VIENNA - Romanian metal, a Danish ode to clubbing and Australian star Delta Goodrem will fill the airwaves in the Eurovision grand final after making it through the second semi-final.
Contestants from 15 countries sang their hearts out in the Austrian capital to try to secure the last 10 places in Saturday's showpiece extravaganza at the Wiener Stadthalle.
Besides Australia, Denmark and Romania, which bookmakers place among the front-runners, Albania, Bulgaria, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Malta, Norway and Ukraine live to fight another day.
But it was Goodnight Vienna for Armenia, Azerbaijan, Latvia, Luxembourg and Switzerland, who saw their Eurovision dreams crumble.
In line with the final, this year, the semis were decided by public televoting and also by professional juries.
While waiting for the nerve-shredding results reveal, the crowd danced a mass Viennese waltz.
Eurovision is the world's biggest live televised music event, typically reaching more than 150 million viewers, and Vienna 2026 is the 70th edition of the glitzy show where spectacle and drama go hand in hand.
- AFP