Jack Whitehall reveals why he’s not hosting the Brit Awards 2022

Mo Gilligan is hosting next year’s ceremony

Jack Whitehall has said he was “conscious of not outstaying [his] welcome” as he explained why he won’t be hosting the Brit Awards in 2022.

Next year’s event will be hosted by comedian Mo Gilligan, which will be the first time Whitehall is absent from the music awards ceremony in four years.

In a new interview with The Independent, Whitehall said he was aware of how he is received by others.

“After that first time, I was conscious of not outstaying my welcome,” he said. “I wanted to make sure people still enjoyed seeing me do it.”

He added that singers Olly Murs and Niall Horan – his common targets of choice – would be able to relax at next year’s ceremony.

The 33-year-old said Gilligan was “the perfect choice” to take over hosting duties, calling him the “hottest comedian around right now” and “a really funny guy”.

“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,” said Whitehall.

Read the full interview here.

Next year’s Brit Awards are being held at the O2 Arena in London. The nominations are being announced in a TV special hosted by Clara Amfo and Maya Jama, which will be aired on Sunday 18 December.

The 2022 Brit Awards will ditch gender-specific categories in a bid to make the show more inclusive. This includes new awards for Artist of the Year and International Artist of the Year, instead of Best Male and Best Female Solo Artist and Best International Male and Female Solo Artist.

In a statement announcing the change, the Brits said the move came as they wanted to celebrate “artists solely for their music and work, rather than how they choose to identify or as others may see them”.

The 2022 Brit Awards take place on 8 February.