UK Eurovision act recreate spoof song, as contest looms

The UK's Eurovision hopefuls, Remember Monday, have covered a song from Will Ferrell's cult movie about the contest, as the finals draw closer.

The trio travelled to Iceland earlier this month to film their version of Húsavík (My Hometown), originally sung by Rachel McAdams' character Sigrit in the Netflix spoof, The Story Of Fire Saga.

It's released just three weeks before the band perform their own song, What The Hell Just Happened, at this year's Eurovision Song Contest in Basel, Switzerland.

Bookmakers predict that the UK will fall just outside the top 10 in the contest, with Sweden and Austria among the favourites to win.

However, Remember Monday told BBC News that they're "hungry to get a good result".

"We feel like there's a little bit of a stigma around Eurovision, and we'd really love to be a part of changing it," said singer Holly-Anne Hull.

The group, completed by Charlotte Steele and Lauren Byrne, started singing together in school, and went on to have starring roles in West End shows like Les Misérables, Phantom Of The Opera and Six: The Musical.

As long-standing Eurovision fans, they've thrown themselves into a whirlwind European press tour, performing in about a dozen countries, and even singing on a Swiss mountaintop.

For their journey to Húsavík, Steele even confronted her fear of flying by travelling in both a propellor plane and a helicopter.

The trip fulfilled "a long-time dream of ours", the band said.

In the music video, they get to visit the charming Elf Houses that form part of the country's magical folklore, and sing with a choir of Icelandic schoolgirls who previously performed at the 2001 Oscars, when Húsavík (My Hometown) was nominated for best original song.

"We're very honoured that they welcomed us into their beautiful town and let us sing that song," said the band, "and we're grateful that it's on film so we can relive those memories forever".

"We've never seen anywhere as beautiful with our own eyes!"

Ahead of Eurovision, the BBC has announced a one-off special, featuring Graham Norton in conversation with Remember Monday.

The programme will be broadcast on Friday 9 May on BBC One, giving a behind-the-scenes glimpse into the band's preparations for Basel.

Separately, BBC Radio 2 has revealed that Sara Cox is joining the station's presenting line-up for this year's contest.

The broadcaster will commentate on the semi-finals alongside Richie Anderson. Scott Mills and Rylan will host the grand final on 17 May.

Rehearsals for the contest start today (25 April) at the Jakobshalle arena.

In the initial stages, stand-ins perform the 37 entries, allowing participants to review staging, choreography and lighting cues before contestants arrive in Switzerland at the start of May.

Last year's contest was won by Swiss singer Nemo for their song The Code - a semi-operatic pop song that charted their journey to realising they were non-binary.

This year's favourite is Swedish entrant KAJ, whose song Bara Bada Bastu is an ode to the benefits of the sauna.

If they emerge victorious, Sweden will record its eighth win - breaking a tie with Ireland as Eurovision's most-successful nation.