The Eurovision fan centre will be open in Lasipalatsi next to Eurovillage in Narinkkatori and not far from EuroClub in Vanha. Fans can meet over a cup of coffee, use the PCs, get all the information they need, buy tickets and Eurovision merchandising, watch the performances by the Eurovision artists, see the shows live in BioRex movie theatre and a lot more! All this is brought to you by www.viisukuppila.fi in collaboration with City of Helsinki.
The fan centre will provide fans, delegations and media with information on everything Eurovision related that’s going on in Helsinki during those two weeks from delegations PR happenings to parties and simple tourist information. They will also have a shop that sells the official merchandise, books, CDs and DVDs and tickets to some parties in EuroClub.
The second floor of Lasipalatsi will have a stage for performing artists and an internet café with 15 PCs free to use with webcams, MSN and Yahoo messengers and Skype. Therewill also be wireless connection for those who have their own PC with them. The ground floor terrace facing the Narikkatori’s EuroVillage will be also in use for the fan centre. Also YLE’s Elävä arkisto (Living archive) will be there: you can browse YLE’s archives on internet and see videos and files from the past editions, Finnish selections and much more.
There will also be different theme days like Good evening Europe! show from Sweden, G-Agent Eurovision show, karaoke and Viisukuppila evening party on May 9th (be sure to pick up your free invitation from the centre beforehand) and of course the BioRex movie theatre alternative for those who didn’t get tickets to Hartwall Areena (tickets cost 20 euro). Music in the centre will be provided by guest DJs, present and past Eurovision artists and the fan centre’s own hostess.
YLE has its studio in the same building as well and will broadcast also live from fan centre on it’s YLE Radio Suomi and Ylen Aikainen amongst others.
Across the street, in Helsinki’s main library you can go and sing karaoke andmake your own CD. The service is free of charge from May 2 to May 13 from midday to 6pm. Start practising your favourite Eurovision songs now!
The fan centre will open on April 30 and will stay open until May 13 daily from 10am to midnight, andit will be run by Viisukuppila.fi volunteers. The fan centre is open to fans, the artists and media as a meeting point and it’s thefirst of its kind. Viisukuppila.fi was founded as a discussion forum in 2003 for Eurovision fans and is now expanding its horizons. YLE, City of Helsinki’s tourist office, culture centre, library and the Finnish tourist board are all involved in the project.
More information on http://www.viisukuppila.fi/ from April 10.
