Mercury Prize 2025: Is ceremony on TV? Ceremony time & full list of nominated acts - what is the prize?
Some of the hottest names in music will descend on Newcastle this evening as the Mercury Prize 2025 takes place.
BBC Radio 6 DJ and television presenter Lauren Laverne will host the ceremony live from Newcastle’s Utilita Arena, marking the first-ever time the event has been held outside of London.
12 artists have been shortlisted for this year’s prize. Here’s everything you need to know to tune into the action this evening (October 16).
Is the Mercury Prize 2025 on TV?
Yes, there will be television coverage of the Mercury Music Prize 2025. Coverage will begin at 9.30pm on BBC Four, with the programme set to conclude at 10.45pm.
You will also be able to tune in live on the BBC iPlayer as well as catching up on demand after the broadcast on the service.
Who has been nominated for the Mercury Prize 2025?
A total of 12 artists from the UK and Ireland have been nominated for this year’s Mercury Music Prize for album releases over the past 12 months. These acts and their records are:
- CMAT - Euro-Country
- Emma-Jean Thackray - Weirdo
- FKA Twigs - Eusexua
- Fontaines D.C. - Romance
- Jacob Alon - In Limerence
- Joe Webb - Hamstrings & Hurricanes
- Martin Carthy - Transform Me Then Into a Fish
- Pa Salieu - Afrikan Alien
- PinkPantheress - Fancy That
- Pulp - More
- Sam Fender - People Watching
- Wolf Alice - The Clearing
According to the current odds on Oddschecker.com, Irish singer-songwriter CMAT is favourite to win the prize. She sits on odds of 5/2 at the time of writing for her album Euro-Country, which was released in August and reached number two in the UK Album Charts.
The Dublin-born star told 6 Music: “It’s the highest honour, it’s the absolute highest honour that you can receive as someone who makes albums as your medium to express yourself, which is what I do, and I’m particularly proud of Euro-Country, so it really does mean the world to be nominated.”
What do winners of the Mercury Prize win?
The lucky winner will receive a £25,000 prize, as well as a trophy to mark their achievement. The shortlisted artists also receive a prize, with every act on the list given a specially commissioned ‘Albums of the year’ trophy.
The winner will receive the shortlist trophy as well as the winners’ trophy.