Dobra večer Evropa i dobro jutro Australija! This is Podgorica calling! Tonight we’ll find out who Montenegro will be sending to the Eurovision Song Contest in Lisbon!

Sit back and relax, and let Eurovision Ireland’s own James Scanlan entertain and inform you. As always, feel free to tell me what you think and give your opinions about tonight’s Final and who your favourites are!

Tonight’s show comes to us courtesy of Montenegrin broadcaster RTCG live from the Hilton Hotel in the Montengrin capital Podgorica. The winner will be selected by 100% televote and all proceeds from the voting will be donated to charity, specifically to help Veselina and Gorice Bućković from the village of Dupsiće rebuild their family home.

You know the drill: Just refresh this page to get the comments and points of view!

You can watch the live show HERE from 20:00 CET.

5 acts will perform tonight, but there can only be one winner! Singing tonight we have (in order of appearance):

1. Nina Petković – Dišem
2. Vanja Radovanović – Inje
3. Ivana Popović Martinović – Poljupci
4. Katarina Bogićević – Neželjena
5. Lorena Janković – Dušu Mi Daj

LIVE BLOG STARTS HERE!!

Good evening everyone! This is your 10 minute warning before the first ever Montevizija kicks off in Podgorica! Yay!! Can they pick a winner? Let’s find out!

Ooh, lots of Olympic coverage in the Montenegrin news… it’s also going to be quite warm there tomorrow… lucky!! But it’s going to rain AND snow tomorrow night… make up your mind, weather!

Here we go!

Our hosts have started the evening by the piano, reminiscing about Eurovision winners who used a piano, such as Merci, Cherie and Rock N’ Roll kids… also a more classical version of Insieme: 1992 and Yugoslav favourite, Dzuli!

A look back now at Montenegro’s Eurovision hits… Moj Svijet, Igranka, Adio… they’ve had some truly great entries… and Space…

This is the stage inside the Hilton Hotel in Podgorica (if your parents are reading along, they might remember it as Titograd)

A look behind the scenes now, explaining who tonight’s songs came about and the big twist – no juries tonight – it’s all down to the good people of Montenegro!! Or in their own words,  “Viewing public, it’s your night!”

A year-by-year account of Montenegro’s Eurovision journey… including the artist’s songs, hometowns and rather bizarrely, their weights… I’m sure Andrea Demirovic is thrilled we now all know that! 0__0

It’s taken me far too long to realise there is no live audience there… I’m so used to there being live audiences at national finals, I just assumed there was a crowd!

Here come the songs!

Nina Petković – Dišem

Love the cape she started out in! Something about this song is distinctly 1980s in the sound, but you can tell Nina has put a lot of effort into this routine, what with all the dancers and the costume change. Not a bad way to open the show, curious what else tonight will offer!

 Vanja Radovanović – Inje

Wow, they’re going through quick! I’m going to have to type much faster! For a song called “Frost” (but a particularly harsh and cruel kind we don’t really have a word for in English!) this is exactly what I was hoping for – a dark, brooding Balkan ballad… you know, the type that get Montenegro into the final??? 😉 I love his coat and his voice suits this kind of song perfectly. I sat here spellbound, I loved it!!

 Ivana Popović Martinović – Poljupci

From a Balkan ballad to a very 1990s ballad! I’m loving the conviction she’s giving her performance, as well as the fact that it’s basically just her on stage – no flashing lights or gimmicks, just her voice. And that crescendo – WOW! Yes, it’s a touch dated, but I’m impressed. Great number!

Katarina Bogićević – Neželjena

Penultimate song of the night… already! We’ve only been on air for about 20 minutes! Sanremo, I hope you’re watching! What can I say about young Katarina? Every inch a Disney princess in that gown, beautiful and with a heck of a voice to back it up – singing about being unwanted and heartbroken… I think this is the best all rounderbI’ve seen so far tonight that has the broadest appeal and I suspect will be one to watch when it comes to voting. Loved it!

Lorena Janković – Dušu Mi Daj

Last song! The music is again quite heartfelt and brooding, which clashes slightly with Lorena’s pageant girl gown and curls. This being said, she sings well and delivers a solid performance. I don’t dislike the song at all, but there isn’t a lot to make it stand out either.

So that’s it! We can all go home! Well, almost! We still need a winner! Honestly, I’m stunned, I’ve never known a national final to speed through like this!

While our hosts explain how to vote, I’ll take a moment to deliberate myself and try to predict tonight’s result. Be right back! 😀

You’d think being fewer songs, it would be easier to pick out a winner. But when they are all strong contenders and only 5 of them to choose from, it’s a lot harder than you think! It’s especially hard to try and predict a vote when it’s 100% public… sometimes the public votes for an actual song, other times they go completely off the wall…

This being said, I’ve made a Top 3, in any order: Vanja Radovanović, Katarina Bogićević, Ivana Popović Martinović. What do you think?

