'Ted Lasso' star Hannah Waddingham is announced as Eurovision co-host

This year's singing competition will take place in the UK, on behalf of Ukraine.
 By 
Meera Navlakha
 on 
Hannah Waddingham arrives to the 74th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards.
Credit: Trae Patton/NBC via Getty Images.

This year's Eurovision Song Contest will be hosted by Ted Lasso star Hannah Waddingham, singer Alesha Dixon, and Ukrainian singer Julia Sanina.

Waddingham says it's "a great privilege" to be a part of the upcoming competition. "It's one of the world's greatest music festivals. But this year, perhaps more than ever, it is such a great honour to be standing shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine, a country which has carried itself with such strength and unity."

The UK is hosting Eurovision on behalf of Ukraine, which was invaded by Russia since last year and continues to be embroiled in conflict. This year's singing competition, taking place in Liverpool is expected to have over 160 million viewers globally.


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Presenter Sanina, the face of Ukrainian alternative band The HARDKISS, says, "I can't wait to get to Liverpool and meet the fans and the rest of the Eurovision family."

The trio of presenters will also be joined by Graham Norton for the grand finale. Norton has long appeared at the competition and says "this year is even more special".

"I personally feel a big responsibility to make our Ukrainian colleagues proud."

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Meera Navlakha

Meera is a journalist based between London and New York. Her work has been published in The New York Times, Vice, The Independent, Vogue India, W Magazine, and others. She was previously a Culture Reporter at Mashable. 

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