In the end, only four points after the final telephone jury vote count separated Bonn’s Makeda from the winning duo S!sters at this year’s competition to select Germany’s Song for Europe: Unser Song für Israel in Berlin.

A new approach to finding the Eurovision entry led to a familiar conclusion – formulaic packaging wins over song again.   Let’s take a young blonde girl and a young raven haired girl, make them seem like sisters,  and call the song – ‘Sisters!’  Oh wait, let’s turn that ‘i’ upside down!  Oddly, even the Bonn General Anzeiger in its Review refers to the girls as ‘Carlotta Truman und Laurita’ – conveniently(?) forgetting that Laurita has a different surname (though admittedly it does mention they are not sisters later on).  In fact, they were not even a duo until Eurovision came along.  In the end, the old formula approach won through.  

It’s all a game really of course, and Makeda is well out of it.  There are indeed some who will say that where Eurovision is concerned second place is actually winning – gaining the publicity, without that’ Eurovision’ brand hanging over your head.   It was certainly a grand performance from Bonn’s rising star though.  All those performances in the musical ‘Bodyguard’ paying off with a confident performance when it mattered.  ‘The Day I Loved You Most’ is an excellent song but one that needs both a great vocal and plenty of dynamics to give it life.  It got both on the night.  I really couldn’t help but see and hear Rachel Marron (Whitney Houston) as I watched Makeda in her shimmering gold dress give her all.  Somewhere, just out of camera-shot, Kevin Costner must have been standing and watching the proceedings with an attentive eye and a bad haircut.

Well done Makeda, on the evidence of Friday night you will be going a lot further than Tel Aviv with your career.