2000. Badly Drawn Boy, 'The Hour of Bewilderbeast'
Who was he? Damon Gough, indie singer-songwriter, who used Mancunian group Doves as his backing band at one point. Perhaps best known for that 'About a Boy' soundtrack, Gough's debut '...Bewilderbeast' was over an hour long and packed with sweet alternative folk tunes.
Was it an entirely outrageous choice? It wasn't a particularly brilliant year of nominees, but Gough was the favourite. Despite this, he declared that he wasn't expecting a good thing to happen to a good person, and threw his prize money on the floor. Maybe Coldplay's career would've been different had their debut 'Parachutes' scooped the prize, though.
What has he done since? The 'About A Boy' soundtrack almost parodied Badly Drawn Boy, but he's gone on to release a fair few albums since. None have had quite the same fanfare as the debut, unsurprisingly.