Eurovision fans have been left divided following Sam Ryder's interval performance at the 2023 finale in Liverpool last night. The TikTok-famous singer, who came second at last year's Eurovision with song Spaceman, has been accused of upstaging this year's UK entrant, Mae Muller.
25-year-old Muller performed at Liverpool's M&S Bank Arena but sadly came second to last with her entry, I Wrote A Song, only beating Germany who had been left at the back of the pack with 18 points.
Sam Ryder, who had huge success last year following a tight neck-and-neck competition with Ukraine for the 2022 top spot, returned to the song contest to sing his new track Mountain. The singer-songwriter was joined on stage by none other than Roger Taylor; drummer of 80s rock band, Queen.
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Sam, who has been described as the 'new Freddie Mercury', had fans eating out of the palm of his hand with the mid-show performance, with some fans taking to Twitter claiming that he had 'upstaged' Mae as they praised his 'pure talent'.
One Twitter user wrote: "Poor Mae Muller being completely upstaged by last year's UK entry. Britain might have actually had a chance with Sam Ryder and Queen in the #Eurovision house."
Another pondered on what could have been if Sam was given the chance to perform again this year, writing: "Just wondering how the UK would have fared with Sam Ryder singing his new song. We could have been hosting again!"
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One person described the UK's success last year as a 'blip', tweeting: "UK back to reality eh. Sam Ryder was indeed a blip,"
Since Sweden's 2012 winner Loreen returned with another triumphant win this year, making her the second ever Eurovision contestant to win twice, fans have been calling on Sam to represent the UK again next year.
Loreen, who won a decade ago with Euphoria came back to claim the title once more, bagging 583 points with song Tattoo.
Fans were sceptical of Mae Mullers performance, even questioning whether her microphone volume had been turned down during her performance.
One person wrote on Twitter: "Obviously not going to be Mae Muller's night but it was better song than the performance - couldn't hear her - her mic was too low in the mix."
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While another said: "Really gutted for Mae Muller. I Wrote A Song is a great catchy pop tune but it just didn't land as a live performance!"
Sadly, voters weren't impressed by Mae's performance and she was left with a mere 24 points.
Featured Image Credit: Licensed by Story Picture Agency/Shutterstock/Licensed by Story Picture Agency/ShutterstockTopics: Eurovision