UK's Eurovision entry revealed - and he's got a famous brother
Singer James Newman has written songs for Ed Sheeran, Calvin Harris and his younger brother John Newman.
Thursday 27 February 2020 15:42, UK
The brother of popstar John Newman is to represent the UK in this year's Eurovision Song Contest.
James Newman, a songwriter who has previously worked with Ed Sheeran and Calvin Harris, will perform My Last Breath in Rotterdam, The Netherlands, in May.
He has recorded a video for the song which was filmed in snowy mountains on the Czech Republic and Poland border.
Newman said: "It's such an honour to be representing the United Kingdom this year at Eurovision - I still can't quite believe it. I'm also so proud to be taking My Last Breath as the song.
"I wrote it with some of my best friends, who are also amazingly talented songwriters in their own right. I knew it was 'the one' after first recording it, I just loved the simplicity and universal message of the song."
Newman's songwriting hits include Waiting All Night, performed by Rudimental and Ella Eyre.
He also wrote Lay It All On Me, performed by Rudimental featuring Ed Sheeran, and Blame, performed by Calvin Harris featuring John Newman.
The UK doesn't have the best record in the competition, placing last in 2019.
Kate Phillips, BBC controller of entertainment commissioning, said: "I'm absolutely thrilled to have James on board to represent the UK at this year's contest.
"Eurovision is all about the song, and as an award-winning singer-songwriter with a proven track record, I know James will do all he can to get us on the left-hand side of the board - it's a very exciting year for the UK."
The score for last year's UK entry, Michael Rice's Bigger Than Us, was later lowered by five points after organisers made an error while calculating the totals.
This year, BBC bosses scrapped the public vote to team up with a record label to choose the singer and the song instead.
Newman's brother, who is also releasing new music, joked on social media that it was a "family affair", and like "an Oasis head-to-head race to the top".