The UK 2024: Olly Alexander with ‘Dizzy’

Early favourite Olly Alexander has released his entry for Eurovision after weeks of teasing:

I would like to start this with some praise for the BBC and particularly Olly. “Good on you for having ambition and taking part” sounds very insincere and backhanded but I mean it earnestly. Whilst I don't think the song can back up that early talk for a victory, it is good to see a country trying, particularly one with a patchy record who could have gone off the rails again having hosted last year and returned to a regular position.

Olly is not the household name in Europe some outlets have portrayed him as which led to the early over-expectations, but is a relevant and recognisable enough domestic artist for The UK and an experienced enough pair of hands. His enthusiasm for the contest and engagement with the fandom is also endearing but this is another aspect which has led to this being viewed through rose tinted shades in my opinion. It’s not a unique stance and in fact is pretty universal amongst the general betting/predictor types.

‘Dizzy’ as a song but even as a concept is hard to find standout in any way, which is generally what is required to get votes. It’s a nice, catchy pop song but too generic. It has a good hook but is not memorable at the same time- listen to this in a run of pretty much everything else under 100 on the exchange and it’s the most easy to forget. There’s no additional cause or narrative, no oomph and no impact. Olly wants to be Dizzy - that's it, that's the call to vote. I'm not saying you can’t do straight up pop but ‘Luktelk’ is here and Marcus and Martinus are probably incoming. Those alone likely dominate this in it's target demographic.

There has been a lot of talk about The UK adding a moment live or mixing this up a little to compensate for this. Perhaps I am very unimaginative, but I can't picture what they could do to seriously elevate this and even with a slick performance, the televote looks tricky. Styling is also a concern - there’s a case for authenticity above all else but going too flamboyant could be off-putting and Switzerland may be stealing that angle now too.

If Olly can avoid a vocal disaster, juries should be more receptive to this and the credentials behind the song. It is current, chartable and well produced with the UK/big 5 tag helping in theory. Mae torpedoed that angle last year but I do sense some good will still so to say. Perhaps the lower reaches of a jury top 10 is possible, but I sense a midtable is more likely with them, whilst I'm fearful of a bottom 5 televote given everything mentioned and how automatic qualifiers tend to slip down there if there’s any weakness.

So yeah, I’m not expecting much from The UK with ‘Dizzy’ and, apart from Olly himself who seems to understand the game, I’m concerned there’s a lack of perspective all around which could cycle onwards.

Personal Rating: 5/10

Competitve Rating: 6/10

Early Prediction: 15th-19th