Brown could look at the Eurovision ...

Sep 26 2008 by Matthew Rippon, The Journal

TALENTED people laid to waste. Fortunes in “safe” investments rendered worthless overnight. Will we never see the end of these catastrophes?

Yes, it has been a busy couple of weeks. But there can be little doubt as to the news story of the month. The Government is crumbling. Peace in Zimbabwe but Mr Mbeki has been forced to resign. And the collapse of capitalism, well, I suppose that was fairly big news. But it was the return of juries to the Eurovision Song Contest that dominated the conversation over the dinner table chez Rippon last Thursday.

To those that care about these things (and there are more of you out there than will admit it) the last contest will be remembered not for any of the songs, costumery or dance routines, but for the disgruntled grumblings of Wogan as yet another eastern European nation danced in the aisles.

Telephone voting was introduced to Eurovision in 1998, the year after the UK’s last success. The contest of 98 was won, of course, by Dana International of Israel (surely the country least likely to produce a transsexual Eurovision winner) and although the following years were won by Sweden and Denmark, every year since has seen a first-time winner and, how can we put this, suspect patterns in the televoting, eventually giving rise to Sir Terry’s dark mutterings this year.

Reserve juries are kept on tap every year in case of technical failure, but the BBC reports that the voting patterns of the reserve juries are radically different to those displayed by the huddled masses via the televoting. And so, rather than lose Wogan, the juries are to return.

It should be borne in mind that the contest is a mini musical Olympics, with all the expense that that entails. Five times another country has had to step into the role of host after the winner declined.

But something was lost in the rush to establish a revenue stream, and while the popularity surged in the East, back in the West interest was waning as fast as the prospects of its representatives. You see, in the hurry to exploit a profitable but short-term opportunity, the purpose of the song contest – to bring people together, not to provide a platform for nationalism, albeit a peaceful one – was forgotten.

A familiar story. Of course, it’s too late for the staff of and investors in Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch and HBOS. But maybe not for Gordon Brown. Now, if he can just find away of running an election with a hand-selected jury of 12 good people in each constituency ...

Matthew Rippon specialises in IP and commercialisation at BHP Law