And now for something completely different. It’s the welcome return of Portugal to the contest after a one year absence. Portugal holds the record for the most appearances in the contest without a win. In fact, the country has yet to reach the top five of any contest – could this be the year they finally break the top 5 with this very distinctive entry and performer?

I would be very wary of the fairly low position this has achieved – other signs are suggesting that this could be one of Portugal’s best ever years. The betting certainly suggests so and the ratio of likes to dislikes on YouTube is one of the best of this year’s entries. So, I am expecting a return of Portugal to the grand final for the first time since 2010.

It’s a unique entry and defiantly Portuguese (Portugal have always sung fully or mostly in Portuguese throughout their time in Eurovision). Salvador looks rather like an Iberian hipster and his quirky/jerky mannerisms when singing this sweet song can be a put off-putting, but listen to this without watching the video and it really shines. Hopefully his performance and staging will endear in Kyiv though.

The song was written by his sister, and after winning in the national final, they sung it as a duet (which a lot of people then suggested they do in the contest!). That won’t happen sadly but I think this song could well surprise and has got to be a contender for Portugal’s best result in over 20 years.

Mum’s comment: “What language is this?”; “He’s a bit weird isn’t he?”; “I don’t think this will win”.

Official video:

Portugal at the Eurovision Song Contest:

First entered: 1964

Appearances (excluding this year): 48

Best result: 6th in 1996

Last year’s result: Did not enter