Ncuti Gatwa, the pro-Palestinian British star who canceled his participation in Eurovision 2025, denies any connection between his withdrawal and Israel’s participation, contrary to ongoing speculation.
Ncuti Gatwa, the prominent British actor who played the lead role in the iconic television series “Doctor Who,” was selected to announce the British votes at Eurovision 2025. However, on the night of the competition’s final, it became known that Gatwa would not be presenting the points. Contrary to widespread speculation on social media suggesting his withdrawal was due to Israel’s participation in the final—given Gatwa’s known support for Palestinians—the actor announced that there was no connection to Israel’s presence in the final.
Gatwa Denies Link to Israel: “I Was Just Very Busy”
Gatwa now clarifies in an interview with journalist Laura Kuenssberg at the BBC that his reason for withdrawing was not related to Israel’s participation, but rather to personal workload: “I was just very busy. A lot of work.” Gatwa adds: “I withdrew from the participation long before it was announced. It’s unclear why the withdrawal was announced so close to the final.”
Gatwa’s denial comes after a wave of rumors claiming the move was a political protest, due to his pro-Palestinian stance and previous statements on social media. His withdrawal sparked a broad public debate about the influence of politics on the Eurovision Song Contest, especially given that other vote presenters have stepped down in recent years in protest of Israel’s participation. This time, however, Gatwa maintains that there is no connection between his withdrawal and Israel’s involvement.
Ultimately, the British votes were presented by another iconic singer—the British artist Sophie Ellis-Bextor, who did an excellent job.
Precedents: Withdrawals in Protest of Israel’s Participation in Eurovision
At Eurovision 2024, several vote presenters withdrew from their roles at the last minute for similar reasons, including Alessandra, Norway’s representative at Eurovision 2023, who admitted that her decision was due to Israel’s participation, even calling Israel “a country committing genocide.” In the end, during the Eurovision final, Norway did award points to Israel—8 points from the jury and 5 points from the public.
United Kingdom at Eurovision 2025
The song “What The Hell Just Happened?” was performed by the girl group Remember Monday, representing the United Kingdom at Eurovision. The group finished 19th in the Grand Final with 88 points – all from the juries. While the juries ranked the group 10th, the public gave the Unoted Kingdom zero points, placing the song last.
Despite the United Kingdom’s storied Eurovision history, in the past 25 years, it has managed to reach the Top 10 only three times – in 2002, 2009 and 2022.
Eurovision 2025: This was the 67th participation of the United Kingdom in Eurovision. The United Kingdom joined the competition in 1957 and has won it five times over the years. The United Kingdom’s last victory was in Eurovision 1997 with the song ‘Love Shine A Light’ performed by the band ‘Katrina and the Waves’.
