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 Grand Final tonight at 8pm on BBC1

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