The United Kingdom’s Head of Delegation is not concerned about the United Kingdom’s chances in Eurovision this year after its entry failed to chart. 

Dizzy by Olly Alexander only placed number 42 in the Official Singles Chart in the week after it was released, and has since fallen out of the top 100 altogether. 

Click to read this story at a glance…

• UK’s Eurovision entry Dizzy by Olly Alexander failed to chart which sparked some concerns
• The UK’s Head of Delegation, Andrew Cartmell, remains optimistic citing past instances of countries initially being low in the odds performing well at Eurovision
• Collaboration between Olly Alexander and director Theo Adams promises a “dramatic” and “gritty” performance for Eurovision

Speaking exclusively to The Euro Trip, Andrew Cartmell said: “I’m not concerned. 

“There’s lots of talk about the betting odds. Last year was a classic case where there were two frontrunners from the very start; Sweden and Finland. And that’s how it played out.

“In other years it’s different, and this year it’s a very open field. There’s lots of contenders, great songs and different sounds. 

“In other years I’ve been at Eurovision, there have been so many famous artists and songs that, at this point four or five weeks out, were nowhere in the betting.” 

Cartmell listed 2014 winner Conchita and that year’s runners-up The Common Linnets, and 2018 runner-up Eleni Foureira as examples of artists who ultimately placed highly at Eurovision after languishing down in the odds weeks before the contest. 

“We all know that a great performance and great staging can make a big difference. 

“So, no, I’m not concerned. I’m excited.” 

The United Kingdom is currently ranked 11th in the bookmakers’ odds. Switzerland, Croatia and Italy are the leading contenders. 

Alexander’s staging for his Eurovision performance in Malmö is being directed by Theo Adams. 

Adams has collaborated with Alexander on a number of projects in the past, including the singer’s performance of It’s A Sin with Elton John at the 2021 BRIT Awards, his New Year’s Eve show on BBC One in the same year, and his most recent world tour. 

“Theo is phenomenal. They [Olly and Theo] know each other inside out. He understands Olly. 

“All those words that Olly has teased in interviews in recent weeks, that the performance will be ‘dramatic’, ‘gritty’, ‘it will stand out’. Having seen what I’ve seen in the last few days, I concur that all of those things will happen. 

“Theo loves Eurovision, he understands the show, he understands Olly and knows how to get the best out of him.” 

Dizzy’s failure to make an instant impact on the charts came as a surprise to some fans after Will Wilkin said his aim was for the song to be a number one single. 

BBC Music’s Commissioning Executive made that claim in an exclusive interview with The Euro Trip in January. 

“Our ambition is to win and for the single to go to number one, and for it to be another watershed moment for Eurovision for the UK,” he said. 

“You have to make peace with what the worst case scenario is to reach the best. 

“Everyone that enters Eurovision is aware of what the worst case scenario can be, but I believe this will be another huge growth spike in terms of what Eurovision means.” 

Wilkin spearheaded the decision-making panel with BBC Studios’ Eurovision Executive Producer Lee Smithurst, and the pair selected Olly Alexander as the UK’s 2024 Eurovision artist. 

“We can measure that in a million different ways if we want to, but really we’re going there to win it,” Wilkin added. 

“And we are going there to win it with a single that is an incredibly commercially successful single.”

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