Award ceremony gaffes: When gongs go wrong

Jordan Horowitz, producer of 'La La Land,' shows the envelope revealing 'Moonlight'. Credit: Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP

The 2017 Oscars will be remembered by many as the year the best picture award was handed to the wrong film amid an extraordinary mix-up at cinema's biggest awards night.

Organisers were forced to halt the producers of La La Land midway through their victory speech to admit that presenters Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway had announced the wrong winner after being handed an incorrect card.

Instead, the award went to Moonlight.

However, it is unlikely to be the last cringe-inducing fiasco at an awards ceremony, and past events indicate it certainly was not the first and maybe not even the worst.

  • Living artist remembered in 'memoriam' segment

Noted filmmaker Jan Chapman was wrongly pictured in the 'memoriam' segment. Credit: ABC/Oscars

As if handing over the Best Picture to the wrong film wasn't enough, this year's awards also included a living filmmaker being accidentally pictured in the annual 'In memoriam' tribute to talent who passed away in the last year.

Among those remembered was Australian costume designer and four-time Oscars nominee Janet Patterson - but organisers instead used a photo of her friend and colleague Jan Chapman instead.

Ms Chapman, a noted filmmaker, said she was "devastated" at the error, adding: “I am alive and well and an active producer.”

  • Mobo Awards give prize to the wrong artist

Wstrn were wrongly given the award for best song, before it had to be re-called and given to someone else. Credit: PA

The wrong envelope was similarly the culprit of a major glitch at the Mobo Awards in November 2016 when London trio Wstrn were announced as winners of the best song award.

Yet unlike the team behind La La Land who were told of the issue while still onstage, Wstrn kept their gong for an hour before the mistake was realised.

Host Rickie Haywood-Williams was forced to admit the mistake and the band handed the "crazy" career highlight to the rightful winner, MC Abra Cadabra.

  • Blunder sees wrong Miss Universe crowned

Former Miss Universe Paulina Vega (centre), removes the crown from Miss Colombia Ariadna Gutierrez (left), before giving it to Miss Philippines Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach. Credit: AP

A wrongly announced Miss Universe had to give back her coveted sash, crown and flowers after the show's host read the results wrongly, confusing first and second place.

Colombia's Ariadna Gutierrez Arevalo was already wearing the crown and accepting the accolades as the Miss Universe winner in December 2015 when host Steve Harvey interrupted proceedings to apologise for his huge error.

Harvey said it was his mistake and took responsibility for not reading the card correctly, wrongly giving the title to Ms Arevalo instead of its rightful owner, the Philippines' Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach.

As well as the crown, former Miss Universe Paulina Vega (center), takes away the flowers and sash from Miss Colombia Ariadna Gutierrez (left), before giving it to Miss Philippines, Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach. Credit: AP

  • Kanye West thinks Beyoncé's video was better than Taylor Swift's

Kanye West felt Beyoncé deserved the award more than Taylor Swift. Credit: AP

The correct envelopes were opened and the cards were read perfectly, but still Kanye West felt something had gone wrong when Taylor Swift won best female video for her song You Belong With Me at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards.

West instead felt Beyoncé's Single Ladies should have triumphed, and so climbed up on stage as Swift delivered her acceptance speech, to let the world know.

As a mortified Beyoncé looked on from the audience, West gave a speech of his own: "Yo Taylor, I'm really happy for you, I'll let you finish, but Beyoncé has one of the best videos of all time. One of the best videos of all time!"

West was promptly escorted from the building, but his speech meant Swift had no time to deliver hers.

  • Olly Murs mistakenly tells X Factor contestant they are out

Olly Murs pre-empted the end of voting on the X Factor. Credit: PA

During the year that Dermot O'Leary wasn't the host of the X Factor, his shoes were filled by former-contestant Olly Murs whomistakenly told contestant Monica Michael that she was going home before all the judges had voted on who was to leave the show.

However, after two judges opted for Michael and another two for her rival Anton Stephans, the choice was then made by public vote which had already decided that Michael was leaving.

  • Different winners simultaneously announced

Scooch came 22nd out of 24 countries in the 2007 contest. Credit: PA

The UK's not-so-glittering track record in the Eurovision Song Contest extended to the competition to decide who would represent the country at the event.

In the final "sing off" of Making Your Mind Up - a television programme in which a public vote decided who would represent the UK at Eurovision - hosts Terry Wogan and Fearne Cotton announced different winners at the same time.

While Cotton believed soloist Cyndi had won, Wogan was correct when he announced it was pop-band Scooch.

  • Michael Jackson accepts fictional award

Michael Jackson accepts the 'Artist of the Millennium Award'. Credit: PA

While the wrong award may have been given at the Oscars, Michael Jackson accepted a non-existent gong at the 2002 MTV video music awards.

The show happened to be held on the artist's 44th birthday, and after calling Jackson on to stage to receive a birthday cake, singer Britney Spears told the audience she considered him to be the "artist of the millennium".

The unknowing "King of Pop" then launched into a full acceptance speech, thanking God, his mother, Diana Ross and magician David Blaine, among others.

"When I was a little boy growing up in Indiana if someone told me that one day as a musician I'd be getting the artist of the millennium award, I wouldn't have believed it," he added.