does anyone have any idea when the draw will be announced, i assume around march 28th, would i be correct?

once they have made sure Bjorkman has said its ok to proceed

oh of course, question is when >, bet ya anything norway will be 5th, and finland will be where ever a break in the second half is

isnt it next monday?

i hope so , how did you find out?

Semifinal 1

1. Armenia
2. Latvia
3. Estonia
4. Sweden
5. Iceland
6. Albania
7. Russia
8. Azerbaijan
9. Ukraine
10. Belgium
11. Moldova
12. San Marino
13. Portugal
14. Holland
15. Montenegro
16. Hungary

Semifinal 2

1. Malta
2. Israel
3. Norway
4. Georgia
5. Poland
6. Austria
7. Lithuania
8. Finland
9. Ireland
10. Belarus
11. F.Y.R. Macedonia
12. Switzerland
13. Greece
14. Slovenia
15. Romania

A few thoughts about the running order:

1st semi:

Hungary: I think it was a good idea to close the first semi with that song as it's a ballad but becomes uptempo in the chorus. I give lots of chances to Hungary to win this semi.
Armenia: A strange decision in my eyes. It's a power ballad but I don't think that, especially this song's first 2 minutes, are the best way to open a show. Latvia would be a better choice, in my opinion.
Belgium-Moldova-San Marino: 3 ballads in a row and, obviously, Belgium is going to walk all over Moldova and San Marino, although, personally, I like all 3 songs.
Portugal: after 3 ballads, this will sound refreshing and people will wake up...lol..I now see Portugal more likely to qualify than before.
Montenegro: with Hungary after it, I give it less chances to qualify as Hungary is much more modern and a stronger song all around.

2nd semi:
Malta: bad choice to open the semi with this song and, I believe, no chance to qualify.
Norway: although 3rd isn't ideal, I believe it will win this semi...between Israel and Georgia, Norway will come across as the masterpiece it really is. Same goes for Poland after Georgia...it should do very well.
Finland-Ireland: bad decision, for me, to put this one after the other..I think one of them may miss the final..although I like them both and they're both strong songs.
Greece: I'm happy with my country's position...although Greece is so different to all the other songs that it would be the same, wherever they put us...still, between 2 more 'typical' upbeat songs, I think it will stand out more.
Romania: I don't know how this will help Romania as I don't find it a song that really stands out but, I guess, it's an ok way to close the semi.

A few points from my side, just like Mina did.

Semi 1:
Armenia
Armenia opening makes no sense whatsoever. The only thing they're doing here is basically putting someone who looks like a sure qualifier as the opener... Why? No idea.

Estonia
I have the idea they've just killed and buried Estonia. Disagreeing with many fans, I already had the idea they were going to fail, but 3rd after Latvia and before Sweden is really terrible for them.

Holland
Of course, I need to express what I think about this one. #14 hasn't always been too good as a running order in a semi, but ok. Coming after Portugal is our key to success or failure. If Suzy makes that performance a slutty trainwreck, we're in with a shot. If she manages to give away a decent, vocally ok performance, we're in trouble. Montenegro following us is the same basically. If he nails the staging, we're out. Nevertheless, at the moment, I think we're in a danger zone and will finish somewhere between 8th and 12th...

Hungary
Yep, that's a sure qualifier, but no surprise there. Good way to close the semi and basically, a favourite to win the semifinal now.

Semifinal 2:
Israel
Ouch. EBU has not done a smart thing here. Same Heart is a strong song, but after Malta and before Norway, this might once again be the shock non-qualifiers. A fan favourite as always, but will they live up to the expectations again after so many failures?

Poland
Coming in a row of four WTF-experiences, this will put viewers off. First we're kicking off with the absurd entry from Georgia, after that we see Poland, then it's Austria and finally... Lithuania? Oh God. Georgia is dead and buried, the other three have a chance. A welcome back to Poland that TVP must be happy with.

Lithuania
And here's the lucky one for me. After Georgia, Austria and Poland, Lithuania is gonna come across as a perfectly normal song. Seeing as they've qualified with utter shit in the past (Something, Love Is Blind, C'Est La Vie, Love, just mentioning them), Attention should be able to scrape through to the final.

FYR Macedonia
Another one to be celebrating. The perfectly normal pop song with a charismatic singer, some countries who know her and most likely a good staging between the Cheesecake and the Hunter of Stars? She's qualifying I'd say.

Slovenia
The inoffensive cute little ditty from Slovenia is gonna drown. Sadly, as I think many people would say: Oh that's ok, it should qualify. But it's that typical song to be ok enough to be seen as a qualifier, but not a lot of those people are actually going to pick up the phone for this, as they'll think about 3, 4 entries are better. Being between Romania and Greece could very well mean that Tinkara should start looking for a flight Copenhagen-Ljubljana on Friday.

I shall pick up the phone and vote for it. All their problems are solved, therefore... Right? (As Rua said, Janet's favourite is Slovenia. It will fail. [Like poor brave Sinplus ])