– Nominees include Danny Dyer, Mark Rylance, Jessica Gunning, Lennie James, Ambika Mod, Toby Jones and Eddie Redmayne while the finales of Inside No 9 and Gavin & Stacey, Wolf Hall, Mr Bates vs The Post Office, Rivals and Baby Reindeer go head-to-head –
– The Categories include Best Drama Series, Documentary Series, Comedy, Entertainment, Podcast, Writer, Acting, and BPG Breakthrough Award –
– Broadcasting Press Guild’s BPG Awards Return for 51st Edition –
FULL NOMINATIONS LIST IS IN NOTES TO EDITORS
25 February 2025: The Broadcasting Press Guild (BPG) proudly announces the nominations for its prestigious annual BPG Awards, celebrating the very best in British Television, Streaming and Audio.
This year’s shortlist reflects a compelling mix of gripping dramas, thought-provoking documentaries, groundbreaking comedy, and innovative entertainment. From the real-life scandal of Mr Bates vs The Post Office to the dark obsession of Baby Reindeer, the revelatory insights of On Thin Ice: Putin v Greenpeace, and the emotional depth of The Piano, the nominees showcase the power of storytelling in all its forms. With standout performances from acclaimed actors and emerging talents alike, the BPG Awards continue to highlight excellence and originality in the last year of Television, Streaming and Audio. The winners will be presented with their awards at an exclusive ceremony on Thursday 20th March in London.
The huge real-world impact of Mr Bates vs The Post Office means ITV’s hit drama leads the way in this year’s Broadcasting Press Guild Awards – with nominations for Best Drama Series, Best Actress for Monica Dolan, Best Actor for Toby Jones and Best Writer for Gwyneth Hughes. Meanwhile, Wolf Hall, Baby Reindeer, Rivals and Gavin & Stacey are all acknowledged three times by the BPG’s members.
The BPG’s two drama categories are once again among the most hotly contested. Rivals (Disney+), The Day of the Jackal (Peacock / Sky Atlantic) and Baby Reindeer (Netflix) are joined on the Best Drama Series (4+ episodes) shortlist by the mesmerising final series of Wolf Hall (BBC1) and ITV1’s outstanding Mr Bates vs The Post Office – the first time the streaming giants have outnumbered terrestrial shows in this category.
The breadth of British drama, across the full range of streamers and channels, is also reflected in the Single Drama or Mini-Series (1-3 episodes) category. There’s a right royal rumble as two shows depicting the Newsnight interview between Emily Maitlis and Prince Andrew – Scoop (Netflix) and A Very Royal Scandal (Prime) – go head-to-head, with Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl (BBC1/Netflix) and ITV1’s Covid drama Breathtaking offering contrasting alternative nominees.
It was also an outstanding year for documentaries. Michael Palin: Into Nigeria (C5) and Netflix’s miners’ strike film Strike: The Uncivil War, joined by two BBC2 docs – Surviving Oct 7th: We Will Dance Again and Boybands Forever – that show the range of output on the channel. There was a BBC clean sweep in the Best Documentary Series category – with Asia, Freddie Flintoff: Field of Dreams on Tour and Mammals (BBC1) plus On Thin Ice: Putin v Greenpeace (BBC2) winning BPG members’ votes.
BPG members remain faithful to last year’s winner The Traitors (BBC1), as it receives its second successive nomination alongside The Piano (Channel 4) in the Best Entertainment category. Clarkson’s Farm (Prime) and four-time BPG Award-winner Mortimer and Whitehouse: Gone Fishing (BBC2) complete a competitive category.
A strong year for drama on Netflix is recognised in the Best Actress category with Jessica Gunning, whose star-making performance in Baby Reindeer won worldwide acclaim and Ambika Mod’s starring role in One Day making the shortlist alongside Katherine Parkinson for her brilliance in Disney+’s Rivals. Monica Dolan showcased her range in contrasting roles in BBC1’s Sherwood and Mr Bates vs the Post Office on ITV, while Anna Maxwell Martin did likewise in BBC1 hit Ludwig, ITV’s haunting true-life drama Until I Kill You and Gavin and Stacey: The Finale.
A strong Best Actor category features Danny Dyer’s nuanced and powerful performance in Rivals (Disney+) alongside Mark Rylance reprising arguably his greatest role as Thomas Cromwell in Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light (BBC1), plus Lennie James’s affecting and important starring role in Mr Loverman (BBC1), Toby Jones’s heroic depiction of Alan Bates in Mr Bates vs The Post Office (ITV) and Eddie Redmayne’s barnstorming return to television in Peacock/Sky Atlantic’s The Day of the Jackal.
