Olly Alexander: My odds of winning Eurovision are 1 per cent

It’s the one thing you’re not supposed to do – but Olly Alexander couldn’t resist.

Ahead of the Eurovision final on Saturday, he looked at what bookmakers were saying about his chances of winning the contest.

“My odds for winning are at one per cent,” laughs the singer.

“But that’s fine. It’s better than zero.”

The former Years and Years singer is representing the UK this year with Dizzy, a throbbing slice of Pet Shop Boys-influenced pop.

He is, by far, the biggest star we’ve sent to the contest in years: a Bafta-nominated actor with two number one albums, and collaborations with Elton John and Kylie Minogue under his belt.

Eurovision host Graham Norton says that experience gives him an added advantage.

“Olly has already done all the things that it’s impossible to prepare someone for,” he said earlier this week.

“He has played to huge crowds, he can relate to the cameras, and he is used to high pressure situations. Add to that, the fact that the song is a massive bop and I think we could do really well this year.”

Proof came during rehearsals in Sweden last week.

Alexander’s confident (and acrobatic) performance wowed fans and the UK rose up the bookmakers’ odds, briefly appearing in the top 10.

At the time of writing, Alexander has slipped down again, after a technical malfunction affected his performance at Tuesday’s semi-finals.

“I did have a slight wardrobe malfunction, in that my mic pack fell off in the second chorus,” the star confirmed to BBC Radio 2’s Scott Mills.

“So I was confused and stressed by that.”

But overall, he’s pleased with how the performance went.

“The thing about being here in Malmö, at the arena, is there’s a lot of rehearsal,” he tells the BBC.

“It’s just like a military operation. So to do it properly, in front of the cameras, with an audience, was fun. The atmosphere ramps up.”