Arctic Monkeys win Mercury
Updated on 06 September 2006
Chart toppers flirt with the limelight for the first time after winning the Mercury Music Prize
Chart toppers flirt with the limelight for the first time after winning the Mercury Music Prize
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The Mercury Music Prize is not one to shy away from controversy. Over the years the best album prize has often gone to the least usual suspect; last year was no exception - the largely unknown Antony and the Johnsons won, while chart favourites Hard-Fi, Bloc Party and the Kaiser Chiefs looked on from the sidelines.
This year, however, the Mercury panel has cast its vote in favour of Sheffield band Arctic Monkeys, whose hits 'I bet you look good on the dance floor' and 'When the sun goes down' both went straight to number one in the pop charts.
The band won the Mercury award for 'Whatever people say I am, that's what I'm not', the fastest-selling debut album in UK chart history.
As frontman Alex Turner said on accepting the prize: "Normally it doesn't go to a band that has sold as many albums as we have."
But, despite their success, the band, which Radio 1 DJ Jo Whiley described as "shy", have been silent in the face of their success, proving that the music speaks for itself.
After the awards ceremony the band warily faced the cameras and gave their first ever backstage press conference. After being asked one too many times "how do you feel?", they reprimanded reporters: "That's a right original question!"
The award marks yet another rung in the band's meteoric rise to fame. Already this year they've bagged Best New Act at the Brit Awards and the NME Awards for Best New Band and Best British Band.
On accepting the prize the band showed their usual modesty: "Someone call 999 Richard Hawley's been robbed," but said they were pleased to win.
But to many their win is not a big surprise - even Muse, also nominated for the prize, said they had put money on their Sheffieldian competitors at the bookies.
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