Non-Comeback of the Week: Ivan Mikulić

You may remember Ivan Mikulić as the grumpy Croatian representative in Eurovision 2004. You may remember him as the star of Jesus Christ Superstar, who told one newspaper during his time there that he wouldn't have joined the cast if they'd offered him Judas instead of the title role.* You may remember him as Sandra Bagarić's partner on celebrity Milijunaš last Easter, where he managed not to have heard of Alcatraz prison, Sid Vicious, or the fact that when you choose an answer a little light goes on.

Mikulić is now in a huff again about a special musicals evening to be held in the Lisinski Hall at the weekend. According to Večernji list, he was invited to take part a month ago, was never called again, and was finally told last week that he wouldn't be included.

Whatever was going on with Noći mjuzikla, Mikulić is beginning to acquire a reputation as a serial complainer as far as Croatian showbusiness is concerned. After a long-running quarrel with the lyricist of his Eurovision entry, he excelled himself at the actual contest by falling out with the entire delegation from Croatian Television (HTV) over - allegedly - his belief that the defunct secret service of socialist Yugoslavia was poisoning his food.

The delegation head Aleksandar Kostadinov, HTV's Lepa Brena-disliking head of entertainment, is currently more occupied not answering the phone when journalists call to ask the song by the Bosnian rapper Edo Maajka which has just been banned from HTV and TV Nova. This may be to do with not broadcasting songs called Mater vam jebem at half past eight in the evening, or, as East Ethnia suggests, to its sharp criticisms of post-Dayton politicians. Up to you.

(* Although the actor who did play Judas, Ervin Baučić, resurfaced in the Croatian Eurovision pre-selection this year as the male vocal on Magazin's classical-kitsch number Nazaret. Whether that counts as ample experience or mixed messages, the Gazette is undecided.)