Inside No 9 (BBC2) has been a regular contender for BPG Best Comedy (this time for its incredible final series) and this year takes on another classic that is coming to an end, BBC1’s ratings-buster Gavin and Stacey: The Finale. Ghosts (BBC1) for its final series; superhero show The Franchise (HBO/Sky) and BBC Three’s brilliant Boarders complete a strong category.
In the Best Writer category, Sophie Willan, whose series Alma’s Not Normal won Best Comedy in 2022, is nominated for its outstanding second series, while Joe Barton (Black Doves, Netflix), Richard Gadd (Baby Reindeer, Netflix), Gwyneth Hughes (Mr Bates vs The Post Office, ITV1) and Peter Straughan (Wolf Hall, BBC1) also did well with BPG members.
Every year two TV awards are given out by the BPG Executive Committee. The annual BPG Breakthrough Talent Award features outstanding young acting stars Levi Brown (This Town) and Bella Maclean (Rivals) alongside writer-actors Kyla Harris (We Might Regret This), Michelle de Swarte (Spent) and Richard Gadd (Baby Reindeer), while the BPG Emerging Creators Award nominees for 2025 are inspirational social media science creator Big Manny and influencer and podcaster Ash Holme, who also fronted ITV1’s series Ash Holme: What Not To Do With Dad last year.
In the Audio Awards five women are in contention in the Best Radio Presenter category, Sara Cox (Drive-Time Show, BBC Radio 2), Paula Harriott (The Secret Life of Prisons, Prison Radio Association), Ellen E Jones (Screenshot, BBC Radio 4), Jenny Kleeman (The GiS, BBC Radio 4), Kate Molleson (Composer of the Week, BBC Radio 3; live BBC Radio 3 concerts; Front Row, Radio 4).
Four of the five nominations in the UK Podcast of the Year category have taken a dark turn covering some of the murkier subjects of society from the depths of the darknet in Wondery’s Kill List, the mysterious world of spies and espionage with The Rest is Classified (David McCloskey, Gordon Corera, Goalhanger), into the dramatic hunt for one of Europe’s most-wanted people smugglers in To Catch a Scorpion (BBC Sounds), and a new adaptation of dystopian novel 1984 (Audible) as a new podcast series with Cynthia Erivo and Andrew Garfield. On a lighter side, How to Write a Book (Sara Collins, Sharmaine Lovegrove and Nelle Andrew, Daylight Productions) gives budding writers how-to tips, examples, and inspiration.
BBC leads the way in the Best Radio Programme, dominating the category with The Ballad of Scout and the Alcohol Tag (BBC Radio 4), Short Cuts (BBC Radio 4), Sport’s Strangest Crimes: Confessions of a Match Fixer (BBC Radio 5 Live) and Three Million (BBC Radio 4) all in the mix.
The BPG Awards 2025 full nominations are listed below.
BPG Chair Manori Ravindran said: “Celebrating the bold, the brilliant, and the unforgettable, the 2025 BPG Awards nominations highlight the power of storytelling across television, streaming, and audio. Coveted by the industry, these awards stand apart as they are chosen independently by the experts who cover TV and audio for a living—the critics, correspondents, and writers of the UK media. We’re delighted to bring back the BPG Awards as a newly imagined evening event this year and look forward to toasting the bright lights of the industry on March 20.”
The Harvey Lee Award and other Special Awards will be announced in the coming weeks.
The Broadcasting Press Guild marked its 50th anniversary last year. The Guild began in 1974 and continues to bring together the best TV and audio writers, industry correspondents, critics and previewers. The BPG Television, Streaming & Audio Awards are for work commissioned or produced in the UK and screened in 2024. These prizes are highly valued by programme-makers because they are chosen independently by the BPG’s expert members.
The BPG Awards are made possible with thanks to the 2025 sponsors: Warner Bros. Discovery, BBC Studios, Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Pact.
