The Chinese TV Station Which Banned Ireland’s Eurovision Entry Has Had Its Contract Terminated

The European Broadcast Union has this evening terminated its contract with Mango TV after the Chinese broadcaster edited out Ireland's Eurovision performance on Tuesday, the Irish Independent reports.

Ryan O'Shaughnessy's rendition of Together was censored by the station as it featured two male dancers portraying a gay couple. In China, strict broadcast rules are in place regarding homosexual relationships and tonight the EBU has issued a statement which says:

"On the 9th of May, Chinese broadcaster Mango TV broadcast the first Semi-Final of the 2018 Eurovision Song Contest live but two performances were censored.

"This is not in line with the EBU's values of universality and inclusivity and our proud tradition of celebrating diversity through music.

"It is with regret that we will therefore immediately be terminating our partnership with the broadcaster and they will not be permitted to broadcast the second Semi-Final or the Grand Final."

The Albanian performance was also censored by Mango TV due to the presence of tattoos. Ryan O'Shaughnessy will represent Ireland in the Eurovision Final on Saturday night.