Fans add voice to Mickey Joe's Eurovision bid

RUSSIA may be the bookmakers' favourite to win this year's Eurovision but fans here are already voting with their feet.

Two specially chartered flights to Latvia for the May 23 contest are almost full. And eager punters are backing Mickey Joe Harte so heavily that bookmakers Paddy Power have cut his odds of winning the contest from 12/1 down to 8/1.

Donegal travel agent Driftaway Travel says there are just 10 seats left on its chartered flights out of Derry and Dublin to Riga. The five-star package for 272 revellers costs 1,150 and demand has been phenomenal, said travel agent Deirdre Grant.

"It's virtually sold out. Once Mickey Joe won You're A Star, the phones here started hopping. He only lives down the road from us here. We made inquiries and initially planned to run one flight out of Derry. "But demand was so high we've decided to run a second flight out of Dublin. The flight will take just under three hours.

"Those on the flight will enjoy a champagne reception on arrival in Riga, a bottle of champagne in their hotel room and a gala buffet dinner just before the Eurovision contest.

Mickey Joe hopes to launch his CD in the host hotel, the Raddison, while his followers are there. "It may be the Radisson. But it'll be the Mickey Joe Harte hotel for the 272 of us who will be staying there," Ms Grant said.

Several of those travelling are family members and friends of Mickey Joe.

Ms Grant said: "Half of Lifford will be on the flight. It will be a trip of a lifetime. TV3 are travelling with us and will be doing a programme specially on the fans."

Eager punters have also been putting their money where their mouth is. Paddy Power says the Russian entry tATu is the hot favourite but money has been flooding in on Ireland and Greece. The Russian teen duo have attracted controversy with their brand of soft-focus lesbian schoolgirl titillation. Ireland's odds have been cut from 12/1 to 8/1 while Greece's have been cut from 14/1 to 12/1.

"There has always been considerable interest in the competition but so far this year it's been phenomenal. We've taken several three-figure bets and will probably take a lot more," said a Paddy Power spokesman.