Without interruption, the Eurovision Song Contest has been broadcast every year since 1956, making it one of the longest-running television programmes in the world. In just three minutes, each of the representatives from 43 countries delivers the performance of their lives in the biggest song contest on earth. Here John Mason take a look at some of the most memorable moments from Eurovision’s 56 years and 1,100 songs…

2006 saw an unexpected and record win for the masked Finnish heavy metal band Lordi, with their song “Hard Rock Hallelujah.” With 292 points, the achieved the highest ever score in a eurovision song contest to date. It was more than just the pyrotechnics in their show that launched them to the top spot, as they went on to achieve the top 10 in dozens of European charts.

In 1981 Bucks Fizz got the continent’s pulses racing, as they obviously couldn’t make their minds up on their choice of wardrobe. It seems the skirt ripping performance and catchy pop beat clinched victory for the UK and the BBC – one of only 5 artists to win the event for the UK in over five decades of broadcasting.

Top Eurovision moments need not be limited to what goes on on stage, with the now abdicated king of eurovision Wogan, it would be foolish to ignore the goldmine which his yearly  commentary provided. However, in 2007 he made the very worst kind of slip-up when announcing who would represent the UK. He shouted, “Cyndi!” Fearne Cotton shouted, “Scooch!” and fingers were furiously pressed into ears as confusion descended on the studio. It was Scooch in the end, for all the good they did us.

The 2007 runner-up Verka Serduchka from Ukraine with his bonkers accordion romp, featured backing dancers dressed in matching baking foil lederhosen. It had all the elements to be a Eurovision champion, but was pipped to the post by a more serious Serbian effort.

In 2009 burlesque superstar Dita Von Teese took to the stage to support Germany’s Alex Swings Oscar Sings with “Miss Kiss Kiss Bang”. Although much hyped beforehand, her a-list presence did nothing to lift the German’s efforts, finishing in a disappointing 20^th position with only 35 points.

With that in mind, just what exactly do the Australians think of people coming to live in their country?

The 457 Visa Debate

If you happened to be living in Australia at the moment, you’d find it pretty hard to get away from the 457 Visa debate; currently amongst the hottest topics in news. An emotive debate surrounds the government claim that there needs to be a crackdown of the number of 457 visas issued to skilled overseas workers in a calendar year. With a 22.4% year-on-year increase, the government claims that there are far too many overseas workers currently working in the country.

On January 31, there were 105,000 people working on the temporary visa.

Immigration Minister, Brendan O’Connor said:

“The overall trend is clear – more people are coming in on temporary skilled worker visas. This comes at a time when the unemployment rate is flat, not dropping.”

So what is the 457 Visa?

The 457 visa is a temporary work visa that applies to skilled workers. It can allow non-Australians to work in the country for up to four years. If you hold the visa you can:

• Work in the country
• Bring your family with you
• Travel in an out of the country as much as you want.

To apply for the visa requires sponsorship by an employer, to be sufficiently skilled or experienced in your specialist field, be able to speak English and to hold the relevant licenses and health insurance. Depending on the rules, you could be charged for the application and refunds are generally not given to those who do not pass the process.

The case against 457

As stated, the case against 457 is the position that too many people are entering the country at a time when not enough jobs are being created for Australian workers. On a basic level, it is the classic fear of foreigners having greater priority than home nationals in the job market.

Continuing, O’Connor says:

“Applications for visas for the accommodation and food services sector jumped 110 per cent in the three months to February 2013 compared with the same period last year.

“Jobs in this sector are traditional entry-level jobs for young Australians and provide them with valuable income while studying at TAFE or university.

“Why should Australia be importing thousands of workers to work in restaurants, cafes and bars?”

In response, the government plans to restrict the number of workers that an individual business can sponsor on 457 visas; this will ensure that Australians have a wider variety of job opportunities in their local areas.

The case for 457 Visas

The government’s reaction over the visas has been criticised by many including the likes of Rupert Murdoch, who has branded talk against the visa as ‘disgraceful and racist.’

Speaking to Sky News earlier in the month, Mr. Murdoch said:

“I’m a big one for encouraging immigration; I think that’s the future and a mixture of people, just look at America. It’s just fantastic.

”You have difficulties [with] the first generation of migrants sometimes if there’s too many from one area, but they meld [in] a couple of generations and it leads to a tremendous creativity in the community.”

Although some people disagree that racism plays any part in the government’s plan, it is a word that has repeatedly reared its ugly head in the debate so far, leading to difficulties for the government. Many argue that the debate is not actually about overseas workers, but rather getting the right mix of local workers, graduates and apprentices behind a job.

