Austrian singer Conchita Wurst won the Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday with a grandiose James Bond-theme-like ballad "Rise Like a Phoenix", before an international TV audience of around 180 million people in 45 countries.
Wurst, sporting high heels, butterfly eyelashes and a full beard, won the competition, defeating the Netherlands' modern country duo The Common Linnets.
It was Austria's first victory since 1966.
The unabashedly over-the-top contest was initially conceived in the 1950s as a fun way to unite Europe following the Second World War. Still going strong, the pioneering TV singing contest (now also seen online) continues to draw an audience of more than 125 million viewers every year.
It's also been an early stage for some high-profile performers — such as Swedish group Abba, Canadian crooner Céline Dion (who sang for Switzerland in 1988) and British pop band Katrina and the Waves — as well as a platform for the songwriters behind winning or memorable tracks.
However, because of its basic premise — artists perform on behalf of participating countries, citizens of which cast votes for their favourites — current events and geopolitical controversies can muscle their way into the contest. In 2012, for example, there were protests against the host country, Azerbaijan, over the government's persecution of opposition voices.
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