X (formerly Twitter): @BPGPressGuild #BPGAwards
Instagram: @bpgpressguild
LinkedIn: Broadcasting Press Guild
– ENDS –
THE BPG AWARDS 2025 NOMINATIONS IN FULL ARE:
BEST SINGLE DRAMA / MINI-SERIES
- Breathtaking (ITV1)
- Scoop (Netflix)
- A Very Royal Scandal (Prime Video)
- Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl (BBC1, Netflix)
BEST DRAMA SERIES
- Baby Reindeer (Netflix)
- The Day of the Jackal (Peacock/Sky Atlantic)
- Mr Bates vs The Post Office (ITV1)
- Rivals (Disney+)
- Wolf Hall (BBC1)
BEST SINGLE DOC / MINI-SERIES
- Boybands Forever (BBC2)
- Michael Palin: Into Nigeria (C5)
- Strike: The Uncivil War (Netflix)
- Surviving Oct 7th: We Will Dance Again (BB2)
BEST DOC SERIES
- Asia (BBC1)
- Freddie Flintoff: Field of Dreams on Tour (BBC1)
- Mammals (BBC1)
- On Thin Ice: Putin v Greenpeace (BBC2)
BEST COMEDY
- Boarders (BBC Three)
- The Franchise (HBO/Sky)
- Gavin and Stacey: The Finale (BBC1)
- Inside No 9 (BBC2)
BEST ENTERTAINMENT
- Clarkson’s Farm (Prime Video)
- Mortimer and Whitehouse: Gone Fishing (BBC2)
- The Piano series 2 (C4)
- The Traitors series 2 (BBC1)
BEST WRITER
- Joe Barton (Black Doves, Netflix)
- Richard Gadd (Baby Reindeer, Netflix)
- Gwyneth Hughes (Mr Bates vs The Post Office, ITV1)
- Peter Straughan (Wolf Hall, BBC1)
- Sophie Willan (Alma’s Not Normal, BBC2)
BEST ACTRESS
- Monica Dolan (A Ghost Story for Christmas, Sherwood, BBC; Mr Bates vs the Post Office, ITV) • Jessica Gunning (Baby Reindeer, Netflix)
- Anna Maxwell Martin (Gavin and Stacey: The Finale, BBC; Ludwig, BBC; Until I Kill You – ITV) • Ambika Mod (One Day, Netflix)
- Katherine Parkinson (Rivals, Disney+)
BEST ACTOR
- Danny Dyer (Rivals, Disney+)
- Lennie James (Mr Loverman, BBC1)
- Toby Jones (Mr Bates vs the Post Office, ITV)
- Eddie Redmayne (The Day of the Jackal, Peacock/Sky Atlantic)
- Mark Rylance (Wolf Hall, BBC1)
SPECIAL AWARDS
BPG BREAKTHROUGH AWARD
- Levi Brown (This Town)
- Richard Gadd (Baby Reindeer)
- Kyla Harris (We Might Regret This)
- Bella Maclean (Rivals)
- Michelle de Swarte (Spent)
BPG EMERGING CREATOR AWARD
- Ash Holme
- Big Manny
AUDIO AWARDS
BEST RADIO PRESENTER
- Sara Cox for Drive-time show (BBC Radio 2)
- Paula Harriott for The Secret Life of Prisons (Prison Radio Association)
- Ellen E Jones for Screenshot (BBC Radio 4)
- Jenny Kleeman for The GiW (BBC Radio 4)
- Kate Molleson for Composer of the Week (Radio 3), live Radio 3 concerts, Front Row (BBC Radio 4)
BEST PODCAST
- How to Write a Book (Sara Collins, Sharmaine Lovegrove and Nelle Andrew, Daylight Productions)
- Kill List (Wondery/Novel)
- The Rest is Classified (David McCloskey and Gordon Corera, Goalhanger)
- To Catch a Scorpion (BBC Sounds)
- 1984 (Audible)
BEST RADIO PROGRAMME
- The Ballad of Scout and the Alcohol Tag (BBC Radio 4)
- Short Cuts (BBC Radio 4)
- Sport’s Strangest Crimes: Confessions of a Match Fixer (BBC Radio 5 Live)
- Three Million (BBC Radio 4)
For further information and media accreditation please contact:
Number Nine PR
Charlie Wainwright
charlie@numberninepr.com
Esther Beaumont
estherbeaumont50@gmail.com
Notes to Editors:
- The winners of the TV and Streaming Awards listed will be announced at the 50th BPG Awards lunch on Thursday March 20 2025 at The Everyman Broadgate on Finsbury Avenue in the City of London. The Harvey Lee Award for outstanding contribution to broadcasting and two BPG Jury Prizes will be presented at the same time.
- The BPG Television, Streaming and Audio Awards are presented for work commissioned or premiered in the UK and screened in 2024. Programmes which were first streamed online are nominated and voted for alongside broadcast channel commissions originating in the UK.
- The Broadcasting Press Guild was founded in 1974 and has more than 110 members. They are journalists who specialise in covering television, streaming, radio podcasts and the media, and include critics, previewers, media correspondents and feature writers from national newspapers, broadcasters and leading trade journals and online publishers.
- Programme winners in the past in entertainment, comedy, documentary and drama include some of the most renowned and significant shows in UK television history and range from Life On Earth, The Up Series, Shameless, The Jewel In The Crown and The Thick Of It to Downton Abbey, Once Upon A Time in Northern Ireland, Ghosts, The Crown, Fleabag, Happy Valley, Dispatches: Russell Brand – In Plain Sight and Have I Got News For You.
