Sebastien Tellier has broken his silence over Eurovisiongate (as we've chosen to call it) and pledged to include some more French lyrics in his entry for this year's contest, to the relief of a vexed nation.
As we told you yesterday Tellier will be representing France at Eurovision next month, and his song is called Divine. It was selected by the France-3 TV network. And it is sung almost entirely in English. You can watch the video here.
French minister Alain Joyandet, a member of the council of ministers, the equivalent of Britain's cabinet, is amongst those who have condemned the track - which includes only two lines in French. "When one has the honour of being selected to represent France, one sings in French," he said.
Now Tellier, in true French fashion, appears to have surrendered. "If it makes everyone happy, of course I'll make an effort," he finally announced yesterday. "I just want to please people."
But while he is capitulating to the public's demands, Tellier doesn't seem too happy with the situation. "If I had been asked to do a song expressly for Eurovision, I clearly would have done something in French," he explained. "I'm not dense."
In case anyone was in doubt as to his Frenchness, Tellier also underlined the point with a Cantona-esque metaphor. "The baguette won't taste any worse tomorrow morning if I sing in English," he said. Which would itself make a rather catchy chorus.
