Joe and Jake to represent the United Kingdom at Eurovision 2016
Joe and Jake have been chosen by the public to represent the United Kingdom at the 61st Eurovision Song Contest, which will take place this May in Stockholm.
Published: 25 February 2016
For everyone back home that has voted thank you so much. We are so proud we are going to represent the UK. Thank you. It’s going to be incredible.
Joe and Jake took to the stage alongside the five other hopefuls who were all battling it out for the honour of representing the United Kingdom at Eurovision 2016 in a live 90-minute musical extravaganza on BBC Four.
Joe and Jake will be performing You're Not Alone, which was written by Schwartz, Justin J Benson and S Kanes.
Joe Woolford and Jake Shakeshaft met during the 2015 series of The Voice UK. Jake was part of team will.i.am but lost out at the Battle rounds, whereas Joe was a finalist for Rita Ora’s team. Jake, aged 20 from Stoke-on-Trent, can play guitar, while Joe, aged 21 from Ruthin, Wales, supported The Vamps on their 2015 tour.
Joe and Jake said: “I can’t even talk, it feels amazing. We just want to say this crowd is absolutely incredible. For everyone back home that has voted thank you so much. We are so proud we are going to represent the UK. Thank you. It’s going to be incredible. I hope we make you all proud. We’ve never been to Stockholm but there’s a first time for everything. We’re going to start working on the song so we can win.”
Hosted by Mel Giedroyc, Eurovision: You Decide was broadcast live on BBC Four from The O2 Forum Kentish Town on Friday 26 February, featuring performances by the six competing acts before the voting lines opened and the public chose the song and act that will represent the United Kingdom at Eurovision 2016 in Sweden.
Current Eurovision champion and Eurovision 2016 co-host Måns Zelmerlöw opened the 90-minute musical extravaganza, singing his winning song from last year’s contest, Heroes. Former United Kingdom Eurovision Song Contest entry Katrina also performed on the night with the winning song from the 1997 competition Love Shine A Light.
As well as the acts battling it out for the public’s votes, the jam-packed 90-minute live show featured a special look back at some of Sir Terry Wogan’s unforgettable Eurovision moments over the years.
Guy Freeman, Editor of Special Events and Head of Delegation for the UK said: “On behalf of the BBC, we’d like to thank all of the acts and song-writers who participated in the show tonight. These six artists are all winners for making it to our national final - but now we have one UK champion in Joe and Jake, and we are really looking forward to working with them as we look towards the contest in May.”
Notes to Editors
The 61st Eurovision Song Contest will take place in Stockholm, Sweden. The Semi Finals will be broadcast on 10 and 12 May on BBC Four, and the Grand Final will be broadcast on 14 May on BBC One. As one of the 'Big Five' countries (UK, Spain, Germany, France, Italy) and alongside incumbent winners Sweden, the United Kingdom does not have to qualify from the semi-final stage of the competition and will gain automatic access to the Grand Final.
Eurovision: You Decide is now available to watch again on BBC iPlayer
Eurovision: You Decide will be Exec Produced by Guy Freeman and Produced by Helen Riddell.
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