Odds on Galway troubadour Dove Ellis scooping a prize at Thursday night’s prestigious 2026 Mercury Music awards have been halved after he was selected to play on stage for the televised ceremony.
The native of Na Tuairíní , outside Galway city off the Moycullen Road, has his 2025 debut album Blizzard shortlisted for the Album of the Year category. Odds on him winning were reduced from 20-1 to 10-1 this week.
Blizzard has received glowing reviews internationally, and Dove Ellis’ style has been compared with Jeff Buckley, Bon Iver and early Thom Yorke. His genre-blending style mixes next-Gen indie folk, with rock-infused gothic emotion and ambient yet precise instrumentation.
Dove Ellis, aka Tom O’Donoghue, is selected to take to the stage at tonight’s televised awards ceremony in Newcastle, England, alongside top stars Florence & The Machine, RAYE, Olivia Dean, and Paul McCartney. Each performer will play one song at the Utilita Arena from their nominated album.
The event will conclude with the announcement of the overall Mercury Prize winner, considered one of the most influential music industry gongs in Britain and Ireland as it is not constrained to mainstream pop, and is often the springboard for breakout artists.
Hosted by Lauren Laverne, the Mercurys will be broadcast live on TV on BBC Four from 9.30pm tonight, Thursday, October 22. This channel is available to Sky and Virgin subscribers in Ireland. It will also air on BBC Radio 6 Music from 7pm, and online on the BBC iPlayer.
Last week, a single from Dove Ellis’ Blizzard album, ‘Heaven Has No Wings’, was nominated for the Best Traditional Folk Track category at the 2026 RTÉ Radio Folk Awards set to take place in Dublin next month.
