results of each televoting region and the online vote awarded 2, 4, 6, 8 and 12 points to their top five songs, while the SMS vote was awarded based on the percentage of votes each song achieved. For example, if a song gained 10% of the SMS vote, then that entry would be awarded 10 points. 12 points Controversy Prior to the national final, Eurovision news website Oikotimes claimed that the songs "Teenage Life" and "It's a Beautiful Thing" (both of which eventually placed in the top two) would be disqualified from the competition as they had been commercially released before 1 October 2005. The BBC later responded by stating that both songs comply with the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) rules as the original version of "Teenage Life" was released under Daz Sampson's stage name Spacekats only as a white label record, while "It's a Beautiful Thing" was never commercially released as it wasn't available legally on the Internet. At Eurovision According to Eurovision rules, all nations with the exceptions of the host country, the "Big Four" (France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom) and the ten highest placed finishers in the 2005 contest are required to qualify from the semi-final in order to compete for the final; the top ten countries from the semi-final progress to the final. As a member of the "Big Four", the United Kingdom automatically qualified to compete in the final on 20 May 2006. In addition to their participation in the final, the United Kingdom is also required to broadcast and vote in the semi-final on 18 May 2006. In the United Kingdom, the semi-final was broadcast on BBC Three with commentary by Paddy O'Connell, while the final was televised on BBC One with commentary by Terry Wogan and broadcast on BBC Radio 2 with commentary by Ken Bruce. The British spokesperson, who announced the British votes during the final, was Fearne Cotton. Final Daz Sampson took part in technical rehearsals on 7 and 8 May, followed by dress rehearsals on 11 and 12 May. During the running order draw for the semi-final and final on 21 March 2006, the United Kingdom was placed to perform in position 15 in the final, following the entry from Lithuania and before the entry from Greece. The British performance featured Daz Sampson, joined by five dancers/backing vocalists dressed in school uniform, performing on a multicoloured stage which