Naughty Boy and Jarvis Cocker join Mercury Prize panel

9 May 2016

Naughty Boy, Jarvis Cocker and Kate Tempest are among those on the panel for the Mercury Prize 2016.

Naughty Boy

The trio will be joined by jazz star Jamie Cullum, Wolf Alice's Ellie Rowsell and BBC Radio One DJ Annie Mac.

The 25th anniversary ceremony - which selects the best UK or Irish album from the last 12 months - will include a number of big changes including a fan poll whereby music fans will be able to select the first of six 2016 finalists from the 12 nominated albums.

The other half will be left to the star-studded judging panel.

The shortlist for the Hyundai Mercury Prize 2016 Albums of the Year will be revealed at the Albums of the Year Launch event on Thursday, August 4 and will be broadcast live on BBC Radio 6 Music.

The event will be followed by an online poll, which will enable music fans to select their six lucky finalists while the rest will be chosen based solely on artistic merit by the panel.

The finalists will be announced at the awards show, which will take place on September 15 and will be held for the first time at London's Eventim Apollo, Hammersmith.

Further judges are yet to be added to the panel in the coming weeks.

The evening will see a selection of the six finalists perform on the night and there will also be a special collaboration to celebrate 25 years of the Mercury Prize, which is yet to be confirmed.

The evening's proceedings will be complete by a performance from the act who is the overall winner of the 2016 Hyundai Mercury Prize for Album of the Year.

Dan Ford, Managing Director of the Hyundai Mercury Prize, said: "For us, 2016 marks the start of a new era of innovation for the Mercury Prize, as we begin a dynamic new partnership with Hyundai. We are particularly excited about the evolution of the judging process, including the introduction of a diverse new panel and a fan poll. The changes will enable music fans to play a part in the process for the first time, whilst ensuring that the Prize maintains its reputation for celebrating the best British and Irish albums, based solely on artistic merit."