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Jeremy Paxman to be honoured by TV and audio writers at Broadcasting Press Guild Awards lunch this Friday

March 24, 2023 By James Naylor

Outstanding Contribution to Broadcasting Award announcement for Broadcasting Press Guild Awards lunch

Jeremy Paxman to be honoured by TV and audio writers at Broadcasting Press Guild Awards lunch this Friday

 

Broadcaster, presenter and journalist Jeremy Paxman is to be honoured this week at the 49th annual Broadcasting Press Guild Awards, chosen by journalists who write about television, streaming and audio.

Paxman will receive the BPG’s prestigious Harvey Lee Award for Outstanding Contribution to Broadcasting at the awards lunch at Royal Horseguards Hotel in Whitehall, London on Friday March 24th. The award is sponsored by Warner Bros. Discovery.

The award celebrates Paxman’s 50 years of broadcasting that includes his work on Newsnight, Panorama,Breakfast Time and University Challenge and began with his first job as a graduate trainee at BBC Radio Brighton back in 1972.

From there, Paxman’s remarkable broadcasting career took him to Belfast, where he reported on the conflict in Northern Ireland before moving to London in 1977. Starting on the Tonight programme, he next landed a job on Panorama in 1979 and spent five years reporting from around the world. His next career move was to the Six O’Clock News where he was a newsreader for two years before joining BBC One’s Breakfast Time.

But it was his time as presenter of Newsnight – a job which began in 1989 – that left the biggest mark on British broadcasting. Paxman’s iconic interview with then Home Secretary Michael Howard, in which he asked the same question of the minister 12 times, is one of the most memorable political interviews of all time. But there were many more outstanding moments during 15 years in the job, including much-watched face-offs with politicians including British Prime Ministers Tony Blair and Theresa May; US President George Bush; Italian leader Silvio Berlusconi; and UK party leaders Ed Miliband and Charles Kennedy. His outstanding broadcasting work on General Elections spanned decades. He also asked the tough questions of people in the arts, including David Bowie, Dizzie Rascal and Russell Brand.

For 29 years from 1994, Paxman also presented University Challenge – asking more tough questions. And he returned to radio for four years from 1998, when he presented Start The Week on BBC Radio 4.

Aside from his job as a journalist and presenter, Paxman even appeared as himself in the political comedy The Thick Of It, while his work in the field of documentaries included The Victorians in 2012 and Empire two years later (both series were complemented with books by Paxman). He also presented Britain’s Great War on the 100th anniversary of the start of World War I.

The BPG’s chairman Grant Tucker, said: “As an organisation of journalists, the BPG holds Jeremy Paxman in very high esteem for his broadcasting record which has meant remarkable longevity, a unique authenticity, and a fierce desire to hold some people’s feet to the fire. We loudly applaud Jeremy’s famous interview interrogations of the powerful and his dedication to the journalistic craft, which provides the very best for his viewers, listeners and readers.”

The BPG Television, Streaming and Audio Awards are highly prized by programme-makers because they are selected independently by journalists who write about TV, radio, streaming and podcasts – correspondents, critics and previewers. The awards lunch will be attended by award winners, BPG members, and leading broadcasting executives.

For more information about the Broadcasting Press Guild, including a full list of winners over the past 48 years, and see pictures and videos from previous BPG awards ceremonies at:
http://www.broadcastingpressguild.org/2014/03/25/history-of-the-broadcasting-press-guild

Notes to editors:

  1. The remaining award winners will be announced at the 49th BPG Awards lunch at Royal Horseguards Hotel in Whitehall, London, on Friday March 24th 2023 and simultaneously on Twitter @BPGPress #BPGAwards. Winners have been informed in advance and places at the lunch are by invitation only. A full news release about the winners, embargoed till 2pm on Friday, will be available on our website: www.broadcastingpressguild.org
  2. The BPG Twitter handle for the Awards is #BPGAwards @BPGPressGuild.
  3. The Broadcasting Press Guild was founded in 1974 and has more than 130 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.
  4. Harvey Lee (1950-1991) – after whom the award is named – was the media correspondent for the Daily Telegraph and a leading light in the BPG throughout the 1980s. Previous winners of the BPG’s Harvey Lee Award, for an outstanding contribution to broadcasting, include Sir Lenny Henry, Moira
    Stuart, John Humphrys, Nicholas Parsons, Sir Terry Wogan, Cilla Black, Melvyn Bragg, Andrew Davies, Sir David Frost, Michael Grade, Norma Percy, Biddy Baxter, Edward Barnes, Phil Redmond, Beryl Vertue, Tony Warren, Anne Wood, John Lloyd and Jon Snow. See more details at
    http://www.broadcastingpressguild.org/bpgawards/harvey-lee/
  5. The 49th BPG Awards are supported by Warner Bros. Discovery and Pact. Pact is the UK screen sector trade body representing and supporting independent production and distribution companies.