Well look who it is! Slavko Kalezić! My Swinging Ponytail himself!

His latest track is actually quite good! Shame this didn’t go to Kyiv, I think it would have made it into the final!

According to the screen behind them, Montenegro has a further 12 minutes to vote. So while that happens, we get to watch some adverts. Montenegro is a very affordable country, so if you see something you like, treat yourself! Be right back!

Much like everything else tonight, that was quick! Now a very serious looking orchestra is treating us to classical versions of well known Eurovision melodies, including Waterloo and Fairytale (and some others my brain wasn’t fast enough to decipher!)

The hosts are noting how busy the next few weeks are for Eurovision, what with EMA, Beovizija… trust me, we know how busy the next few weeks are! They’ve also just played a clip of Albania’s song Mall – maybe not surprising, parts of Montengro are home to lots of Albanians!

Ever wondered how a national final looks from behind the scenes? Well, know you know!

30 seconds! Just enough time to send another text… or 2!!

A look back on that magical night when the impossible happened… Portugal won Eurovision!

Lisbon looks incredible! A really beautiful city AND the seaside!! 😀

Yes, AllAboard! But who is AllAboard for Montenegro?

Looks like we’re about to find out… oh wait, it’s a Top 3! Super final anyone?

Katarina Bogićević is through!

Vanja Radovanović is through!

Lorena Janković is through!

2/3 – that has to be a record for me! I got Vanja and Katarina right though!

So yes, now it’s a kind of Super Final. Montenegro gets to vote for these 3 songs now, which also get to perform again. As they say in Montenegro, Hajde!

Super Final: Vanja Radovanović – Inje

Hmmm… something has gone wrong somewhere… this isn’t as powerful as it was the first time… don’t get me wrong, I still love it and think it would be a great choice for Montenegro, but I think loosing the musicians on stage wasn’t a good idea. Pity…

Super Final: Katarina Bogićević – Neželjena

Never thought I’d ever say I prefer pop over Balkan ballads, but this performance is just so strong. She’s got the looks, the voice, the conviction… ok, the staging could do with a little something, but let’s face it, all of the songs have been staging lite tonight! Hoping not to jinx it, I think we have our winner…

Super Final: Lorena Janković – Dušu Mi Daj

The song I didn’t expect to make the cut. For me it’s still a bit too twee and sweet in the look, but she does have a powerful voice. And, she moves a lot more than Katarina did… I didn’t mark this to do well, but apparently Montenegro has other ideas (no offence, I just hope they don’t involve going to Lisbon!)

Advert time! Isn’t Montenegro gorgeous! Would love to go back!

Here’s a reminder of the songs you saw perform not 2 minutes ok… um… OK?

An orchestral version of Hajde Da Ludujemo! ❤ ❤ To mi se dopada! 😀

And now Zauvijek Moja… the last song Serbia and Montenegro sent to Eurovision as a unified state!

Now Lane Moje too… perhaps one of my favourite songs in this language – simply stunning!

And Lejla! ❤ This was the song that made me want to learn Bosnian ❤

Molitva… they’re basically playing all my favourites from the Balkans!! 😀

A message from Sergej Ćetković, the first singer to get Montenegro into the final with ‘Moj Svijet’, wishing them all the best at Eurovision. Is there a singer amongst these 3 who can get them back into the final??

11 minutes left to vote?? I knew “wow, this is going really quickly!” would come back to haunt me…

Knez with his 2015 entry, Adio – Montenegro’s best ever placing at the contest at 13th

Gosh this song is beautiful… so poetic and tragic, but I love it!

Adio was translated into English, French and Finnish?! And Portuguese? Well I never knew that!

Well Knez, we’ve still got plenty of time – so another question! 0_o

Close your eyes and imagine it’s 3 months from now…

Oh, one day Montenegro! We’d love to see you top the scoreboard! 😀

Imagining planning Eurovision 2019 in Montenegro… suggestions for funding it including getting the money from school children… oh dear… 😛

Auditions for hosting now… glad to see Montenegro has a sense of humour! And good to see they’ve got it all planned out for when they win! But how about their singer for this year?

Who’s it going to be?

3rd place goes to Lorena Janković

2nd place goes to Katarina Bogićević

meaning in 1st place is Vanja Radovanović!

So Inje is going to Lisbon – I said before, a Balkan ballad got them into the final, maybe it can do it again!

Congratulations Vanja, we look forward to seeing you in Lisbon! Thanks for reading along with me tonight, hope you had as much fun as I did! Thank you Europe and good night!