This is how much Ireland’s Eurovision entry cost TV licence fee payers

Christ on a bike.

Watching our ill-fated Eurovision attempts crash out of the contest have become something of a national pastime in recent years. It's like Ireland has been cursed by the 'My Lovely Horse' episode of Father Ted - the prophecy has come true. But just how much it costs us to send our acts to Eurovision has been revealed and it might just make you feel queasy. RTÉ spent €331,000 on sending Brendan Murray and his team to this year's competition. The Herald reports that this includes a contest entry fee of €84,500 but, incredibly, doesn't include the broadcaster's production costs. The singer went to Kiev in the Ukraine for the Eurovision with a team of 15 people, including his tour manager, five backing vocalists, RTÉ's head of press, a sound engineer, a vocal coach and a photographer, according to the Irish Independent. A representative for RTÉ said that Ireland's entry was "excellent value for money for RTÉ and for Irish television licence-fee payers." "This year, an average 273,000 viewers tuned in over the course of the three nights of the contest, representing a 21pc share," she said. The state broadcaster recorded losses of €19.7 million in 2016, it was revealed this week. The Irish Examiner reports that reduced state funding and a number of large-scale events were among the reasons for the losses at RTÉ.