Further information: Adrian Lobb, BPG: 07986 379 452 or adrianlobb1@gmail.com

Filed Under: Awards 2023, Awards Latest, BPG Latest, Press Releases

BPG Jury Prize Winner of 49th BPG Awards Announced

March 24, 2023 By James Naylor

BBC Local Radio journalists collect special award for their remarkable interviews during the short leadership of ex-Prime Minister Liz Truss

Eight BBC local radio journalists who carried out a series of stunning interviews with Liz Truss during her rollercoaster 42-day stint as Prime Minister have received a special award from the Broadcasting Press Guild.

The BPG – an organisation of TV and audio journalists – has recognised the eight with its prestigious Jury Prize and will deliver the award today at a star-studded luncheon in London. It is the first time, the BPG Jury Prize has been awarded to multiple winners.

The eight journalists being honoured are: Rima Ahmed, BBC Radio Leeds; James Hanson, BBC Radio Bristol; Graham Liver, BBC Radio Lancashire; Anna Cookson, BBC Radio Kent; John Acres, BBC Radio Stoke; Chris Goreham, BBC Radio Norfolk; Sarah Julian, BBC Radio Nottingham; and Amy Oakden, BBC Radio Tees.

BPG Chair Grant Tucker said: “As an organisation of journalists, the BPG is always among the first to see the value of great interviewing and these BBC radio interviews were game-changing for Liz Truss and her doomed government. There is no doubt that the PM’s feet were held to the fire in these eight radio sessions in a way that stood out among so much drama that was happening in British politics last summer.”

The Jury Prize winners are in good company as BPG Award winners because another top prize – the Harvey Lee Award for outstanding contribution to broadcasting – is being presented today to Jeremy Paxman, one of Britain’s finest interviewers of modern times.

“It’s a happy coincidence that some BBC radio journalists and Jeremy will be in the same room together, collecting prizes for the same journalistic talents,” said Tucker.

The 49th BPG Television, Streaming and Audio Awards – for work commissioned or premiered in the UK and released in 2022 – are prized by programme-makers because they are chosen independently by TV and radio correspondents, critics and previewers. This year, Warner Bros. Discovery and PACT are the supporters of the Awards luncheon which takes place today, Friday March 24th 2023, at The Royal Horseguards Hotel in Whitehall, London.

Other BPG Awards to be handed out today include three Audio prizes – Best Audio Presenter, Best Radio Programme and Best Podcast – and television/streaming trophies for Best Actor and Best Actress, Best Drama, Best Comedy, Best Entertainment and Best Documentary.

Further information from Grant Tucker, 07854 247521 or grant@whynow.co.uk

 

Notes to editors

  1. The BPG Twitter handle for the Awards is #BPGAwards @BPGPressGuild.
  2. The Awards are presented for work commissioned, produced or co-produced  in the UK and broadcast in 2022.
  3. The Broadcasting Press Guild was founded in 1974 and has more than 130 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.
  4. The last winner of the BPG Jury Prize was producer Michael Apted in 2020 for the groundbreaking 7Upseries made by Granada Television for ITV.
  5. Warner Bros. Discovery and PACT are the supporters of the 49th BPG Awards. Pact is the UK screen sector trade body representing and supporting independent production and distribution companies.
Filed Under: Awards 2023, Awards Latest, BPG Latest, Press Releases

Politics, power and new voices dominate BPG Audio award nominations

March 2, 2023 By James Naylor

The war in Ukraine, in-depth investigations of political power and abuse and uncovering conspiracy theories are among the subjects nominated for this year’s Broadcasting Press Guild Audio awards.

Plus, established radio names Anita Anand, Jane Garvey and Fi Glover are up against a wide range of new voices for BPG prizes including India Rakusen, Sirin Kale, Yuriy Matsarsky, Lewis Goodall and Marianna Spring.

The chair of the BPG audio jury, journalist Simon O’Hagan, said the nominations reflect the need for information as well as entertainment. “In turbulent times, we listen to more radio and podcasts in the search for wider sources of information that we can trust. The jury was also impressed with some brilliant new voices who emerged in 2022 as the industry continued to expand, adapts and evolve.”

