‘Ted Lasso’ star Hannah Waddingham will host Eurovision 2023
By Issy Ronald, CNN
“Ted Lasso” star Hannah Waddingham will host this year’s Eurovision Song Contest in Liverpool, England alongside award-winning Ukrainian singer Julia Sanina and TV personality Alesha Dixon, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) announced Wednesday.
Waddingham, who won an Emmy for her performance as football club owner Rebecca Welton in the Apple TV+ comedy, said in a statement that she has been an “avid (Eurovision) fan for years” and that hosting the contest is “a great privilege.”
The trio will host the two live semifinals before popular talk show host and longtime Eurovision commentator Graham Norton joins them for the final on May 13, which the BBC said is expected to be watched by a global audience of 160 million.
“It’s no secret how much I adore Eurovision,” Norton said in the statement. “I truly believe it’s the greatest show on earth and every year that I’m involved it’s a huge honor. This year is even more special and I personally feel a big responsibility to make our Ukrainian colleagues proud.”
Eurovision is traditionally hosted by the previous year’s winner but Ukraine, which won in 2022 with the track “Stefania,” performed by folk-rap group Kalush Orchestra, cannot host due to its ongoing conflict with Russia.
The UK, which finished second in last year’s competition with Sam Ryder’s performance of “Space Man,” was asked to host instead of Ukraine by the organizing European Broadcast Union (EBU).
Both the BBC and the city of Liverpool have committed to reflecting Ukrainian, as well as British, culture during this year’s contest.
Waddingham added that it is a “great honor to be standing shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine, a country which has carried itself with such strength and unity.”
The BBC also said Ukrainian broadcaster Timur Miroshnychenko will be the Eurovision Correspondent in Liverpool, appearing throughout the show, offering insights from Ukraine’s commentary box, and hosting the opening ceremony live stream alongside British TV personality and Olympic gold medalist Sam Quek.
“It’s always such a special event, uniting us all by music,” Miroshnychenko said in a statement.
“I am delighted to be the commentary voice of Ukraine from Liverpool,” he said, “bringing Eurovision fans, new and existing, all the action from the arena and no doubt some behind the scenes exclusives too!”
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CNN’s James Frater and Jessie Gretener contributed reporting.
