Singers prepare for Eurovision final

Eurovision, the campy, over-the-top annual musical contest, comes to its conclusion Saturday, after enthralling thousands of people with performances in Helsinki this week.

The typically wide-ranging finalists for this year's 52nd edition include a Ukrainian drag queen dancing about in a glittery silver outfit, a Belarus man who won a Russian Pop Idol TV show, a Hungarian blues singer, and a Georgian woman who delivered one electronica-influenced song while being raised and lowered by modern dancers performing under her voluminous pink skirt.

Eastern European acts dominated the semifinal round Thursday evening, which helped whittle down this year's record 42 contestants.

Thursday's semifinal winners will compete on Saturday against the acts from countries that placed in the Top 10 last year and the singers from the traditional Big Four countries (major sponsors U.K., France, Germany and Spain).

Surprisingly, some popular or noteworthy acts that gained buzz early on were snubbed in Thursday's semifinal, including Switzerland's DJ Bobo(who sang of vampires), Israeliband Teapacks with their controversial tune Push the Button and Norway's Guri Schanke, who delivered a Latin beat inspired performance.

Thousands of Eurovision enthusiasts have packed both the concert arena hosting the competition as well as outdoor sites broadcasting the show via massive screens. Helsinki officials have also launched hundreds of events around the city related to the competition.

One of the most-watched events in the European television calendar, the Eurovision final is expected to draw approximately 100 million viewers, who will be able to vote for their favourites via telephone or text message.

Last year's winner was Finnish monster rock band Lordi and its aggressive heavy metal tune Hard Rock Hallelujah a major upsetin a contest known for favouring syrupy ballads and bland pop songs. The country whose act is named winner becomes host of the next edition.

Notable Eurovision winners who went on to further fame include Swedish megagroup ABBA, '60s chanteuse Lulu, pop band Katrina and the Waves from the U.K. and Cline Dion, who represented Switzerland in 1988.