Jools Holland 'stunned' to learn Beyonce is a fan of his annual Hootenanny

30 December 2023 , 16:24

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Ed Sheeran, Joy Crookes and Jools Holland on the 2021 Hootenanny

Jools Holland’s Hootenanny is enjoying a Renaissance, 31 years after its debut.

The pianist and band leader, who takes over the No Filter column in today's paper, says he was stunned to learn megastar Beyonce watches the show – and even wants in on the New Year’s Eve action.

Jools tells us: “Here’s the thing – you never know who’s watching. Ed Sheeran came on and we did a Van Morrison song, Ragland Road, with Joy Crookes. When he came back on a few years later, he said to me, ‘I went to do an awards show in America with Beyonce and she said she’d seen the show. She said, ‘Let’s do that song I saw you doing with Jools’.’ I couldn’t believe Beyonce was a Hootenanny fan – that she’d seen it. That made me happy, to know it has that kind of reach.”

This year's show will pay tribute to Tina Turner, pictured (AP)

Queen Bey, who this year became the artist with the most Grammys wins in history, would join Hootenanny icons such as Ed, Kylie Minogue and the late Amy Winehouse, who all contributed some of the most spellbinding performances caught on camera.

Yet Jools insists that tonight’s two-hour BBC extravaganza will be the best yet – with appearances from Rod Stewart, Sugababes, Raye, Olivia Dean and soul singer PP Arnold – who will perform a tribute to Beyonce’s idol, the late Tina Turner, who died in May. Jools, who will be joined by his Rhythm & Blues Orchestra, says: “PP Arnold, who had a hit with The First Cut is the Deepest, wanted to do a tribute to Tina because she was her friend and mentor.

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“She’s doing Let’s Stay Together, Tina’s first hit when she returned. Tina was amazing… she’d had such a hard time and then she completely – with willpower and self-belief – changed her life. She lived in a palace in Switzerland, the complete opposite of her horrible life before. And after a husband that wasn’t so agreeable, she found love. How’s that for New Year’s motivation?”

Janine Yaqoob