Boy George ‘so sad’ he did not make Eurovision final with San Marino entry
By Lauren Del Fabbro, Press Association Entertainment Reporter
Veteran British pop star Boy George has said he is “so sad” that he did not make it through to the Eurovision Song Contest final.
The Culture Club singer, also known as George Alan O’Dowd, was part of the San Marino entry alongside Senhit with their song Superstar, but the pair were eliminated during the first semi-final on Tuesday night following a public vote.
Despite not making it to the final in Vienna, the singer described his time at Eurovision as “fabulous” in a post on X and thanked the fans who voted for them.
If you voted for us, thank you so much, I was sad we didn't get through to the final but my @eurovision experience has been fabulous. I wouldn't take a minute of it back. Thanlks to @senhitofficial and the entire San Marino delegation. What a fun bunch. We will perform together…
— Boy George (@BoyGeorge) May 12, 2026
He said: “If you voted for us, thank you so much, I was sad we didn’t get through to the final but my @eurovision experience has been fabulous.
“I wouldn’t take a minute of it back.
“Thanks to @senhitofficial and the entire San Marino delegation.
“What a fun bunch.”
The 64-year old added that the duo will perform together again in Milan in July at the Real Culture Club show.
The others eliminated on Tuesday night were Portugal, Georgia, Montenegro, and Estonia.
It means Israel, Moldova, Sweden, Croatia, Greece, Finland, Belgium, Lithuania, Poland, and Serbia all qualified.
Israel’s inclusion in the song contest has sparked controversy due to its war in Gaza, with Ireland, Iceland, the Netherlands, Spain, and Slovenia all boycotting the event.
Protests took place in the Austrian capital over Israel’s participation in the contest, with the country’s entrant, Noam Bettan, booed by some in the crowd during his performance on Tuesday.
Earlier this week, human rights group Amnesty International criticised the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) for its failure to suspend Israel from the song contest, as it did with Russia following its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, calling it an act of “cowardice” and a “blatant double standard”.
Israel’s 2025 entrant Yuval Raphael received the largest number of votes from the public last May, ultimately finishing runner-up to Austrian winner JJ after the jury votes were taken into account.
UK entrant Look Mum No Computer, whose real name is Sam Battle, will perform on the Eurovision stage for the first time during Thursday’s semi-final.
The Eurovision Song Contest final will take place on Saturday at the Wiener Stadthalle in Vienna.
