Sam Fender wins 2025 Mercury Prize Album of the Year

16 October 2025, 23:01 | Updated: 16 October 2025, 23:53

Sam Fender wins the 2025 Mercury Prize Albums of the Year award at Newcastle Utilita Arena on 16th October 2025. Picture: Euan Cherry/Getty Images

The Geordie singer-songwriter triumphed at the prestigious award ceremony for his third studio album People Watching while in his home city of Newcastle.

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By Jenny Mensah

Sam Fender has been announced as the overall winner of the 2025 Mercury Prize Album of the Year for People Watching.

The Geordie singer-songwriter's third studio album was awarded the title at a special event, which took place for the first time ever in Newcastle.

Fender beat out stiff competition from the likes of Fontaines D.C.'s Romance album, Pulp's More, CMAT's EURO-COUNTRY and Wolf Alice's The Clearing, to win the prestigious award in his hometown.

Sam Fender wins the 2025 Mercury Prize Album of the Year. Picture: JMEnternational/Getty Images

The judges said of the result: "This year proved that the album remains the format of choice for artists tobest present a body of work. That, however, made our job as judges of the 2025 Mercury Prize forAlbum of the Year is more challenging than ever. All 12 records on the shortlist worked so well on their own terms, ranging from ancient ballads to futuristic electronics. After much discussion, however, we all decided on one album that stood out for its cohesion, character and ambition. It felt like a classic album, which will take pride of place in record collections for years to come. ‘People Watching’ by Sam Fender is both melody-rich and expansive, marrying heartland rock with the realities of everyday life and the importance of community. These are thoughtful songs with broad appeal, as cinematic as they are intimate, making ‘People Watching’ a worthy winner of the 2025 Mercury Prize for Album of the Year."

Sam Fender joins last year's winner English Teacher and likes of Little Simz, Wolf Alice, Arlo Parks, Arctic Monkeys, Gomez, Pulp and PJ Harvey to be given the award, which celebrates the best British and Irish albums of the year.

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