- Past BPG Best Actress winners include Glenda Jackson, Eileen Atkins, Helen Mirren, Peggy Ashcrod, Gillian Anderson, Vanessa Redgrave, Diana Rigg, Zoe Wanamaker, Julie Walters, Olivia Colman, Keeley Hawes, Sheridan Smith, Juliet Stevenson, Claire Foy, Jodie Comer and Sarah Lancashire.
- Past BPG Best Actor winners include Mark Rylance, Kenneth Branagh, Hugh Grant, Colin Firth, Alec Guinness, Albert Finney, Charles Dance, Robert Hardy, Jim Broadbent, Benedict Cumberbatch, Toby Jones, Stephen Graham, Ben Whishaw, Dominic West and Gary Oldman (see more details and photos at http://www.broadcastingpressguild.org/).
- Previous winners of the BPG Radio/Audio Broadcaster award include Aasmah Mir, Clara Amfo, Alistair Cooke, Sir Terry Wogan, Sue Lawley, Samira Ahmed, James O’Brien, Jane Garvey, Emma Barnett, Nick Ferrari, Eddie Mair, Lauren Laverne, Jonathan Ross, Evan Davis, Simon Mayo, Kirsty Young, Brian Redhead, Sir Mark Tully, Sandy Toksvig, John Finnemore, Michael Buerk and Susannah Simons.
- Supporting the Awards, the BPG Awards 2025 Sponsors are: Warner Bros. Discovery, BBC Studios, Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Pact.
o Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) is a leading global media and entertainment company that creates and distributes the world’s most differentiated and complete portfolio of content and brands across television, film and streaming. Available in more than 220 countries and territories and 50 languages, Warner Bros. Discovery inspires, informs and entertains audiences worldwide through its iconic brands and products including: Discovery Channel, discovery+, CNN, DC, HBO, Max, HGTV, Food Network, Investigation Discovery, TLC, Travel Channel, MotorTrend, Animal Planet, Science Channel, Warner Bros. Film Group, Warner Bros. Television Group, Warner Bros. Games, New Line Cinema, Cartoon Network, and others.
o BBC Studios is the main commercial arm of BBC Commercial Ltd and generated revenues of £1.8 billion in the last year and profits of over £200 million for a third consecutive year. Able to take an idea seamlessly from thought to screen and beyond, the business is built on two operating areas: the Content Studio, which produces, invests and distributes TV and audio globally and Media & Streaming, with BBC branded channels, services including UKTV, bbc.com and BritBox International and joint ventures in the UK and internationally. The business made more than 2,800 hours of award-winning British programmes last year for a wide range of UK and global broadcasters and platforms. Its content is internationally recognised across a broad range of genres and specialisms and includes world-famous brands like Strictly Come Dancing/Dancing with the Stars, the Planet series, Bluey and Doctor Who.
o Netflix is one of the world’s leading entertainment services, with 300 million paid memberships in over 190 countries enjoying TV series, films, and games across a wide variety of genres and languages. Members can play, pause and resume watching, as much as they want, anytime, anywhere, and can change their plans at any time.
o Prime Video is a first-stop entertainment destination offering customers a vast collection of premium programming in one app available across thousands of devices. On Prime Video, customers can customize their viewing experience and find their favourite movies, series, documentaries, and live sports – including Amazon MGM Studios-produced series and movies Red One, Road House, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, Fallout, Reacher, The Boys, Cross, and The Idea of You; UK produced Originals such as Clarkson’s Farm, The Rig, The Devil’s Hour, The Grand Tour and 007: Road To A Million, licensed fan favourites Nine Perfect Strangers and The Continental: From The World of John Wick; exclusive entertainment such as UEFA Champions League; and programming from partners such as Apple TV+, hayu, Paramount +, discovery+ Premium (incl. TNT Sport) and Crunchyroll via Prime Video add-on subscriptions, as well as more than 700 free ad-supported (FAST) Channels globally. Prime Video is one benefit among many that provides savings, convenience, and entertainment as part of the Prime membership. All customers, regardless of whether they have a Prime membership or not, can rent or buy titles via the Prime Video Store, and can enjoy even more content for free with ads. Customers can also go behind the scenes of their favourite movies and series with exclusive X-Ray access. For more info visit www.amazon.co.uk/primevideo.
o Pact is the UK screen sector trade body for independent production and distribution companies. Our mission is to help make the UK’s independent production sector the most successful in the world. Since 1991, our work has helped transform the sector from a cottage industry into a British success story which employs thousands of people and is worth billions to the UK economy.
