James ready to take on Lisbon for Eurovision

A Eurovision super-fan from Bury St Edmunds is ready to indulge his passion once again at the end of this month.

James Sheen, who runs the We Love Bury St Edmunds! Facebook page, is flying off to Portugal on April 30 to cover the 63rd outing of the event.

He said: “I just can’t believe it, I am already three quarters packed.

“When you go over, you absorb culture, you learn new things being in the country and you just take so much on board from the experience.”

Having enjoyed the competition since 1972, James says Eurovision gives something different.

He said: “The music is one thing but I think it also brings so many people together.”

Even though the final is not until May 12, James and his team will be there for two weeks, tweeting, writing articles and producing live video for his website, escSocial.

They will see rehearsals from all 43 acts and two semi- finals before the main event at the Altice Arena in Lisbon.

He said: “The songs may not be what you expect in the UK but they are the sort of songs you hear when you are on holiday and get into them.

“I think people still watch some of it from around their papers or whatever, even if they say they hate it.”

James is taking nine of his trade mark waistcoats for Eurovision, including a new flag of Portugal design and his St Edmundsbury waistcoat he had for last year’s St Edmund’s Day celebration.

This will be his fifth trip, after going to Dusseldorf in 2011, Vienna in 2015, driving the 2,000-mile round trip to Stockholm in 2016 and also going to Ukraine last year.

James said: “It is a massive party atmosphere and brings a good time to everyone.

“The acts want to entertain, some are tongue in cheek and you don’t need to know the words of the songs to understand the messages. That is what makes Eurovision unique.”

To follow James on his Eurovision journey, go to www.escsocial.com