Gutted viewers were left worried as singer failed to show up for the 2025 final in St Jakobshalle in Basel, Sweden. Celine, 57, had been tipped to perform during the final interval, which would have been her first public stage performance in almost a year following her diagnosis from Stiff Person Syndrome.
The singer sparked a frenzy after flying to Basel ahead of the show, but a disappointed eventually had to concede she wasn't coming after Austria was announced as winner. The country won in a nailbiting final against Israel, who had shot to the top of the leaderboard thanks to an overwhelming public vote. But Austria came out on top with an impressive score of 436. Meanwhile, despite a strong start in the jury vote which put them in tenth place,
As winner JJ made his way to the stage, a defeated Graham said: "Even I've given up on Celine, I don't think she is showing up," sparking a worried reaction from viewers as they rushed to social media to ask where the iconic singer was.
One fan asked: "What happened to Celine Dion?!" as a second joked: "when graham norton realised Celine Dion wasn't turning up," showing an upset meme.
A third chimed in: "I feel for Graham Norton. Every time he says "celine dion" like he's trying to manifest her. I think he wants it more than anyone in the world."
A fourth said: ""I can't believe I sat through 4 hours of this for Celine to no show."
Another said: "Imagine waiting all night to see Celine Dion and she doesn't even come on," as a fellow fan said: "Hope Celine is okay."
Celine has been rarely seen in public since undergoing treatment for the rate condition, which causes severe muscle stiffness and spasms.
Ahead of the final, an insider said: "The team have been talking to Celine about appearing or performing at the ceremony for months and it has been very up and down.
"At one point this week, it looked like she would not be attending, but now it is looking far more likely she will be there.
"Rehearsals have gone ahead without her, but everyone is crossing their fingers. It'll be down to the wire."
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