Jaakko Laajava the Finnish Ambassador to Britain has admitted to having a taste for heavy metal music. Commenting on his country’s amazing victory in the Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday (20th May 2006), he told the BBC that there was “an element of heavy metal in me too”, and that he was “thrilled” and “encouraged” by his country’s first ever Eurovision Song Contest success.

The winning song, “Hard Rock Hallelujia” sung by the heavy metal band Lordi, featured performers dressed as monsters wearing grotesque masks, and has appalled some of Finland’s cultural elite, with many feeling outraged that such an horrific act should be allowed to represent their country, potentially damaging it’s reputation .

However, the Finnish President, Mrs. Tarja Halonen quickly congratulated the band in a telegram after Lordi won, and they have now become national icons. Culture Minister Tanja Karpela said Lordi's victory proved Finnish music could be successful abroad.

In the Finnish capital Helsinki, traffic ground to a halt, with police intervening to clear the jam, as hundreds of people celebrated in the streets, waving flags and singing Lordi's song.

One fan, Erkki Turunen, said Finland won "because it put on a genuine show". "This wasn't some sort of rubbish. This was really cool," he said.

In London there were celebrations amongst Finnish ex-patriots, one Eurovision fan, Dr. Jussi Kalkkinen said: "I hate heavy metal, but when we saw those guys, you just had to vote for them."

Finnish newspaper Helsingin Sanomat proclaimed: "It's official: Hell has frozen over. Finland has won."

The song was given the highest ever score in the Song Contest’s history and gained the maximum 12 points from voters in Britain who phone in with their scores.

Britain, which takes part in the contest every year only achieved 19th place out of a total of 24 other European countries. Critics suggest that the sentiments of the UK song, Teenage Life by Daz Simpson, would not have been understood outside the UK, whilst the performers’ costumes, school uniform, would have mystified most, as it is a mode of dress generally unknown on mainland Europe.

GLOSSARY 詞匯表

Finnish 芬蘭的
heavy metal music重金屬樂
element元素 monsters 怪物
grotesque 怪誕的；奇異的 appalled 使驚駭
outraged 使憤怒 horrific 可怕的
reputation 名譽 telegram 電報
icons 偶像
ground to a halt（交通）停頓
jam（交通）堵塞 ex-patriots移居外國者
proclaimed 宣布；宣告 phone in 熱線電話（ 參與）
contest 比賽；競賽

costumes 戲裝；演出服
sentiments 感傷；情緒

mystified 使神秘化；迷惑