Brits 2022: Six biggest talking points, from Anne-Marie’s fall to Adele’s triumph
Ceremony attended by stars including Adele, Ed Sheeran, Liam Gallagher and Maya Jama took place at the O2 Arena
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The annual Brit Awards ceremony took place at the O2 Arena in London tonight (Tuesday 8 February).
Some of the biggest names in music attended, including Ed Sheeran and Adele, who scooped prizes for Songwriter of the Year and Artist of the Year, respectively.
Mo Gilligan served as this year’s host, taking over from Jack Whitehall who presented the awards for the past four consecutive years.
There was drama early on in the night, as pop singer Anne-Marie took a tumble during the first moments of her performance.
Here are the biggest talking points from the night:
It didn’t get off to a great start for the “Alarm” singer. Just seconds into her performance of “Don’t Play”, she lost her footing walking down some stairs and twisted awkwardly to the floor to the gasp of the crowd. She never let it phase her and carried on singing throughout the floor and the crowd roared her back to her feet. She later joked on Twitter that she “didn’t need my left ankle anyway”. It wouldn’t be the Brits without something going awry.
Mo Gilligan is a fine if subdued host
Replacing Jack Whitehall, Mo Gilligan was always given a daunting task and struggled to put his own signature stamp on the ceremony. Whereas Whitehall was able to needle the stars with a degree of self-awareness, Gilligan played it safe. He made sure everything ran smoothly at the notoriously boozy do – but a little bit of anarchy wouldn’t have hurt. His high point was a spot-on impression of Liam Gallagher, complete with parka.
Adele is still Queen of the Brits
It’s as though she never went away. Just minutes into the event and Adele picked up the gong for Song of the Year. She kept the speech uncharacteristically short, but did manage to squeeze in a few jokes. “I can’t believe a piano ballad beat all those bangers,” she cracked, as she overcame the likes of Elton John, Dua Lipa and KSI to win the award. She reappeared later in the night for a beautifully heartfelt performance of “I Drink Wine” that brought the crowd to an awed silence, before also going home with Artist of the Year and Album of the Year.
Ed Sheeran collaborates with Bring Me the Horizon
Tasked with opening the show, Sheeran had a trick up his sleeve from the start, performing alongside emo rockers Bring Me the Horizon with frontman Oli Sykes joining him on vocals for a duet of “Bad Habits”. Accompanied by a menagerie of circus performers – including acrobats and trapeze artists – the two acts put a heavier spin on Sheeran’s synth-inspired hit. The collaboration went down pretty well online, with one fan tweeting: “Ed Sheeran and Bring Me the Horizon is a mix I did not know I needed.”
Little Simz triumphs in her Brits debut
Picking up Best New Artist despite releasing her debut album seven years ago, it was a night to remember for Little Simz as she accepted her first Brit award alongside her beaming mother. “Look at what you’ve done, mum,” she says as she holds the award aloft. It was a victory for perseverance and self-belief and remarkable talent. Earlier in the night, Simz ignited the ceremony with a gripping performance of “Introvert”, which included a little help from The Crown star Emma Corrin who narrated a spoken word interlude.
The presenters are an odd bunch
A couple of Cox’s (Brian and Courteney), Mo Farah and Doctor Who herself, Jodie Whittaker all somehow ended up presenting awards at the Brits. Most surprising of all was Logan Roy himself turning up to present Ed Sheeran with his Songwriter of the Year award. The Succession star suavely strut across the stage much to the delight and bewilderment of the audience – the only let down was that he didn’t give Sheeran a hurling of Roy’s famous catchphrase.
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While everyone’s attention was focused mostly on the music, fans couldn’t help but spot a new addition to Adele’s jewellery collection. Sporting an impossible to ignore diamond ring on a certain finger, social media quickly went ablaze with speculation that the “Easy on Me” singer had gotten engaged to her boyfriend, sports agent, Rich Paul.
The liveblog is now closed. See the full list of winners here.
How to watch the Brits live
Music fans have more ways than ever to tune into the Brits if they’re not at the O!
The red carpet will be broadcast live via the Brit Awards YouTube, TikTok, Facebook and Twitter accounts, with Munya Chawawa and Nella Rose hosting. The YouTube livestream of the show (excluding the UK) is hosted this year by AJ Odudu and Reece Parkinson. YouTube have also partnered with Amelia Dimoldenberg who will bring her unique interviewing style to the red carpet.
In a first for the awards ceremony, fans will also be able to watch exclusive behind-the-scenes footage on the night via YouTube Shorts, a new short-form video experience, as well as listening to playlists of music by their favourite artists. YouTube Shorts sponsors the 2022 Artist of the Year award.
Viewers in the UK will also be able to watch the Brits broadcast live from 7pm on ITV and ITV Hub.
Lot of people doing the black tailored trousers with leather jacket thing, but Little Simz just turned up and absolutely nailed the look. She’s up for four awards tonight, including Best New Artist, Album of the Year and Artist of the Year!
Viewers might be surprised to note the absence of comedian Jack Whitehall this year, given he’s become a familiar face at the awards show. He made his hosting debut in 2018, taking over from Dermot O’Leary and Emma Willis, and continued to host each year until his last stint in 2021. His style of hosting – in which he ribs some of the most famous guests in attendance – has proved to be particularly popular among fans.
This year, however, will see fellow comedian Mo Gilligan make his Brits hosting debut. Whitehall told The Independent in a recent interviewthat he was keen not to “overstay his welcome”, and that the Bafta-winning Gilligan is “the perfect choice” to take over.
“It’ll be strange seeing someone else doing it because it has become a bit of a fixture for me and something that I look forward to each year but I’m sure Mo will do a great job,” Whitehall said.
“I feel, at times, like someone who has won a competition to host the Brits,” Gilligan himself told The Times in an interview this week. He also revealed that he doesn’t plan on roasting the famous guests in attendance, as Whitehall tends to do, as that’s not his style.
If you’re trying to work out where you might have seen him before – it’s possibly from 2017, when Canadian star Drake quoted some of Gilligan’s comedy on his Instagram account. Or maybe from his role co-hosting The Big Narstie Show, or winning The Big Fat Quiz of the Year in 2018 with his teammate Claudia Winkleman. The following year, his debut comedy special for Netflix, Mo Gilligan: Momentum, was released to the streaming service.
Elsewhere, Gilligan is currently a judge The Masked Singer UK, and also serves as a judge on ITV’s spin-off show, The Masked Dancer UK.
Glass Animals win my vote for best dressed this evening. Hands down. Amazing.
I can only assume the boy throwing a deck of cards at a cameraman is famous from TikTok
From the screaming I’d hazard a guess that Little Mix have arrived.
My lovely colleague Olivia Petter over on the lifestyle desk is doing a rundown of all the best looks from tonight, check that out below:
The best dressed stars at the Brits tonight
As the UK’s annual celebration of music returns with full force, Olivia Petter rounds up the best looks of the night
Very excited to see Maneskin arrive, superbly dressed group (they are Italian, after all). They’re my favourites to win this year’s International Group award, but they’re facing some stiff competition.
Who’s performing live at the Brits?
As with each year, there are a number of big performances lined up for the evening. Confirmed to perform at the O2 Arena are Adele, Anne-Marie with KSI and Digital Farm Animals, Ed Sheeran, Dave, Little Simz, Holly Humberstone, Liam Gallagher and Sam Fender!
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