14:52,

YEREVAN, AUGUST 12, ARMENPRESS. The shortlist of UK cities that could host next year's Eurovision Song Contest has been revealed, the BBC reports.

Birmingham, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle and Sheffield will vie to stage the event in May.

Twenty cities expressed an interest, the BBC said, and those not making the shortlist include London and Belfast.

The UK was chosen to host the contest after organisers decided it could not be staged by Ukraine, the 2022 winners.

The BBC said the seven-strong shortlist was based on the cities' ability to show they have "the capacity, capability and experience to host an event of this scale and complexity".