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Denmark Celebrates 25 years of Gay Unions at Eurovision

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The first ever same-sex union was in Copenhagen a quarter century ago, and Denmark pays tribute with mass weddings in the lead-up to Eurovision's finale

You thought the Grammys gay weddings were over-the-top? Latifah presiding? Madonna dressed as a Dukes of Hazzard character?

Well stand back, Europe's most camp annual event, Eurovision, is about to get so much sparklier that your eyes won't be able to handle the glare. This May, Copenhagen will stage mass Eurovision weddings in the days leading up to the grand finale on May 10. Foreign couples, both gay and straight, are invited to come marry there as well.

The first civil partnership took place in Denmark 25 years ago, in 1989.

Thomas Jakobsen, the director of Copenhagen's Citizen Service, said, "As a city, we put a lot of effort into making everyone welcome and the Eurovision Song Contest is an excellent opportunity to offer weddings."

Last year, in the grand finale in Sweden, Finland's Krista Siegfrids (above) wound the audience up by kissing one of her female dancers live on stage, with approximately 60 million viewers watching. She said it was an act of protest against anti-LGBT laws internationally.

According to Gay Star News, "Last year, international song contest organizers raised concerns over Russia's gay propaganda laws. They warned if Russia fails to guarantee full creative freedom and make sure no gay person would be arrested under the homophobic legislation, like they have failed to do so at the Sochi Olympics, then they would be banned from hosting the contest."

By that measure, Russia has already failed. Will Eurovision keep its word?

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Matthew Breen