Hannah Waddingham

"Top that, Sweden!" joked Kate Phillips, challenging the hosts of next year’s Eurovision Song Contest. Just a few weeks earlier, a worldwide audience of 162 million – an all-time high – had watched Loreen win the contest for a second time.

Phillips, the BBC’s Director of Unscripted and Eurovision Lead, was talking at a packed RTS event that threw a spotlight on how the corporation staged the Europop jamboree at the Liverpool Arena in such spectacular fashion.

Catherine Tate (The Catherine Tate Show, Doctor Who) will be succeeding the likes of Amanda Holden, Richard Osman, Mel Giedroyc and Nigella Lawson as the UK spokesperson.

However, unlike her predecessors, Tate will be delivering the UK’s National Jury scores live from the very same arena the contest is taking place in - making UK Eurovision history.

Joining Tate in the arena will be the official hosts Graham Norton (The Graham Norton Show), Hannah Waddingham (Ted Lasso), singer Alesha Dixon and Ukrainian rock star Julia Sanina.