Jonathan Barouch, CEO of Roamz said:

“The current speed in which technology is advancing alone means many of the skills and knowledge learned by university students are outdated by graduation.

“This issue, coupled with the absence of a strong incentive program that fosters and encourages our next generation of high school students to study maths, science and entrepreneurial courses, means an experienced worker brought in via a 457 visa can be an amazing resource to help skill up the local workforce.”

So is there a conclusion in sight?

With business giants such as Rupert Murdoch backing 457 visas, the government and O’Connor could find themselves facing an uphill struggle. Though the government does have support in some sectors, actually implementing their intended changes to the plan will be difficult.

With federal elections also coming up in September, the Australian Labor Party must remember that an unpopular change amongst business owners now could see them facing a very difficult early spring later in the year.

How do you take your tea?

Milk, two sugars

What part do you play in moving someone abroad?

I take them through the removal process – from booking stage right through to completion of the removal.

What are the top five things on your bucket list? 

Visit more of the world – Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Asia and Russia. 

What is your most memorable travel experience? Why? 

My honeymoon in Egypt was fantastic.  A 5* hotel suite with our own butler… We got to see how the other half live! Just what we needed after the stress of the wedding!

If you were to live somewhere else in the world, where would you move? Why?

Australia.  Would love to live the beach lifestyle and not wake up to ice on our cars in winter!

How do you like your eggs?

Scrambled

What is your top moving tip?

Plan, sort and get rid of things you haven’t set eyes on in ages as you don’t need it!  What is the point in shipping it if it is going to be sat in a box for years to come?! It is the first, and most important stage of a smooth move…

Red Sauce or Brown Sauce?

Red

When travelling, what is the one item you couldn’t do without?

My phone.

If you could invite one person to dinner, who would it be?

David Beckham – phwaor!

What’s your favourite part of the move?

The feedback once the move has been completed.  We aim to dazzle each and every one of our clients.  If we don’t we like to know why so that we can address the issue at hand!

Do you have any good stories from your time at John Mason?

Speaking to a famous singer for 2 years whilst his goods were in storage and not realising who he was!!  One day he asked for a microphone stand to be removed from the shipment and delivered and I realised who he was, I was very nervous speaking to him after that!

Who was it?!

Couldn’t possibly say…

Why would you move with John Mason?

We are a truly honest and trustworthy company who prides ourselves on making the move as stress free as possible for the client.

The vehicle has an interesting history and originally started off life being used as a general removal van.  Registered in Liverpool in 1962 as a Platform/Container type body, it had a matching draw bar trailer capable of carrying containers and crated goods to U.K ports including the I.O.M Steam Packet container vans.

The vehicle also had a demountable pantechnicon body that could be craned on and off at the company’s Wavertree Depository. To facilitate this body, the cab was custom built at Woodward’s Vehicle Builders at Southport and is the only one of its kind in the country.

In 1975 the chassis was shortened and the vehicle was converted to a tow truck and remained in service until 1991 when it was transferred into museum / enthusiast care.  The vehicle was returned to John Mason in January 2013 and during this 22 year period the vehicle travelled approximately 15,000 miles to classic / commercial vehicle shows around the U.K and Ireland. It has been re-furbished and painted several times in this period keeping the original John Mason livery.

When did you join the John Mason team?

June 2003

How do you take your tea?

Very milky and sweet – “baby tea” some people call it!

What part do you play in moving someone abroad?

I’m an International Move Manager for our corporate market, and I handle all parts of the move from initial quote through to delivery.

What are the top five things on your bucket list?

• Swim with Dolphins
• To see the Mountain Gorillas in Rwanda
• To see the Great Migration
• To see the Sistine Chapel in Rome – hoping to cross that one off this year!
• To get my PADI Scuba diving certificate

What is your most memorable travel experience? Why?

Kenya, I’ve been three times now and I just love being on safari, you feel so privileged to see animals in their natural habitat.

Moutain Gorilla’s in Rwanda…

If you were to live somewhere else in the world, where would you move? Why?

Probably Australia, as I love warm weather.

How do you like your eggs?

Poached

What is your top moving tip?

Plan ahead and research.

Red Sauce or Brown Sauce?

Neither – it’s mayonnaise every time!

When travelling, what is the one item you couldn’t do without?

My camera.

If you could invite one person to dinner, who would it be?

Marilyn Monroe

What’s your favourite part of the move?

The delivery. Sometimes clients have been without their effects for weeks/months, and this is the final piece of the jigsaw and then they can start to settle into their new surroundings. (Especially when they have children and they get their toys back!)

