Couldn't Escape If We Wanted To: All Kinds Of Everything

Time was Eurovision was just one day in May. Not anymore, as the internet allows us to follow the very hectic season of national finals from all around Europe. We say hectic, because there's 42 countries in Eurovision this year - sometimes even Londonist can't keep up. We've decided to keep it brief (you don't really want to know who's come 4th in the Albanian semi-final, do you?), so here's a round-up:

• Norwegians have popped a novelty cowboy band Dusty Cowsh!t into their final. We're loving the name but we last liked comedy cowboys when Rednex were warbling about Cotton Eye Joe.

Speaking of Rednex, those Swedish comedy cowboys are in the Romanian preselection. We're not quite sure why either.

Spain have an incredibly complicated way of picking a song and performer, but might send this buff boyband.

Ireland are sending a traditional Irish music band as their entrant this year.

Belarus have picked a Russian pop idol from a reality star search show to sing a quite brilliant Bond tune-esque song, except because of international wranglings between Russia and Belarus, he might not go to Helsinki!

This weekend, there's Eurovision action in (deep breath) Malta, Slovenia, Denmark, Norway, Latvia, Slovenia, Lithuania, Bulgaria, Malta, Poland, Finland, Estonia, Sweden, Iceland, Romania and Spain. Goodness.

Still no word on what the BBC are planning, although we hear rumours that one singer has had to pull out due to some adverse headlines she's been hitting recently. Who could it be?