The 49th BPG Television, Streaming and Audio Awards – for work commissioned or premiered in the UK and released in 2022 – are prized by programme-makers because they are chosen independently by TV and radio correspondents, critics and previewers.

The Radio Programme of the Year category boasts brilliant investigations, vital information and a global perspective on the news. The Conversation (BBC World Service) listened closely to the voices of women around the world, from Ipswich to Iran, with host Kim Chakanetsa. In 28ish Days Later (BBC Radio 4) host India Rakusen explored the whole bloody story of the menstrual cycle. In Dark Corners (BBC Radio 4) saw Alex Renton investigate abuse at the nation’s most exclusive public schools. Tim Harford and the More Or Less (BBC Radio 4) team guided listeners through the complex array of statistics news nerds come up against, while Jane Garvey and Fi Glover (Times Radio) featured no-holds-barred conversation, four days a week.

The five nominations in the UK Podcast of the Year category cover topics across the globe. Empire (Goalhanger Podcasts) told us how empires rise and fall with hosts William Dalrymple and Anita Anand, while Fighting for Ukraine (Podbean) featured stories by Yuriy Matsarsky, a Ukrainian journalist turned civilian fighter against the Russian invasion. The Coming Storm (BBC Long Form Audio) took a journey into the dark undergrowth of modern American conspiracy theories; The Rest Is History (Goalhanger Podcasts) had Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook interrogating the past while also attempting to explain the present; and The Slow Newscast (Tortoise Media) investigated and reports on the stories that really matter each week with host Basia Cummings.

The Audio Presenter of the Year nominees are all first-timers for this award, but all enjoyed very strong years in 2022. Alan Dein’s Don’t Log Off programme on BBC Radio 4 collected remarkable oral histories from around the world, focussing on what unites us; Anita Anand was an outstanding voice on both Any Answers (BBC Radio 4) and the Empire podcast; journalist Lewis Goodall starred in the Global Media and Entertainment podcast The News Agents; Marianna Spring gained rave notices for her journalism on podcasts War on Truth and Disaster Trolls (both BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds); and Sirin Kale took a deep dive into cyber stalking on Can I Tell You a Secret? (Guardian podcast).

Further information from Adrian Lobb, BPG, 07986 379 452 or adrianlobb1@gmail.com

Notes to editors

  1. The winners of the Audio Awards announced today will be revealed at the 49th BPG Awards lunch on Friday March 24th 2023, at The Royal Horseguards
    Hotel in Whitehall, London.
  2. The BPG Twitter handle for the Awards is #BPGAwards @BPGPressGuild.
  3. The BPG Television, Streaming and Audio Awards are presented for work commissioned or premiered in the UK and broadcast in 2022.
  4. The Broadcasting Press Guild was founded in 1974 and has more than 130 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.
  5. 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.
  6. Warner Bros. Discovery and PACT are the commercial supporters of the 49th  BPG Awards.

The full list of Audio Nominations for the 49th BPG Awards is:

Radio Programme of the Year

  • 28ish Days Later (BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds)
  • In Dark Corners (BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds)
  • More or Less (BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds)
  • Jane Garvey and Fi Glover (Times Radio)
  • The Conversation (BBC World Service)

UK Podcast of the Year

  • Empire (Goalhanger Podcasts)
  • Fighting For Ukraine (Podbean)
  • The Coming Storm (BBC Long Form Audio)
  • The Rest is History (Goalhanger Podcasts)
  • The Slow Newscast (Tortoise Media)

Audio Presenter of the Year

  • Alan Dein, Don’t Log Off, (BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds)
  • Anita Anand, Any Answers and Empire podcast (BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds)
  • Lewis Goodall, The News Agents (Global Media and Entertainment)
  • Marianna Spring, War on Truth and Disaster Trolls (BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds)
  • Sirin Kale, Can I Tell You a Secret? (Guardian podcast)

Ends

 

 

Filed Under: Awards 2023, Awards Latest, BPG Latest, Press Releases

Juliana Koranteng

March 1, 2023 By James Naylor

We are very sad to report the death last month of our friend and BPG member Juliana Koranteng after a short illness. Juliana regularly attended our lunches and breakfasts – most recently, the Kevin Lygo lunch in December 2022 – and lit them up with her shining presence and well-informed questions.

