Sir Tom Stoppard, Benedict Cumberbatch, Rebecca Hall, Sienna Miller, Ben Whishaw, Clare Balding and Grayson Perry are among those shortlisted for top honours in the 39th annual Broadcasting Press Guild Awards, to be presented next month at a lunch in central London.
The BBC2 drama Parade’s End – starring Cumberbatch and Hall and written by Stoppard – leads the way with five nominations, including best drama series.
Roger Allam is nominated alongside Cumberbatch as best actor for his role in Parade’s End and The Thick of It. They are up against Peter Capaldi (The Thick of It and The Hour) and Ben Whishaw (The Hollow Crown: Richard II and The Hour).
Rebecca Hall is nominated as best actress with Sienna Miller (The Girl), Anna Chancellor (Pramface, The Hour), Olivia Colman (Accused, Twenty Twelve) and Maxine Peake (Silk, Room at the Top).
Parade’s End will compete for the best drama series award against Last Tango in Halifax, Line of Duty and Sherlock. And Sir Tom Stoppard is nominated for the Writer’s Award alongside John Morton (Twenty Twelve), Sally Wainwright (Last Tango in Halifax, Scott & Bailey) and Steven Moffat (Doctor Who, Sherlock).
The BPG awards are highly prized by programme-makers because they are selected independently by journalists who write about TV and radio – correspondents, critics and previewers. The awards lunch will be attended by the winners, BPG members and leading broadcasting executives.
The BPG awards are sponsored by Discovery Channel, which champions intelligent entertainment. Discovery Networks UK has 12 channel brands in the UK covering factual, lifestyle and entertainment programming: www.discoveryuk.com
The ITV documentary which exposed a nationwide paedophile scandal leads the nominations for best single documentary: Exposure: The Other Side of Jimmy Savile. It will compete with Arena: Jonathan Miller; London: The Modern Babylon; and Storyville: Fire in Babylon.
Grayson Perry: All in the Best Possible Taste is nominated for best documentary series, alongside Inside Claridge’s; Meet the Romans with Mary Beard; Putin, Russia and The West; and The Secret History of our Streets.
In the best comedy/entertainment category, Fresh Meat is up against Twenty Twelve and The Thick of It. Two cookery series, Great British Bake Off and Masterchef: The Professionals will compete for the best factual entertainment award against Who Do You Think You Are? and Paul O’Grady: For the Love of Dogs.
The Multichannel Award will be contested by Dynamo: Magician Impossible, Hunderby, Moone Boy and Stella.
The Breakthrough Award – for someone who attained a new level of success in 2012 – will be between Clare Balding (Olympics and Paralympics), Adam Hills (The Last Leg – Paralympics) and Jack Whitehall (Fresh Meat and Bad Education).
The shortlists for Radio Broadcaster of the Year and Radio Programme of the Year will be announced in a week’s time.
Notes to editors:
1. The winners will be announced at the BPG Awards lunch in the beautiful Gladstone Library at One Whitehall Place on Thursday March 14th 2013. The Innovation Award and the Harvey Lee Award for outstanding contribution to broadcasting, which are in the gift of the BPG committee, will be presented as well. Winners will be informed in advance and places at the lunch are by invitation only.
2. The Broadcasting Press Guild was founded in 1974 and has more than a hundred members. They are journalists who specialise in covering television, radio and the media, and include critics, previewers, media correspondents and feature writers from national newspapers, broadcasters and leading trade journals and websites.
3. Previous BPG Best Actress winners include Dame Eileen Atkins, Dame Helen Mirren, Gillian Anderson, Vanessa Redgrave, Maxine Peake, Anne-Marie Duff, Dame Diana Rigg, Zoe Wanamaker, Gina McKee, Julie Walters, Olivia Colman and Juliet Stevenson.
4. The Best Actor award has gone to Kenneth Branagh, Colin Firth, Sir Alec Guinness, Albert Finney, Charles Dance, Robert Hardy, Jim Broadbent, Christopher Ecclestone, Benedict Cumberbatch and Dominic West among others (see details and photos at http://www.broadcastingpressguild.org/.)
Further information from Torin Douglas, BPG, 07860 422992
The full list of TV nominations is:
Best Single Drama
Best Possible Taste: the Kenny Everett Story (BBC Four)
The Hollow Crown: Richard II (BBC Two)
Loving Miss Hatto (BBC One)
Murder (BBC Two)
Best Drama Series
Last Tango in Halifax (BBC One)
Line of Duty (BBC Two)
Parade’s End (BBC Two)
Sherlock (BBC One)
Best Single Documentary
Arena: Jonathan Miller (BBC Two)
Exposure: The Other Side of Jimmy Savile (ITV1)
London: The Modern Babylon (BBC Two)
Storyville: Fire in Babylon (BBC Four)
Best Documentary Series
Grayson Perry: All in the Best Possible Taste (Channel 4)
Inside Claridge’s (BBC Two)
Meet the Romans with Mary Beard (BBC Two)
Putin, Russia and The West (BBC Two)
Secret History of Our Streets (BBC Two)
Best Entertainment/Comedy
Fresh Meat (Channel 4)
Twenty Twelve (BBC Two)
The Thick of It (BBC Two)
Best Multichannel
Dynamo: Magician Impossible (UKTV/Watch)
Hunderby (Sky Atlantic)
Moone Boy (Sky1)
Stella (Sky1)
Best Factual Entertainment
Great British Bake Off (BBC Two)
MasterChef: The Professionals (BBC Two)
Who Do You Think You Are? (BBC One)
Paul O’Grady: for the Love of Dogs (ITV1)
Best Actor
Roger Allam (Parade’s End, The Thick of It)
Peter Capaldi (The Thick of It, The Hour)
Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock, Parade’s End)
Ben Whishaw (The Hollow Crown: Richard II, The Hour)
Best Actress
Anna Chancellor (Pramface, The Hour)
Olivia Colman (Accused, Twenty Twelve)
Rebecca Hall (Parade’s End)
Sienna Miller (The Girl)
Maxine Peake (Silk, Room at the Top)
BPG Writer’s Award
John Morton (Twenty Twelve)
Sir Tom Stoppard (Parade’s End)
Sally Wainwright (Last Tango; Scott & Bailey)
Steven Moffat (Doctor Who, Sherlock)
BPG Breakthrough Award
Clare Balding, Olympics & Paralympics presenting
Adam Hills, The Last Leg (Paralympics)
Jack Whitehall, Fresh Meat & Bad Education
