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Millions will be watching as 26 countries go head to head to be crowned champions of the Eurovision Song Contest this weekend – but not everyone calls themselves a fan. The notoriously weird and wonderful event still divides opinion right down the middle – when it comes to Eurovision, you’re either all in or not. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter We pitched two writers against each other, one who loves Eurovision and one who can’t stand it. So, whose side are you on? Kate Plummer: Why I hate Eurovision What would happen if you brought together all the kinds of musicians who X Factor judges consider passing at the audition stage of the competition - but ultimately decide not to? What would happen if you asked cruise ship singers to come together and belt out hours of 'tunes' that resemble copyright-free hold music at best, or something your 10-year-old niece cooked up on GarageBand at worst? The answer, of course, is the gaudy Eurovision Song Contest, that homage to naffness, that yearly nightmare that we are forced to endure. "But it's fun!" the doltish masses cry. "Look at their outfits," the square-eyed cretins say. Save it. Like most organised fun and forced merriment (see hen dos, school reunions and anything to do with sport), Eurovision is absolutely awful. But unlike hen dos, school reunions and anything to do with sport, there is no escaping the tyrannical grip of its regime. It man spreads over the course of Saturday night telly, it bleeds into every pub, bar and group chat of excitable friends organising their cursed viewing parties. This year, it will even be screened in cinemas. Where is my respite? I didn't even vote for Brexit but surely the yearly congregation of the worst representatives of Europe is a dividend we could have gained from leaving the bloc? The 2023 contest is being held in the UK city of Liverpool this week, building up to the grand final on Saturday. Acts from 37 countries are taking part. So will I be tuning in to see which act has become this year's meme and what 'funny moments' have gone viral on social media? Absolutely not. After all, 66 contests and over 1,600 songs, there's a reason the only Eurovision act anyone can name is Abba... Eurovision is completely naff. Count me out. Harry Fletcher: Why I love Eurovision There aren’t many things that every single member of the family can sit down to watch together and genuinely look forward to. Eurovision is one of them. It’s a big event in our household, with family members spread around the country heading back up north to watch together. Why do we love it? The sheer strangeness is certainly a factor. The likes of Käärijä, representing Finland in 2023 with the bizarre 'Cha Cha Cha', are doing a good job keeping it weird and wonderful. But the sheer quality of the entries is more impressive year on year. The overall standard has increased inexorably and the quality of the songwriting in the strongest entries is always staggering. Crafting a good Eurovision song is an art form, and there are still entries from more than 10 years ago that pop into my head occasionally. Eurovision also has to be the most welcoming, accessible major event in the UK calendar. It’s for absolutely everyone; it’s a comfortable space, completely free of cynicism. With Eurovision, you take away all the nastiness that comes hand in hand with X Factor and other formats that invite people to sing before live audiences. Here, there’s none of the sneering at contestants or gawking at eccentric members of the public. Instead, with Eurovision it’s a celebration, and an invitation to be as weird as you like when representing your country. Eurovision can always be relied on to bring out the best in Twitter, too. When so much of social media is increasingly devoted to negativity and hate, it feels like a throwback to nicer times when it functioned more as a public forum for fans during events like Eurovision. The contest has changed a lot since I started watching around 15 years ago. There was an endearingly cheap feel about the contest back then, but the production values are outstanding these days. It’s far less of a niche interest than it used to be too; with the event coming to the UK this year, it’s attracted more and more attention. More eyes on this wonderfully odd event, which celebrates diversity, gives us genuinely brilliant songs every year and gives us something wholesome to get stuck into on social media can only be a good thing. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

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Matthew Perry's special request he made for the final episode of Friends has resurfaced following the sad news of his death. In his memoir, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing, released last year, the late actor revealed how he wanted to close out the show by saying the final line. "No one else will care about this except me,” Perry wrote. “So may I please have the last line?” he asked the producer. The finale of the hugely popular sitcom came in 2004 after 10 seasons, and the final scene saw Chandler and Monica (played by Perry and Courteney Cox) bid an emotional farewell to their empty purple apartment as they were joined by Rachel (Jennifer Aniston), Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow), Joey (Matt LeBlanc), Ross (David Schwimmer). Before Chandler and Monica leave the city for the suburbs to start family life with their newborn twins, Rachel suggests the group grab a final cup of coffee. That's when Chandler's sarcastic humour shines through one last time to end the show on a light-hearted note. “Sure,” Chandler replied. “Where?” Of course, fans of the show know exactly where - the group's local coffee shop Central Perk which had been one of the iconic backdrops of the series. “I got to bring the curtain down on Friends,” Perry wrote. “I love the look on Schwimmer’s face as I deliver that line — it’s the perfect mixture of affection and amusement, exactly what the show Friends had always given to the world.” Upon news of Perry being declared dead on October 28, aged 54, many Friends fans shared how Perry made this last line request. One person wrote: "It is incredibly bittersweet that Chandler had the last line in the final episode of Friends. Gonna miss Matthew Perry a lot." "Matthew Perry delivered the final line in Friends. And made one word into a final laugh. A talented man. RIP," another person said. Someone else added: "One of my favorite jokes in the show and the ultimate send-off." "This was the perfect last words on Friends,” a fourth person commented. “Inside joke was that the Central Perk set had already been taken down. The cast of Friends released a statement, following the tragic news of Perry's death. "We are all so utterly devastated by the loss of Matthew. We were more than just castmates. We are a family,” it read. "There is so much to say, but right now we're going to take a moment to grieve and process this unfathomable loss. In time we will say more, as and when we are able. "For now, our thoughts and our love are with Matty's family, his friends, and everyone who loved him around the world". How to join the indy100's free WhatsApp channel Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.