Isn't this called gerrymandering?

By Jamie McLoughlin on Apr 30, 09 09:12 AM

Now, this just isn't the British way of doing things.

The following press release pinged into Boom Bang a Blog's inbox this morning from none other than BT.

"A major campaign was launched today by our most recent Eurovision winner Katrina, formerly of Katrina and the Waves, and BT, calling on residents of Liverpool to mobilise friends and family abroad to vote for this year's UK entry.
It's been twelve years since Katrina last brought home the top prize with her winning performance of Love Shine a Light in Dublin. After Andy Abraham suffered at the hands of tactical bloc voting last year, Eurovision has finally changed the voting system to give us Brits a fighting chance. BT's 'Eurovictory' campaign aims to seal the deal by drumming up support from the nation's international friends and family."

This is all just wrong! It goes on to say...

'If every family in the UK picked up the phone and persuaded just one person in Europe to vote for our entry this year, we could easily reach in excess of 10 million votes. That's more than the total number of votes cast in 2008 (8 million).
Katrina explains: "This is all about getting the nation engaged to bring home Eurovision glory.
"It's been 12 years since we had a winning entry, and frankly our last few points totals have been embarrassing. This year, we have a great entry, penned by Andrew Lloyd Webber and performed by Jade Ewen. So let's get a little bit patriotic, and do our bit for 'Eurovictory'!
"If each of us call just one of our friends and family in Europe, we can easily defeat tactical voting. To kick things off, I'll be calling my friend Mark, who lives in Geneva."'

This is disgraceful. If the UK is to do well, then it should be through 100 per cent, solid sterling fair play. We've been the first to point the finger when we think foul play has surrounded the result of the Contest, so we should rise above it - not join in!

Tsk. Im off to a darkened room to compose a letter to someone important.