The United Kingdom might have had a dismal night at Eurovision but spirits were high in Newcastle as the city hosted a huge outdoor party for the contest.
Fans of the annual extravaganza were left gutted last year when, like many other events, it fell victim to the coronavirus pandemic, with a virtual celebration airing in its place.
After two years away, the Eurovision Song Contest returned in style for 2021 and hundreds gathered in huge Times Square beer garden Central Park to watch 26 countries battle it out in Saturday's final.
Each table had a different country with plenty of people seizing the opportunity to dress for the occasion, with Vikings, Super Mario Brothers and even the late and great Terry Wogan making an appearance.
Songs that got a good reaction from the Geordie crowd included show opener Cyprus, Malta's Destiny and Iceland, who weren't actually there on night due to a positive Covid test.
And Union Jacks were waved in abundance as UK entrant James Newman hit the stage to perform his song Embers.
Unfortunately for former Newcastle University student James, the enthusiasm for his song in Central Park wasn't matched in the votes, with the Brit winning songwriter failing to get a single point from either the juries or voting public.
He finished rock bottom of the leaderboard, just below fellow 'big 5' countries Germany and Spain.
The other two of the big 5 - Italy and France - did much better, with Italy's Mansekin edging out France's Barbara Pravi, who finished in second with her song Voila.
Well fancied Malta could only finish 7th while a guest appearance from Flo Rida and performing last wasn't enough to lift San Marino any higher than 22nd.
