As 2015 closes to a draw and with the 2016 Eurovision pre-selection season already underway ESC.Today takes you on look back at this eventful and exciting Eurovision year as we look forward to the grand prix in May where Stockholm and the Globe Arena will play host to the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest

Mans Zelmerlow won the 2015 Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna and gave Sweden their 6th victory at Eurovision. As we look forward to Stockholm 2016 let’s take a look back at all the Eurovision highlights of this past year. Today we start at the beginning of the year.

JANUARY 2015

As we entered 2015 some of the highlights included a lot of National Pre-Selection activity from Cyprus choosing their song via The Eurovision Song Project and Iceland releasing all their finalist’s songs online for the upcoming Söngvakeppnin

Conchita Wurst made a surprise appearance as the guest of honour at the Swiss national finals.

January also saw a second wave of tickets for the 2015 Eurovision Song Contest go on general release for sale to the public

We ended the month with the hosts country’s Insignia ceremony and the semi-final allocation draw taking place on the 26th January.

FEBRUARY 2015

February saw a lot of frenetic activity in the world of Eurovision with the big news that Australia would be competing for the first time at the grand prix as part of the 60th anniversary celebrations. They were invited to compete immediately with the big five at the grand final in May to take place in Vienna. This news sent shockwaves through the community and caused a lot of debate amongst the fans but ultimately Australia saw a warm welcome by Europe in May at the contest and performed well as they finished in a very respectable 5th Place with 196 points.

We also saw Supernova in Latvia and the prestigious MGP’s in Denmark and Norway make their final decisions regarding their entries for the 2015 editions of the contest.

February also saw the announcement by the broadcasters that the 2015 Eurovision Song Contest would officially be a green event and the start of Melodifestivalen 2015

MARCH 2015

Early in March we saw the Melodifestivalen 2015 final take place at the Friends Arena in Stockholm. The eventual winner was the Swedish pre-selection veteran Måns Zelmerlöw with his electro folk anthem Heroes. As we all know he stormed to victory in May to take the coveted prize home to Sweden as we all look forward to Stockholm 2016.

We also saw the Australian broadcaster announce Guy Sebastian as their representative at the 2015 contest in a much hyped press conference at the legendary and iconic Sydney Opera House.

With the song entry submission deadline fast approaching March saw the IBA make its song presentation for the Israeli entry along with such countries as Greece, Romania and Azerbaijan among others making their final  decisions on whom to send to the final in Vienna.

APRIL 2015

In April, Vienna stepped up its preperations for the Eurovision Song Contest 2015. The city as well as the Stadthalle was branded with the ‘Building bridges’ artwork, and inside the arena the stage was constructed – including the innovative dangling orb lights that would go on to play a big part in the opening of the contest.

The Austrian national broadcaster, ORF, also released details about the opening to the final, which would embody the spirit of the contest and embrace the theme of building bridges across the world.

The Austrian capital was now ready to host the Eurovision Song Contest for only the second time.

As well as looking forward to the contest in May, April was also a time for looking back.

In the year that saw the Eurovision Song Contest hold it’s 60th annual event, the BBC and EBU joined forces to create a night celebrating some of the most memorable songs and performances in the contests history.

15 acts from across the continent, including the likes of Conchita Wurst, Loreen and Johnny Logan, gathered in London for a party to celebrate the contest’s landmark year in style.

Sweden has won the Eurovision Song Contest on 6 occasions starting with ABBA in 1974 and more recently this year with Mans Zelmerlow’s Heroes which will see us all head to Stockholm in May 2016 for the 61st edition of the Eurovision Song Contest.

Which was your favourite early moment of 2015?