The Eurovision Song Contest, a celebration of Europe's most curious musical talent, has been a staple of European culture since 1956. Countries from all around the continent submit singing acts that range from amazingly talented to brilliantly weird, coming together in a show captained by one to four hosts, usually from the host country. There have been around 114 hosts, including those from the untelevised show in 2020, all with unique approaches to presenting the contest.
Keeping an audience's attention throughout the long runtime of the contest isn't an easy task, but the best hosts are entertaining, charming, and unique enough to keep the audience invested all the way through.
Erik Solbakken
Erik is a Norwegian television presenter that hosted Eurovision in 2010. He has appeared in several TV shows as a host, panelist, and actor, including the Norwegian version of the game show The Weakest Link when he was 19.
Erik was an extremely fun host to watch at Eurovision as he completely threw himself into the role. He is often featured in Eurovision compilation videos tearing off his suit to reveal a green leotard and participating in the flashmob during the voting portion of the show. Erik's fun banter with those around him made the long night much more fun.
Katie Boyle
Katie Boyle was a Eurovision legend, having presented the Song Contest in 1960, 1963, 1968, and 1974. As an actress, she appeared in classic black-and-white movies such as Intent to Kill (1958), in addition to being a model, animal rights activist, and game show panelist.
The first editions, including the one that saw the first-ever Eurovision winner in 1956, Lys Assia, only had a few acts performing, and the show has evolved over the decades to adapt to a more modern style. But the old school hosts are still vibrant and entertaining in their own right. Katie Boyle was elegant and fashionable, bringing charm and class to the role of host.
Mikko Leppilampi
Young Zac Efron lookalike Mikko took fans by storm when he co-hosted Eurovision in 2007. Mikko's energetic and lively performance made the show a lot of fun, with good chemistry between him and his co-host Jaana Pelkonen. Mikko is a charismatic actor and musician, and his love for the role of host shines through his performance.
Mikko has since starred in films such as the horror movie War of the Dead (2011) and starting in 2018 he has been the host of the Finnish version of the game show The Chase.
Assi Azar
Assi co-hosted Eurovision in 2019 and was an immediate fan favorite, his comedy, and charm bringing a goofy, fun spirit to the night. Fans noted that between songs he would dance with the other contestants in the green room, and during rehearsals shared lots of laughs with his fellow co-hosts, showing that he enjoyed hosting just as much as the audience enjoyed watching him do so.
Assi is an LGBTQ+ rights activist and the creator of the romantic comedy TV show Beauty and the Baker, which at the time was the highest-rated scripted series in Israel.
Lill Lindfors
Lill came in second place in the 1966 Eurovision, failing to become one of the winners that found fame after the contest. The talented singer still hosted for Sweden in 1985. Her sheer joy is apparent while hosting, loving every second of being on-screen. One of the most iconic moments in Eurovision happened when Lill's dress is ripped at the waist, revealing her underwear. This was a controversial yet planned comedic gag, as Lill quickly fixes the wardrobe malfunction by untying the top of her dress to create a whole new look.
Lill is best known for staging one-woman shows, mixing songs with comedy, making her one of the first Swedish performers to use stand-up comedy in a singing show.
Anke Engelke
Comedian Anke has been the German dub voice for Marge Simpson in The Simpsons since 2007, and her background in comedy certainly came to the forefront of her time as Eurovision host in 2011. The segments that she shared with co-host Stefan Raab were hysterical, such as their comedic medley of Eurovision songs.
The most memorable moment of the night was Anke not wanting to walk up a set of stairs due to her high heels, so Stefan picked her up and walked her up the stairs himself. Anke continued to speak into her microphone, completely unphased by the whole thing.
Filomena Cautela
The sarcastic, sassy Filomena hosted Eurovision in 2018. Her unfiltered comments were a breath of fresh air in the green room, where hosts usually try to compliment and placate the contestants as much as possible. Filomena was a genuinely hilarious host that most fans would love to see return.
The funniest moment in her time as host was interviewing a man from the Netherlands with a chicken hat. When he suddenly makes a very loud chicken sound, Filomena's surprised laugh and comment of "that's a very good chicken sir" is a gem in Eurovision green room history.
Conchita Wurst
Perhaps one of the most famous Eurovision winners, and one that has had a successful career after the competition, Conchita won the 2014 competition with her song Rise Like a Phoenix. Since winning, Conchita has become a model, LGBTQ+ spokesperson, and co-host of the 2015 Eurovision. Her hosting was elegant and confident, bringing both class and humor to the show.
Conchita appeared as a cameo in Netflix's Eurovision Song Contest: The Story Of Fire Saga, singing along with a bunch of other previous Eurovision winners such as Alexander Rybak.
Mäns Zelmerlöw
One of the most last and memorable Eurovision winners and hosts, Mäns is beloved by Eurovision fans. The singer won Eurovision for Sweden with the song Heroes in 2015 and hosted alongside Petra Mede in 2016. His hosting was immediately memorable, as he performed songs and dances with gusto, even learning a Riverdance routine for the song Story of ESC, performed as an interval act in the semi-finals.
Mäns was so popular after his incredible hosting that he was invited back to Eurovision in 2017 to create a fun video segment teaching the 2017 hosts how to be better presenters. He has since had a part in every Eurovision, performing on top of a roof in the 2021 interval act.
Petra Mede
Petra is a Swedish comedian and television presenter, and is beloved by Eurovision fans, having hosted the show in 2013 alone and 2016 with Mans Zelmerlow. She is the third person to have hosted the show more than once, after Katie Boyle and Jacqueline Joubert. Petra is currently the co-host of Let's Dance, the Swedish version of Strictly Come Dancing.
Petra and Mans' iconic performance of Love Love Peace Peace lit up the arena and has become a legendary Eurovision moment, with subsequent hosts trying to recreate the magic that this performance cast.