Highlights
- Experimental musician Sam Battle, known as Look Mum No Computer, will represent the UK at the Eurovision Song Contest 2026 in Vienna.
- His song Eins, Zwei, Drei blends chant-style hooks, German lyrics and references to traditional English desserts.
- The UK hopes to improve its recent Eurovision record after mixed results since Sam Ryder finished second in 2022.
An unconventional entry for the UK
Experimental musician Sam Battle says he was surprised when the BBC selected his unusual track to represent the UK at the Eurovision Song Contest 2026.
Performing under the name Look Mum No Computer, Battle will take his song Eins, Zwei, Drei to the contest in Vienna this May.
The track is a lively mix of chanting vocals and punchy synthesiser sounds, deliberately steering away from the polished pop style often associated with the UK’s Eurovision entries. Parts of the chorus are sung in German, while the lyrics also mention English desserts such as jam roly poly and custard.
Battle said he initially doubted the song would be chosen. “I thought it wouldn’t be taken seriously because the BBC usually go for something more conventional,” he said. “So they’re taking a bit of a risk.”
A different strategy after recent setbacks
The UK’s Eurovision fortunes have been uneven in recent years. Sam Ryder came second in 2022, but later entrants including Olly Alexander in 2024 and the group Remember Monday in 2025 failed to win any points from the public vote.
Battle says he is approaching the contest with a pragmatic outlook. Instead of focusing on the scoreboard, he plans to perform the song as authentically as possible.
“There’s a lot going on with the voting and maybe the UK isn’t everyone’s favourite,” he said. “So I’ll just be myself and hope people connect with it.”
The performance will be staged by Swedish choreographer Fredrik Rydman, who previously worked with Eurovision winner Nemo.
From DIY synths to the Eurovision stage
Before his solo career, Battle fronted indie band Zibra. In recent years he has built a following online through videos showing his unusual musical inventions.
His projects include synthesisers built from toys such as Game Boys and Furbies, a bicycle that functions as a musical instrument and a keyboard combined with a flame thrower.
He also holds a Guinness World Record for creating the world’s largest drone synthesiser, capable of producing 1,000 tones at once. The instrument is displayed at a museum he runs in Kent, alongside other experimental instruments and a restored century-old church organ.
Battle says his fascination with building instruments stems from a long-standing interest in engineering and design. Recording with machines he has created himself, he added, feels more authentic than relying entirely on digital software.
The idea for Eins, Zwei, Drei reportedly came while he was rearranging furniture to make space for a synthesiser. As he counted “one, two, three” in German while lifting a sofa, the phrase sparked the concept for the song.
Battle later contacted the BBC’s Eurovision team and was eventually shortlisted before being selected as the UK’s entrant earlier this year.
He hopes the song’s playful celebration of European culture will resonate at the contest. “The idea of Eurovision is togetherness,” he said. “That’s the feeling I wanted the song to capture.”