Why would you move with John Mason?

Firstly our experience, and reputation but we are also a family business and we are all ‘real’ people who you can talk to and we understand what the clients are going through. It is one of the most stressful times, and you want to talk to a person not a machine!

On the 31^st of March we’ll be (literally) saving the day by pushing the clocks an hour forward, but where does this tradition come from, and how did the world end up running to one standard time? Before the advent of railways in the 1800s, all time was local. Noon was simply when the sun was directly overhead wherever you were, in what is called solar time. Each town’s citizens would set their clocks and pocket watches according to the official town clock or timekeeper. When they traveled to another town, they would simply change their watch when they arrived.

However, as you could imagine, with each town running to a different schedule this made train timings particularly difficult to follow, therefore sir Stannard Flemming was the first to propose the standardisation of time across the globe, in 1878. By this time – 1855 to be precise – Great Britan had already adopted a standard common time, however it took until 1884 for the idea to catch on across the globally (incidentally, 1884 was the same year John Mason started his removals business!). Greenwich was chosen as the Prime Meridian, or 0°, and is the axis from which all other time zones are measured.

China is the largest country to use just ‘one’ time zone, although geographically it spans five. During summer time the Chatham Islands east to New Zealand have the biggest offset to Grenwich Mean Time, of +13.5 hours, and are the first place on Earth to ‘experience’ any new date. After World War II, complaints from Japanese farmers having to work in the darkness during early mornings lead the country to abandon daylight saving in 1952. Germany was the first to officially adopt daylight saving in April 1916, with Britain following suit in May 1916. Currently around 70 countries across the globe conform to Daylight Saving Time in some form or another.

Chicago dyes its river green…

While the Irish have been observing St. Patrick’s Day since the ninth century, New York held the first parade in 1762. Today the parade, the oldest and biggest in the USA, remains marching bands only, with 200,000 marchers! In Savannah Georgia (USA) it is tradition for the women, wearing bright red lipstick, to run into the parade to kiss the marching soldiers; this year, with an estimated crowd of 1 million revelers, there looks set to be a LOT of red cheeks.

Traditionally St Patricks day marks the day Christianity was introduced to Ireland but over the years it has become a secular celebration, the national day to celebrate all things Irish. Across the world land marks are transformed: the Chicago River runs green, as do the fountains on the White House lawn; the Sydney Opera house, Monaco royal palace and the Burj al Arab all glow emerald and New York’s fifth avenue sports a green stripe down the centre, all to celebrate the luck of the Irish.

As Obama swigs down a Guinness in a nod to his Irish heritage, and the Duchess of Cambridge hands out lucky shamrocks to soldiers, it seems that come the 17^th of March, all corners of the globe will be raising their glass in a nod to the Emerald Isle. 

It can be a good idea to take your car with you, in particular if you are relocating to a country where the cost of a new car is significantly higher than in your home country.

Import requirements vary from country to country and some can be more difficult to import than others (e.g. USA) but your international moving company can provide the relevant information to help you make your decision.

The most common way of shipping your car is via a shipping container. This can either be a sole use container or a shared container depending on the size of your vehicle, your preferred transit time and budget. The car will be secured inside the container using transit straps and specially created wooden frame will be placed around the vehicle to prevent movement during transit. The car will need to be loaded into the container at a safe and secure location using a loading bay or loading ramp.

The other option is a ro-ro service which is often used for vehicles (e.g. large caravans) which are too large to fit inside a standard shipping container. This is a port to port service.

If you are moving your household items too, it is also worth considering shipping your car and household items in the same container so that all of your items arrive at the same time. Your International Consultant can discuss this with you during the pre-move survey.

There are also a number of things you will need to do in order to prepare your car for export. Firstly you will need to notify the DVLA and complete the appropriate paperwork. You will also need to apply for the relevant import permits required for your destination country and in some cases, check that your car is compliant for import (e.g. for New Zealand). Your Move Manager will be able to provide you with the relevant contact details so you can start making arrangements. It is always a good idea to do this as soon as possible so that you don’t have to wait for any paperwork / import permits to come through from the relevant authority. For Australia for example, an import permit can often take around 4 weeks to come through.

It is always recommend that your car is thoroughly cleaned prior to shipment, both the interior and the exterior. This is particularly important when you are shipping your car to Australia or New Zealand where your vehicle will be subject to a strict quarantine inspection and all signs of dirt / mud etc. must be removed.

In summary, it can be a good idea to ship your car overseas as long as the relevant information is obtained beforehand and the right preparation takes place also. Professional advise is required as it can be a complex process.