Eurovision winner Loreen on the 'vibe' in Liverpool and her advice to UK entry Mae Muller

Credit: ITV News

Eurovision winner Loreen had just two hours sleep before sitting down for an interview with ITV News Arts Editor Nina Nannar for a special edition of Unscripted.

The Swedish singer smashed records on Saturday night after taking home the trophy for a second time (the first woman ever to do so) in front of an average TV audience of 9.9 million - the biggest of any Eurovision grand final ever.

But what was she doing for the rest of the night? Well, she insists: "I'm not a party chick! I'm more of an afternoon tea, maybe a glass of wine.

"There was a press conference and then after that we came to the hotel and I had to meet the people I work with. I had to gather them and tell them how much I love them. It's not just me working on this - it's a lot of people and they deserve love".


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The singer was also full of love for host city Liverpool.

"The vibe in Liverpool, I've never seen anything like it. We were driving across the city and people were shining, they were having fun, the streets were bubbling," she told ITV News.

"In the arena, it was beautiful - the crowd was wild".

But, as last year's UK entry Sam Ryder put it, this year's Eurovision was very much Ukraine's party after Kalush Orchestra won for the country last year.

"It's so beautiful how this community supports Ukraine through creativity. I think they did an amazing job".

Mae Muller, the UK's entry this year, came in second to last.

To her, Loreen said: "Oh Mae, you're amazing. The competition is there, but you can't really judge music like that - people have different tastes. There's no winning and losing in creativity, everything's going to be ok".

So what next for the winner?

"Off to Sweden for a couple of days off! Hugging a tree! But then there's a Europe tour and I'm excited because we're going to create a lot of music".

Unscripted is ITV News' arts and entertainment podcast, brought to you by ITV News Arts Editor Nina Nannar. In each episode, Nina speaks to a leading name from the world of arts and entertainment.

Her guests talk about their life and work, plus Nina asks them where they see themselves in five years.