The BPG chair Grant Tucker said: “We had a lovely catch up at the Christmas lunch in December. She was always such a bright personality at every BPG event I attended. She will be much missed.” Colin Mann said: “Sadly, we never got to have that drink and catch-up we promised to have in the New Year as we were leaving the Kevin Lygo lunch.”

We republish, with thanks, this tribute from Facebook by her friend Marlene Edmunds.

REMEMBERING JULIANA KORANTENG

She was a bright and shining person, a unique soul who was beautiful, kind, courageous, funny, and unsparingly honest. That is pretty much the feeling of many of the people I talked with around the world about friend and colleague JULIANA KORANTENG, who passed away suddenly after a short illness.

Juliana’s international background, her immense curiosity, her kindness, humour, love of music, tennis, guitar, and photography, her devotion to charities, including her mother’s women’s health clinic in Ghana and the Sue Ryder Clinic in the UK, were as much a part of her life as her immense and extensive media background and the thousands of interviews she did with some of the biggest names in the film, television, music and entertainment world.

She was born in Ghana shortly after the country gained its independence. The US became the first country to recognise Ghana as an independent nation and Juliana spent part of her childhood there, her father being part of the Ghana diplomatic service to the US. As a child she met many of the leaders of the African independence movement, as well as civil rights leaders in the US.

Juliana’s media background is as extensive as it is impossible to do justice to in a brief recounting, but that is what I will give you.

She interviewed thousands over the course of her career, including director Spike Lee, Daniel Craig, Sir Martin Sorrel, astronaut Chris Hadfield, Pharrell Williams, Usher, Lena Waithe, Robbie Williams, Tim Berners-Lee, Yves Behar, Rupert Murdoch, Sir Terence Conran, Sir Derek Jacobi, Indian cuisine queen Madhur Jaffrey, Bernie Ecclestone, the Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson, and TV impresario Simon Cowell.

She was the founder and editor of the UK-based JayKay Media Consultancy, editor and chief creative director of MediaTainment Finance and TechMutiny, publications which covered the international creative industries and emerging media technologies. She was also the founder of JayKay Media Inc, a contributing editor and reporter for MIDEM, MIPTV, MIPCOM and Lions Daily News, all published by Boutique Editions. She was an editorial consultant for RX France’s Esports Conex, Mip Market events, the Swiss-based World Academy of Sport and an advisor to European Independent music organisation IMPALA, and a host and curator for IMPALA’S regular podcast series 20MinutesWith.

During her lifetime she was a Financial Times-published author on subjects such as Women & Sport and the Business of Sports TV as well as an editor/correspondent for TIME magazine, Billboard, The Hollywood Reporter and Advertising Age. She was also a speaker, host and competition judge at various international events in Asia, the Middle East, New Zealand and across Europe.

We are the sum of our passions, everything and everyone we love, and not just just our profession, work, families, friends or the activities in which we engage.

Juliana Koranteng engaged the world, and was much loved and respected. We will miss her very much.

Filed Under: BPG Latest, Obituaries

Television and Streaming nominations for this year’s BPG Awards revealed

February 23, 2023 By James Naylor

It’s Winkleman vs Winkleman as The Traitors takes on Strictly Come Dancing at the BPG Awards 2023

Claudia Winkleman’s presenting skills pose a dilemma in the fight for a prize at this year’s Broadcasting Press Guild Awards – she fronts both The Traitors and series 20 of Strictly Come Dancing that are each nominated in the Best Entertainment category. The two BBC One shows will do battle with Rob & Romesh Vs (Sky) and Billy Connolly Does (Gold).

It was a strong year for drama with six channels or streaming services represented across the two drama categories. The nominations for Best Drama series (4+ eps) include an Apple TV+ entry for the first time, Slow Horses, competing against SAS Rogue Heroes (BBC One), The English (BBC Two), The Thief, His Wife and His Canoe (ITV) and Sherwood (BBC One). In the Best Drama Mini Series (1-3 eps) category, Vardy v Rooney: A Courtroom Drama (C4) hopes for a positive verdict as it goes up against Karen Pirie (ITV), I Hate Suzie Too (Sky), I Am Ruth (C4) and Mayflies (BBC One).

The BPG Television, Streaming & Audio Awards – for work commissioned or produced in the UK and screened in 2022 – are prized by programme-makers because they are chosen independently by TV and audio correspondents, critics and previewers. The 49th annual BPG Awards lunch in an invite-only event to be held at The Royal Horseguards Hotel in Whitehall, London, on Friday March 24th 2023. Warner Bros. Discovery and Pact are this year’s supporters of the event.

