Ireland: TG4 unveils the Junior Eurovision Éire 2022 Hosts and Guest Judges

Ireland: TG4 unveils the Junior Eurovision Éire 2022 Hosts and Guest Judges
Monday, 22 August 2022

  • TG4, the Irish speaking broadcaster, has revealed the host and guest judges of Junior Euroivsion Éire 2022, the show that will select the next Irish Junior Eurovision representative.  

    TG4 during its autumn shcedule confirmed the presenters and the guest judges of their Junior Eurovision selection show, Junior Euroivsion Éire 2022.

    Louise Cantillon will be hosting the show for  second consecutinve year but this time he won't be alone as  Darragh Ó Caoimh will be joining him in the presentation of the selection. This mark the first time the show will be presented by two hosts. 

    While the show will see four heats and a semi-final, the contestants of each round perform an Irish cover of well known songs before a jury that consists of two permanent jurors and one extra who changes from show to show. Namely the permananent and guest judges for this year's selection are: 

    • Niamh Ní Chróinín – TG4 host of the youth programming Cúla4 and head of the Irish-language youth radio station Raidió Rí-Rá,
    • Chris Greene – RTÉ 2fm host

     

    The guest judges are all former Irish Eurovision representatives: 

    • Niamh Kavanagh ( ESC 1993 Winner, ESC 2010)
    • Linda Martin (1983, ESC 1992 Winner)
    • Paul Harrington (ESC 1994 Winner)
    • Brooke Scullion (ESC 2022)
    • Brian Kennedy (ESC 2016)
    • Ryan O’ Shaughnessy (ESC 2018)

    In this year's national selection the public vote will have the final say on who will represent Ireland in Yerevan, Armenia. The lines will open as soon as the semi-final is over and the finalists are determined. Once the winner is selected the song that the JESC hopeful will be singing in Yerevan will be composed. 

     

    Ireland in Junior Eurovision 

    Ireland has participated in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest five times since their first appearance in the 2015 contest. The Irish language broadcaster, TG4, is responsible for the country's participation in the contest, and uses the national final Junior Eurovision Éire to select the Irish entries.

    Ireland debuted in the contest when TG4 participated in the 2015 contest in Sofia, Bulgaria, when the song "Réalta na mara" performed by Aimee Banks placed 12th in a field of 17 countries.  Ireland has achieved one top ten placing, in 2016 when the song "Bríce ar bhríce" performed by Zena Donnelly placed 10th.

    In Gliwice-Silesia at JESC 2019 Anna Kearney represented Ireland with her song "Banshee"  which finished 12th receiving 73 points. Despite having initially confirmed their participation in the 2020 contest in Warsaw, Poland in January 2020, TG4 announced in August 2020 that they would not participate in the contest due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

    Last year Paris, Maiú Levi Lawlor represented the nation with “Saor (Disappear)”. He finished 18th with 44 points. 

    News Source: TG4

    Image: EBU/Andres Putting

     

     

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