Who is Martin Green - the new Director of the Eurovision Song Contest?

Credit: James Stack / BBC

Overnight, the EBU announced that Martin Green was appointed the new Director of the Eurovision Song Contest.

The new role came out of the review of the Eurovision Song Contest that was completed in June.

But who is Martin Green and what will his role bring to the Eurovision Song Contest?

Martin's experience

Martin is from the United Kingdom and has a strong track record of major live events for TV broadcasts.

He was the Head of Ceremonies at the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. He led the team that produced the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, Torch Relays and Victory and Welcome Ceremonies.

He was made a CBE in 2017 UK Queen’s New Year Honours List and went on to become Chief Creative Officer for the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.

His foray into Eurovision came when he took up the role of Managing Director of the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 in Liverpool.

His Eurovision 2023 experience

In an interview with The Euro Trip podcast, he said that he was a big fan of the Contest and desperately wanted to be involved with 2023.

"I'd be asked many times 'what's the show you've always wanted to do?' and it was always the same answer: Eurovision," he said.

When it became more likely the UK would host in 2023, Martin told the podcast that he reached out expensively to be involved.

"If this [UK hosting Eurovision] happens, I will make the tea, I will do anything to work on that show."

Martin described the Managing Director's role as delivering everything to do with Eurovision.

"You're essentially in charge of delivering the whole thing end-to-end and making sure this very complicated ship... is running on every level from the shows, to the city, to the ticketing, to the sponsorship, to the staffing, everything."

This overview made strong relationships with all involved incredibly important, particularly with BBC hosting on behalf of Ukraine.

Martin told the podcast that one topic that did cause much discussion and was being pushed hard from the British side, was how they spoke about the conflict in the Ukraine.

"I guess we were pushing to mention the war."

"It's not that the EBU ever had a problem with that, but it makes people nervous because we're pushing it out to many many countries with different views on where the line is with public broadcasting."

The broadcast did not shy away from the war in Ukraine throughout the broadcasts.

So, what is the new role?

In July, the EBU stated that the new role would oversee the work of Eurovision's Executive Supervisor Martin Österdahl.

Their statement said:

"We have created a new role of ESC Director, which will report to the EBU Deputy Director General and Media Director. This will streamline the Executive Supervisor’s responsibilities to focus on ESC production, Heads of Delegations and Member relationship building, and day-to-day production issues. The ESC Director will oversee the work of the existing Executive Supervisor and a new role entitled Head of ESC Brand and Commercial."

Essentially it seems the Director role will have a more strategic view over the delivery of Eurovision each year with the Executive Supervisor focusing on the show itself and delegation relationships.

Jean Philip De Tender, the EBU’s Director of Media and Deputy Director-General, welcome Martin's appointment.

“Martin’s experience, strategic thinking and creative energy will be invaluable to the Song Contest as we get set for the 2025 event and evolve into the future,” he said.

“The creation of this senior role and Martin’s appointment reflect how we’re building on the history and the strengths of a unique platform that celebrates the power of music to bring people together.”

The two Martins

Considering Martin Green and Martin Österdahl have worked together previously, there's no doubt this will be an advantage to their working relationship.

And it seems Martin G is quite the fan of his Swedish counterpart.

"I saw handsome on the telly, I thought 'he's a bit of a dish, isn't he>'

"But you meet someone you only know off the telly and they turn out to be smart and erudite and brilliant and really supportive and guiding."

What next?

The 2025 Eurovision Song Contest will be held in Basel, Switzerland.

The EBU statement yesterday said that "the list of participating broadcasters will be announced by the end of this year."

The use of "broadcasters" first and foremost over "countries" has been a change in language from the 2024 Contest which appears to be carrying into 2025.

No doubt, this relates to the controversial inclusion of Israel.

Regardless if Israel is included or excluded, either way, it will cause a degree of division among broadcasters, fans and artists.

Both Martins will have quite the challenge to live up to Eurovision's slogan of United By Music in 2025 and beyond.

For continued updates on all Eurovision Song Contest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, YouTube and Instagram. All the links can be found at: https://linktr.ee/aussievisionnet

"