A diverse group of nominees line up in the documentary categories. The Real Mo Farah (BBC One) will be hoping to stay ahead of Jeremy Paxman: Putting up with Parkinson’s (ITV), Tindler Swindler (Netflix), Banned! The Mary Whitehouse Story (BBC Two) and Aids: The Unheard Tapes (BBC Two) for the Best Documentary Mini Series (1-3 eps) award.

And Mick Jagger faces up to David Attenborough in the Best Documentary Series (4+ eps) category as My Life As a Rolling Stone (BBC Two) takes on Frozen Planet II (BBC One). Three other series are also in the running: All or Nothing: Arsenal (Amazon Prime), Lenny Henry’s Caribbean Britain (BBC Two) and Once Upon a Time in Londongrad (Sky).

The Best Actor category sees Gary Oldman, veteran star of Slow Horses on Apple TV+ taking on the very busy Paapa Essiedu (The Lazarus Project, The Capture, Gangs of London), Connor Swindells (SAS Rogue Heroes) and Ben Whishaw, star of BBC One’s This Is Going To Hurt.

First-time nominee Ambika Mod, star of This Is Going to Hurt joins Lesley Manville (Sherwood, The Magpie Murders), Anna Maxwell Martin (Motherland, A Spy Among Friends) and Nicola Walker (Marriage, The Split) in the Best Actress category, again showcasing the range of new and established talent in UK TV drama and comedy.

The third and final series of Lisa McGee’s Derry Girls (C4) is a contender for Best Comedy along with Sharon Horgan’s Motherland (BBC One), newcomer Jack Rooke’s Big Boys (C4) and Rowan Atkinson and Will Davies’s Netflix hit Man V Bee.

The three comedy writers McGee, Horgan and Rooke are also nominated for Best Writer and are up against James Graham for Sherwood and Steven Knight for Peaky Blinders (BBC One) and SAS Rogue Heroes.

The annual BPG Breakthrough Talent Award nominations are decided by the BPG’s Executive Committee. Writer Jack Rooke is in the frame for Big Boys, up against actor Lenny Rush for his role in Am I Being Unreasonable? and Ione Wells for her strong year as a BBC News political correspondent.

Further information from Adrian Lobb, BPG, 07986 379 452 or adrianlobb1@gmail.com.

 

Notes to editors

  1. The winners of the TV and Streaming Awards listed will be announced at the 49th BPG Awards lunch on Friday March 24th 2023, at The Horseguards Hotel in Whitehall, London. In addition, The Harvey Lee Award for outstanding contribution to broadcasting and a BPG Jury Prize will be presented at the same time.
  2. The BPG Twitter handle for the Awards is #BPGAwards @BPGPressGuild.
  3. The BPG Television, Streaming and Audio Awards are presented for work commissioned or premiered in the UK and screened in 2022. Programmes which were first streamed online are nominated and voted for alongside broadcast channel commissions originating in the UK.
  4. The shortlists for Audio Broadcaster of the Year, UK Podcast of the Year and Radio Programme of the Year will be announced in a week’s time on March 1st 2023.
  5. The Broadcasting Press Guild was founded in 1974 and has more than 130 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.
  6. 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, 7 Up, Shameless, The Jewel In The Crown and Fawlty Towers to Downton Abbey, The Crown, Fleabag, Death On The Rock and Have I Got News For You.
  7. Past BPG Best Actress winners include Glenda Jackson, Dame Eileen Atkins, Dame Helen Mirren, Dame Peggy Ashcroft, Gillian Anderson, Dame Vanessa Redgrave, Dame Diana Rigg, Zoe Wanamaker, Dame Julie Walters, Olivia Colman, Keeley Hawes, Sheridan Smith, Juliet Stevenson, Claire Foy and Jodie Comer.
  8. Past BPG Best Actor winners include Sir Mark Rylance, Sir Kenneth Branagh, Hugh Grant, Colin Firth, Sir Alec Guinness, Albert Finney, Charles Dance, Robert Hardy, Jim Broadbent, Benedict Cumberbatch, Toby Jones, Stephen Graham and Dominic West (see more details and photos at http://www.broadcastingpressguild.org/).
  9. Warner Bros. Discovery and Pact are the supporters of the 49th BPG Awards. Pact is the UK screen sector trade body representing and supporting independent production and distribution companies.

