Hannah Waddingham got two big thumbs up when she made her Eurovision hosting debut during Tuesday night’s semi-final – but some fans think she might have been throwing a bit of shade with one comment she made during the broadcast.
Early on in the event, the Ted Lasso star – who co-hosted the proceedings with Alesha Dixon and Ukrainian singer Julia Sanina – read out the night’s terms and conditions in French.
“You see Europe? Some of us Brits do bother to learn another language,” she then told viewers, to cheers and applause from the audience, before adding a quick: “Just saying.”
While Hannah may have just been referencing Brits’ reputation for not bothering to learn any of the local lingo when we travel abroad, others interpreted the remark as a pointed dig at Amanda Holden.
Amanda famously served as the UK’s spokesperson back in 2021, but received a somewhat lukewarm response from viewers when she declared: “Good evening! Bon soir! Goedenavond!
“That’s ‘good evening’ in French and Dutch, although I’ve got absolutely no idea which is which.”
After Hannah’s remark on Tuesday, Eurovision fans were immediately reminded of Amanda’s infamous appearance…
A total of 15 acts performed during the first semi-final, with 10 making it through to the next stage of the competition.
On Thursday night, 16 more will compete for the remaining 10 spots in the final, which will then air live on Saturday night on BBC One.
The BBC has also confirmed that a British comedy fave will be serving as the UK spokesperson in 2023, while Hannah, Alesha and Julia will be joined by regular commentator Graham Norton on hosting duties.