Humiliated

The singer, whose real name is Darina Yotova, said at a press conference after her win: “I want to thank my husband, because he was the one to push me to come to Eurovision.

Because in the beginning I was not sure if I want to come or not, because I had anxiety and doubt with myself, and he was the one that he just pushed me, and he was like, ‘you need to go right now to Eurovision, right now, pick up your phone tell them you’re going’.”

The UK has received no points from the public vote for the fourth year in a row with the song Eins, Zwei, Drei.

The UK was humiliated at the Eurovision Song Contest coming dead last with just one point. The UK has received no points from the public vote for the fourth year in a row at the 2026 final of the Eurovision Song Contest, leaving it in last place.

Look Mum No Computer, whose real name Sam Battle, picked up one point from the jury votes and zero from the public tonight with the song Eins, Zwei, Drei. Three previous UK acts – Remember Monday, Olly Alexander and Mae Muller – also received zero points from the public vote.

Some viewers were fuming with one saying: “SURELY it’s time for the BBC Eurovision team to be overhauled. Enough is enough. Why do we partake just to get 0 televotes every year. Viewers expect UK to be last or thereabouts every time because of the poor reputation the BBC has built up over the years.”

READ MORE: Bulgaria wins Eurovision Song Contest 2026 with BangarangaREAD MORE: Eurovision 2026 LIVE: Bulgaria crowned winner but UK humiliated with just 1 point

Another wrote: “The UK is home to some of history’s greatest songwriters… Queen, The Beatles, Adele, David Bowie, Elton John, Amy Winehouse, Phil Collins, George Michael, countless others. So why can we never do that heritage proud at Eurovision?”

The UK gave its 12 points to France in the jury vote of the Eurovision 2026 grand final. The result, presented by Strictly Come Dancing star La Voix, also saw Bulgaria awarded 10 points, Czechia awarded eight and Ukraine given seven.

Bulgaria’s Dara won the Eurovision Song Contest with the song Bangaranga, finishing with 516 points, ahead of Israel’s Noam Bettan, with the song Michelle, on 343 points. Romania’s Alexandra Capitanescu, with the song Choke Me, finished third.

Dara said after winning: “I still don’t know what is going on, I want to thank all of the juries who gave us those points, we tried to give our best and I know every artist in this room is special and I got inspired by everybody… y’all amazing.”

UK act Look Mum No Computer appeared to have been ready for a low score, insisting before the competition that he was not worried. The YouTuber, 37, whose real name is Sam Battle, performed the song Eins, Zwei, Drei.

Asked if he has a fear of scoring nothing, he said: “No, in fact, there’s a T-shirt that I’m dreaming of saying, ‘Look Mum, No Points’ There’s an outcome where there’s still fun to be had, even if there is nul points.”

German chancellor warns the US risks becoming bogged down in another quagmire similar to Iraq and Afghanistan.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz says the United States is being “humiliated” in its war with Iran, warning that Washington lacks a clear path out of the conflict as Tehran gains the upper hand.

Speaking to students in the German town of Marsberg on Monday, Merz said the situation has exposed a deeper strategic problem for the US as he drew comparisons with past military debacles.

“The problem with conflicts like this is always you don’t just have to get in – you have to get out again. We saw that very painfully in Afghanistan for 20 years. We saw it in Iraq,” he said.

Merz said Iranian officials were “obviously negotiating very skilfully” and appeared “clearly stronger than one thought”, adding that “an entire nation is being humiliated by the Iranian leadership”, particularly by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

Merz urged a rapid end to the war, warning that the fallout was already hitting Germany’s economy.

“It is, at the moment, a pretty tangled situation,” he said. “And it is costing us a great deal of money. This conflict, this war against Iran, has a direct impact on our economic output.”

The German leader said Berlin remains ready to deploy minesweepers to help secure shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital artery for global petroleum supplies, but stressed that such steps depend on a cessation of hostilities.

Merz made the comments as concerns are growing across Europe over the wider impact of the conflict, including energy disruptions and economic instability.

Earlier, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul warned that nuclear threats continue to shape the security environment, even as Berlin reaffirmed its commitment to nonproliferation.

“As long as nuclear threats against us and our partners continue, we will need a credible deterrent,” he said before meetings at the United Nations on the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

France and Germany have recently moved to deepen cooperation on nuclear deterrence, reflecting mounting anxiety in Europe over both the Iran war and broader regional instability.

A mum described the moment she was charged £55 for her daughter’s suitcase as ’embarrassing and humiliating’ after Ryanair staff claimed it was too big for the hand luggage sizer

A mum who was forced to pay £55 for her daughter’s suitcase on a Ryanair flight says she was caught out by the airline’s “petty” wording.

Luana Botas was travelling home from a six-day trip to visit family on April 3 when she was stopped at Budapest Airport over her daughter’s case.

The 43-year-old was told to put her seven-year-old’s hardshell case into the hand luggage sizer. She was then ordered to pay £55 when it was too large.

Project manager Luana however pointed out that the airline’s website says Trunki or “Trunki-style” cases can exceed the restrictions and still be accepted on board. A Trunki is a ride-on style suitcase aimed at toddlers.

The Ryanair website states children aged between two and 11 are allowed one Trunki case that can exceed the dimension limits of a small bag – 40 x 30 x 20cm. It says this extends to other brands with “similar dimensions” as well as Trunki cases.

The mum-of-one accepts that her daughter Maia Robinson was carrying a case that was 48 x 26 x 33cm, but believes it fits the description. Ryanair, however, says this exceeds the dimensions of a Trunki suitcase (46 x 20 x 31 cm).

Luana says she was fine travelling through Birmingham Airport, describing the moment as “embarrassing and humiliating”. She said: “I went through Birmingham Airport and no one bat an eyelid, it was absolutely fine.

“We had two backpacks and they were pretty much the same size. On Ryanair’s website, there’s a section that says kid’s luggage, like Trunki and other similar brands, are exempt from the strict limit.

“We were going through the boarding procedure at Budapest when a staff member signalled for me to put my daughter’s luggage in the sizer. My bag was fine, even though it was the same size.

“[My daughter’s case] only went halfway and because it’s a hard shell, it didn’t go all the way down. She asked me to pay the surcharge.

“I tried to explain to her that I had no issues going from Birmingham to Budapest and that a Trunki is allowed. I couldn’t get through to her in any way and boarding was almost complete.

“I said ‘even though I’m trying to explain to you that this is your own policy, you’re still going to charge me? And she said ‘yes I need a passport please’.”

Luana, from Birmingham, continued: “We went through the very embarrassing and humiliating procedure of me paying for a service that was exempt.

“I was genuinely in such shock. This was just a little pull-along for my daughter to enjoy.

“The policy on Ryanair’s website says similar brands are exempt. This was [bought online] and [the website] said it was under-seat cabin approved.

“It’s wrong to have a policy that you make an exemption for and then still charge me.”

A Ryanair spokesperson said: “This passenger’s bag exceeded the permitted dimensions, and they were correctly required to pay a standard gate baggage fee (£55) by the gate agent at Budapest Airport.”