"There's nothing more joyful than Eurovision": Essex's Sam Ryder on competing in the contest

It's the Eurovision final this Saturday night in Italy and Essex's very own Sam Ryder will be representing the UK.

The TikTok star from Maldon will perform his original song, 'Space Man', in Turin.

Despite being one of the favourites to win, he told us he's not focused on that: "It's at the bottom of the list, it's probably not even on it.

"Throughout lockdown I was singing in the corner of my room and that was about the love of music, the love of singing and just expressing and there was a total lack of expectation there.

"I had no idea it would do anything, otherwise I probably wouldn't have started by singing Britney Spears' 'Hit Me Baby One More Time' in my mum's kitchen!

"But it did snowball and it did happen, so I'm keeping that same mindset going into the competition."

Watch: Sam told us how final rehearsals have been going ahead of the final on Saturday...

He says the support from his home county and the rest of the UK has been immense: "It's amazing when you're away from home and you can feel the encouragement coming from your friends, loved ones and family, it really gives you that fire."

The singer also paid tribute to the fans of the contest, all of whom, he says, have been very supportive: "The fans of Eurovision are the most passionate fans out there, and it's not just showing support to a single artist, they show support for the entire infrastructure of Eurovision because it represents inclusivity, expression, kindness, love and joy.

"Really, there's nothing more joyful than Eurovision, if you think about it."

Talking to us from Italy, he said rehearsals have been going well: "They've been going wicked. It's lovely to see everything come together.

"Seeing all of the plans about staging and lighting, all the ideas we've had up until this point on paper coming into reality is amazing...

"The main rehearsals are in the arena so you get a feel of the stage - it's totally empty when you're doing it, which is a bit wacky as there are just loads of empty seats everywhere - it kind of reminds me of my first gigs a bit actually!"

Watch: Sam told us it's not about the winning, it's the journey that counts...

As well as preparing for his performance, Sam says he's enjoyed getting to meet his competitors: "I didn't listen to any of the songs until I got to the pre-parties and that was really cool. It was great to meet the artists first, get to know them and chat with them and then hear them sing their songs.

"It made it feel way less like a crazy battle of the bands circus with weird competitive energy, because that's tiresome and you can enjoy it way more than that."

Check out these throwback's to some of the most-watched Eurovision performances of all time:

Now read:

Who is Sam Ryder? Everything you need to know about the UK's Eurovision entry

12 facts you probably didn’t know about the Eurovision Song Contest

The most watched Eurovision performances of all time

QUIZ: Guess the country from these iconic Eurovision performances

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• Eurovision
• Eurovision Song Contest