About Malta...

2007 Result
History (1956 to 2006)
This year's entry
What I predicted...
What you thought...
What actually happened

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2007 Result

Points in Semi Final: 15
Position in Semi Final: 25th

Points in Final:
Position in Final:
More about the 2007 result for Malta

2008 Contest: Must compete in Semi Final

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History (1956 to 2006)

Malta's previous appearances: 19 year(s) out of 51 [note]
Years participated: 1971-1972; 1975; 1991- [note]
Best result: 2nd (2002, 2005)

Malta had a brief dalliance with Eurovision in the 1970s, taking part in 1971 (finishing last), 1972 (last again) and 1975 (a slightly better 12th). After that run of 'success', it's hardly surprising that Malta gave up, only returning in 1991. By this time, Malta had realised the advantage of singing in English, rather than the Maltese of its first two entries. Remember, from the late 1970s until 1999 only those countries with English as a native language - the UK, Ireland and Malta - could perform in English at Eurovision. Making its comeback in 1991, Malta used English to good effect, finishing in the top ten every year between until 1998, including two 3rd places (Mary Spiteri's 'Little child' in 1992, and Chiara's 'The one that I love' in 1998).

However, with the free language rule reintroduced in 1999, Malta seemed to suffer, its song 'Believe'n Peace' slumping to 15th. In truth, though, the song was weak, its poor result reflecting crimes against both spelling and singing. Indeed, it was back to normal after that, with an 8th place for Claudette Pace in 2000, 9th for Fabrizio Faniello in 2001, and a tantalising 2nd for Ira Losco's '7th Wonder' in 2002. Then, in 2003, Malta sent chirpy Lynn Chircop to Eurovision... Unfortunately, Lynn finished in 25th place with just 4 points (3 of those from Ireland), spared the indignity of coming last only because the UK's Jemini scored nothing at all. If Malta was hoping to win the contest, it had 'To dream again', as it were.

Since Malta takes Eurovision very seriously, heated debate ensued in the light of this shock result, slightly tempered by the fact that the new Semi Final system gave Malta a chance to participate in 2004 when previously it would have missed that year's contest through relegation. Luckily, Julie & Ludwig's 'On again, off again' restored some Maltese pride, qualifying for the Final with relative ease, and doing enough on the big night to finish 12th and - by the skin of their teeth - secure Malta's direct qualification to the Final in 2005.

2005 represented both the welcome return of an old face and a welcome return to form, with Chiara - seeking to better her 3rd place from 1998 - giving a stunning performance of her self-penned 'Angel'. It was enough to give Malta a well-deserved 192 points (including six 10s but only one 12) and 2nd place in the Final, beaten only by Greece's Helena Paparizou.

With a place in the 2006 Final in the bag, hopes were high that another Eurovision returner - this time Fabrizio Faniello - could deliver another strong result for Malta. Unfortunately, an off key vocal performance left Malta languishing at the bottom of the Eurovision scoreboard for the first time since 1972, a solitary point from Albania averting a 'nul points' disaster by the narrowest of margins. However, notwithstanding this poor result, Malta retains the best record of any country that has yet to actually win the Contest, having finished 2nd and 3rd on two occasions each. The Maltese will certainly be hoping that 2007 can restore the country's Eurovision pride.
Get 'The Eurovision Song Contest: The Offical History' at Amazon.co.uk

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This year's entry

Position in Semi Final draw: 20
Position in Final draw: Failed to qualify

What I said prior to the Semi Final:
"Yay! I must confess to being rather pleased when I read that Olivia Lewis had won the right - by a landslide - to represent Malta at this year's Eurovision. Whatever the merits of her song, no one can deny that Olivia has truly earnt her shot at Eurovision glory - indeed, in her tenacity, enthusiasm and indomitable spirit she exemplifies all that is wonderful and uplifting about the Maltese attitude to Eurovision. Olivia, you will recall, had participated in each of the TEN previous Malta Song for Europe contests, finishing 7th in 1997, 15th in 1998, 7th in 1999, 5th and 9th in 2000, 7th and 10th in 2001, 11th in 2002, 6th in 2003, 2nd in 2004, 2nd in 2005 and 2nd in 2006. Of course, now that she has finally won, it will be interesting to see whether Olivia still comes back for more in 2008.

