Ireland's national broadcaster, RTÉ, has decided to broadcast the 1996 Father Ted episode A Song for Europe instead of the Eurovision final, in protest against Israel's participation in the song contest. The episode, widely regarded as one of the funniest in the beloved sitcom, features characters Father Ted and Father Dougal performing their song My Lovely Horse and earning nul points.
Controversy and Condemnation
The decision has sparked strong reactions. Graham Linehan, co-creator of Father Ted, accused RTÉ of using the show as "a tool of antisemitic harassment" and called for the resignation of the broadcaster's director-general, Kevin Bakhurst. He described the move as "an act of pointed, gleeful counter-programming."
However, the Irish news site Extra.ie praised the decision as "genius trolling" and referred to it as "my lovely boycott."
Broader Boycott Movement
Spain, Slovenia, the Netherlands, and Iceland have also declined to send competitors to Austria, where 35 countries will compete under the motto "united by music." Slovenia's broadcaster will air documentaries under the theme Voices of Palestine, while Spain's broadcaster will run a music programme called The House of Music.
The boycott follows calls for the European Broadcasting Union to change rules to deter countries from organising voting campaigns, after concerns over Israeli singer Yuval Raphael receiving the largest number of votes from the public last year and coming second overall.
The Father Ted Episode
A Song for Europe is one of the most famous episodes of the series, which aired on Channel 4 from 1995 to 1998 and won several awards. In the episode, Ted and Dougal represent Ireland with a tuneless song about a horse, selected because it is so dreadful that it will surely prevent Ireland from winning and thus avoid hosting the next Eurovision.
The plot reflects a widespread myth that, after winning in 1992 and 1993, Ireland selected a purportedly weak entry, Rock 'n' Roll Kids, in 1994 with the intention of losing. However, it won. In the Father Ted episode, the ruse prevails, and the priests earn zero points.
Ireland's Eurovision History
Ireland's Eurovision success peaked in 1996 with a seventh win, a record matched only by Sweden. Some observers blame Ireland's subsequent defeats partly on the decision in 2008 to enter Dustin the Turkey, a children's puppet that sang Irelande Douze Pointe from a shopping trolley.
