10. CROATIA 2001
Strings of Love performed by Vanna
Once all 387 songs had been played at this year's Dora in Zagreb, the clear favourite was the uptempo Strune Ljubavi (now known as Strings of Love) by the heavily pregnant Vanna - who subsequently popped her sprog a fortnight later. Pregnancy at Eurovision can bring mixed blessings - it didn't help Agnetha of Abba when they took Ring Ring to Melodifestivalen '73, but it brought Kirsten Hot Thighs an ESC bronze in 1988.
More surprising than that is the decision by Croatian TV execs to allow the song to be performed in English on the night, a bit of a turnaround from 1999, when a public televote was held to see if Marija Magdalena should go out in English, but the support went overwhelmingly towards singing in the native tongue. Then again, the English version of Marija is crap.
However, I'm really not worthy when it comes to the Croatian entry - as our balkopop correspondent Catherine Baker easily proved with her regular pre-Dora reports. I have consulted Ms Baker about the pressing importance of 'whether Croatia are going to win or not', and she seems convinced that they won't.
The Balkans have gone disco. Don't forget your tanktops.
If you want some *real* information on this song, rather than facile jokes and silly puns, try: http://www.geocities.com/hrescena/eurosong/hrvatska/
HEARD-IT: Others say it's like the theme from The Love Boat, but my preferred analysis is that it's a 'nice' version of Live and Let Die. Someone spits a cork out the end of a flute before the very first note, but that doesn't stop it being in my personal Top 5.
AND ON THAT NOTE, WE'LL PREDICT: The second-best showing from the Eastern bloc.