Ed Sheeran and Sam Smith triumph at the 2015 Brit Awards
Ed Sheeran and Sam Smith were the big winners at tonight's (February 25th) Brit Awards.
In the heated battle between Ed Sheeran, Sam Smith and George Ezra, both Sheeran and Smith walked away from the ceremony at the O2 Arena in London triumphant with two Brit Awards each. Sheeran won the awards for Best British Solo Artist and Best Album for X, while Smith won Best British Breakthrough Act and the award for Global Success.
Paloma Faith took home the award for Best British Female Solo Artist, beating off the threat of Ella Henderson, Jessie Ware, FKA Twigs and Lily Allen in the process, while Royal Blood grabbed the prize for Best British Group ahead of Alt-J, Clean Bandit, Coldplay and One Direction.
In the other categories, Taylor Swift, who started the show with a stunning performance of 'Blank Space', saw off competition from Beyonce, Lana Del Rey, Sia and St Vincent to win Best International Female, while in the male category, Pharrell Williams took home the award ahead of Hozier, Beck, Jack White and John Legend.
Foo Fighters picked up the award for Best International Group, a category which also included 5 Seconds Of Summer, The Black Keys, First Aid Kit and The War On Drugs, while James Bay picked up the Critics' Choice Award and Mark Ronson won the award for Best British Single for his mega hit 'Uptown Funk'.
The winner of British Artist Video Of The Year was decided on the night by a vote live on social media and saw One Direction triumph with their video for 'You And I', holding off competition from Calvin Harris, Charli XCX, Duke Dumont, Ed Sheeran, Mark Ronson, One Direction, Rita Ora, Route 94, Sam Smith and Sigma in the process.
There were a number of stand-out performances on the night, including Sam Smith who performed a reworked version of his early single 'Lay Me Down', Royal Blood, who smashed through 'Figure It Out', George Ezra, who performed 'Budapest', Take That, who brought fire and lights with 'Let in the Sun', Ed Sheeran, who performed a stripped down rendition of 'Bloodstream' and Kanye West, who aired new track 'All Day' accompanied by a huge crowd onstage and some huge flame throwers.
Madonna closed the show with a stunning performance of her new single 'Living For Love', complete with a spectacular stage show.
The full list of winners at the 2015 Brit Awards was as follows:
Best British Male Solo Artist
Damon Albarn
Ed Sheeran - Winner
George Ezra
Paolo Nutini
Sam Smith
Best British Female Solo Artist
Ella Henderson
FKA Twigs
Jessie Ware
Lily Allen
Paloma Faith - Winner
Best British Group
Alt-J
Clean Bandit
Coldplay
One Direction
Royal Blood - Winner
Best British Breakthrough Act
Chvrches
FKA Twigs
George Ezra
Royal Blood
Sam Smith - Winner
Best British Single
Calvin Harris - 'Summer'
Clean Bandit feat. Jess Glynne - 'Rather Be'
Duke Dumont feat. Jax Jones - 'I Got U'
Ed Sheeran - 'Thinking Out Loud'
Ella Henderson - 'Ghost'
George Ezra - 'Budapest'
Mark Ronson feat. Bruno Mars - 'Uptown Funk' - Winner
Route 94 feat. Jess Glynne - 'My Love'
Sam Smith - 'Stay With Me'
Sigma - 'Nobody To Love'
Best British Album Of The Year
Alt-J - This Is All Yours
Ed Sheeran - X - Winner
George Ezra - Wanted On Voyage
Royal Blood - Royal Blood
Sam Smith - In The Lonely Hour
British Producer Of The Year
Alison Goldfrapp & Will Gregory
Flood
Jake Gosling
Paul Epworth - Winner
British Artist Video Of The Year
Calvin Harris - 'Summer'
Charli XCX - 'Boom Clap'
Duke Dumont feat. Jax Jones - 'I Got U'
Ed Sheeran - 'Thinking Out Loud'
Mark Ronson feat. Bruno Mars - 'Uptown Funk'
One Direction - 'You And I' - Winner
Rita Ora - 'I Will Never Let You Down'
Route 94 feat. Jess Glynne - 'My Love'
Sam Smith - 'Stay With Me'
Sigma - 'Nobody To Love'
Brits Global Success Award
Sam Smith - Winner
Best International Male Solo Artist
Beck
Hozier
Jack White
John Legend
Pharrell Williams - Winner
Best International Female Solo Artist
Beyonce
Lana Del Rey
Sia
St Vincent
Taylor Swift - Winner
Best International Group
5 Seconds Of Summer
The Black Keys
Foo Fighters - Winner
First Aid Kit
The War On Drugs
Critic's Choice Award
James Bay - Winner
George The Poet
Years & Years
You can check out albums and tracks from all the winners and nominees here in our digital store and in hmv stores across the UK.