THE annual spectacle that is Eurovision once again rumbles in to town this weekend.

As usual we will barely register on the results board but the difference this year will be it will take longer for us to realise because they have changed the way they present the results.

As in previous years, it will not be clear who has won until the last minute, so keeping viewers glued to their televisions until the very end.

Or something like that.

Love it or hate it, Eurovision is a massive deal. It is even popular in Australia where they were actually allowed to compete last year a special treat to mark a special anniversary.

In our house we have even taken to watching the semi-finals, hosted by Scott Mills and Mel Giedroyc on BBC 4.

When I was a kid, Eurovision suddenly appeared one Saturday in May, then disappeared. We even won very occasionally.

Now it is more of an event, bolstered by 24-hour TV and a huge following the world over.

Importantly, it is treated with a tongue-in-cheek, affectionate tone by all involved and we will sit down as a family to watch it, treat ourselves to a vote and try and stay awake for the results, as we do every year.

Having tuned in to the semi-finals, we will also be familiar with some of the acts who compete for their places wearing the exact outfits and doing the same choreography they do on the actual night should they make it through.

This has the effect of making the actual competition a bit like Groundhog Day.

I have heard our entry, by Joe and Jake, several times already and still could not sing it to you, which does not bode well for our efforts to win again for the first time in almost 20 years.

Still, that way when I get up on Sunday I will be able to watch several has-been pop stars being asked on a number of talk shows why they think we didn’t succeed. Again.