First, however, there is the small matter of Malta needing to lift itself out of the 2007 Semi Final, with the hope that Olivia and her song 'Vertigo' can do the trick. The song is not, sadly, a cover of the U2 single - that would indeed be an interesting prospect - but is yet another composition from the songwriting powerhouse that is Philip Vella and Gerard James Borg, the pair responsible for the Maltese Eurovision entries in 2000, 2002 and 2004. 'Vertigo' is rather different from the traditional Maltese cheese; a dramatic, Flamenco-tinged track with a fabulous swirling intro. As things stand I think it's a very good song rather than a great one, but there's definitely scope to beef it up a bit before Eurovision. In particular, I think the structure could be tweaked so that the song builds up to a dramatic climax, rather than appearing to launch straight into the chorus before spending the next three minutes going round in circles with nowhere else to go. Word is that a new version of 'Vertigo' will be produced by the Scandinavian production house responsible for Carola's 'Invincible', and this could well give the song just the lift it needs. However, it's already much more memorable than Olivia's 'Spare a moment' from 2006, if perhaps not as strong as 'Déjà vu' from 2005. On the plus side, Olivia has a strong voice and is clearly capable of giving a good live performance; on the minus side, the stylists should really find a dress that flatters Olivia as the young and attractive woman that she is, rather than making her look like Doris Dragović. I do have a soft spot for Malta at Eurovision - it tries so hard and comes so close - and I really do hope that Olivia can do herself and her country proud."

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What I predicted...

My prediction for Semi Final: 12th to 14th
My prediction for Final: Possible qualifier
What I predicted prior to the Semi Final:
"This is a close call for sure - Malta has been stubbornly rooted just outside the Semi Final top ten in the Soult.com Eurovision Jury Vote, and I feel this is indeed a fair reflection of the country's entry. A strong performance could see 'Vertigo' qualify, but just looking at the competition I think it will be very tight - my hunch is that the Maltese may just miss out this year."
Want an alternative prediction? See Simon Hylands' 'Je t'adore, Eurovision!' site

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What you thought...

View the final leader board

In the run up to the Contest, 1,274 visitors to this site awarded points to their favourite songs in the Soult.com Eurovision Jury Vote 2007, voting as a representative of their own country's 'jury'. The votes awarded by representatives of each country were totalled, with each of the 42 participating countries (plus the 'Rest of the World') then awarding points - 12, 10, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 - based on the overall voting preference of its representatives. The points awarded to the entry from Malta are shown in the tables below:

Points awarded to Malta overall:
AL	5	AD	7	AM	4	AT	0	BY	0	BE	0
BA	0	BG	0	HR	0	CY	2	CZ	0	DK	0
EE	0	FI	0	FR	3	GE	0	DE	0	GR	2
HU	0	IS	0	IE	8	IL	0	LV	0	LT	0
MK	0	MT	X	MD	0	ME	0	NL	0	NO	0
PL	0	PT	0	RO	0	RU	0	RS	1	SI	0
ES	0	SE	0	CH	0	TR	0	UA	0	UK	0
WO	0	Last updated: 12 May 2007 Next scheduled update: None
Total points: 32, from 8/43 juries
Position: 21 out of 42

Points awarded to Malta in the Semi Final:
AL	7	AD	10	AM	6	AT	0	BY	0	BE	0
BA	0	BG	0	HR	0	CY	7	CZ	0	DK	0
EE	1	FI	0	FR	7	GE	0	DE	0	GR	4
HU	0	IS	0	IE	8	IL	0	LV	0	LT	0
MK	0	MT	X	MD	3	ME	0	NL	1	NO	0
PL	2	PT	0	RO	0	RU	0	RS	5	SI	1
ES	0	SE	0	CH	0	TR	1	UA	2	UK	3
WO	0	Last updated: 12 May 2007 Next scheduled update: None
Total points: 68, from 16/43 juries
Position: 12 out of 28

Points awarded to Malta in the Final:
AL	0	AD	0	AM	0	AT	0	BY	0	BE	0
BA	0	BG	0	HR	0	CY	0	CZ	0	DK	0
EE	0	FI	0	FR	0	GE	0	DE	0	GR	0
HU	0	IS	0	IE	0