 

 

 

The full list of BPG TV and Streaming Nominations for BPG Awards 2023

 

Best Documentary Mini Series 1-3 eps

Banned! The Mary Whitehouse Story (BBC Two)

Paxman: Putting up with Parkinson’s (ITV)

AIDS: The Unheard Tapes (BBC Two)

The Real Mo Farah (BBC One)

Tindler Swindler (Netflix)

 

Best Documentary Series 4+ eps

All or Nothing: Arsenal (Amazon Prime)

Frozen Planet II (BBC One)

Lenny Henry’s Caribbean Britain (BBC Two)

My Life as a Rolling Stone (BBC Two)

Once Upon a Time in Londongrad (Sky)

 

Best Comedy

Big Boys (C4)

Derry Girls S3 (C4)

Man V Bee (Netflix)

Motherland – Christmas Special (BBC One)

 

Best Entertainment

Billy Connolly Does (Gold)

Rob & Romesh Vs (Sky)

Strictly Come Dancing S20 (BBC One)

The Traitors (BBC One)

 

Best Drama Mini Series 1-3 eps

I am Ruth (C4)

I Hate Suzie Too (Sky)

Karen Pirie (ITV)

Mayflies (BBC One)

Vardy v Rooney: A Courtroom Drama (C4)

 

Best Drama Series 4+ eps

SAS Rogue Heroes (BBC One)

Sherwood (BBC One)

Slow Horses (Apple TV)

The English (BBC Two)

The Thief, His Wife and His Canoe (ITV)

 

Best Actress

Ambika Mod – This is Going to Hurt

Anna Maxwell Martin – A Spy Among Friends, Motherland

Leslie Manville – Sherwood, Magpie Murders

Nicola Walker – Marriage, The Split

 

Best Actor

Ben Whishaw – This is Going to Hurt

Connor Swindells – SAS Rogue Heroes

Gary Oldman – Slow Horses

Paapa Essiedu – The Lazarus Project, The Capture, Gangs of London

 

Best Writer

Jack Rooke – Big Boys

James Graham – Sherwood

Lisa McGee – Derry Girls

Sharon Horgan – Motherland, Bad Sisters

Steven Knight – Peaky Blinders, SAS Rogue Heroes

 

BPG Breakthrough Talent Award

Ione Wells, BBC News, political correspondent

Jack Rooke, writer, Big Boys

Lenny Rush, actor, Am I Being Unreasonable?

Filed Under: Awards 2023, BPG Latest, Press Releases

BPG Awards 2022 Wrap Up

July 13, 2022 By James Naylor

Filed Under: Awards Latest, BPG Latest, Video

Sherwood: BPG Zoom with star David Morrissey and Writer, Creator and Executive Producer James Graham

July 9, 2022 By Max Goldbart

The writer and star of the hit BBC One drama Sherwood spent an hour with over a dozen members in June via the latest BPG Zoom Lunch and gave a masterclass on how the series came into being.

James Graham and David Morrissey were candid about the reasons for the programme’s success; spoke about its impressive ensemble cast; and also gave insights into the production issues with some fascinating behind-the-scenes stories.

David said that he would be very happy to reprise his character, Detective Chief Superintendent Ian St Clair, and a second season is now confirmed. Stories by BPG members later appeared in both the Daily Telegraph and Broadcast.

Filed Under: BPG Latest, Events

‘Scandal’ and ‘Sin’ head this year’s Broadcasting Press Guild Awards

March 25, 2022 By Torin Douglas

Two TV dramas – A Very British Scandal and It’s A Sin – have taken top honours at this year’s Broadcasting Press Guild Awards, chosen by critics and journalists who write about TV and radio.

It’s a Sin (Channel 4) was named Best Drama Series and its creator, Russell T Davies, won the BPG award for Best Writer, in the teeth of competition from Jimmy McGovern (Time), Sarah Phelps (A Very British Scandal), Chris Lang (Unforgotten) and Neil Forsyth (Guilt).

A Very British Scandal (BBC One) was voted Best Drama Mini-Series and its star Claire Foy was named Best Actress, ahead of Olivia Colman (Landscapers), Jodie Comer (Help) and Lydia West (It’s A Sin).

Stephen Graham won the award for Best Actor for his performances in Help (C4) and Time (BBC One), in another strong shortlist with Sean Bean (Time), Sanjeev Bhaskar (Unforgotten) and Olly Alexander and Callum Scott Howells (It’s A Sin).

The 48th BPG Awards lunch, sponsored for the first time by YouTube, took place today at The Brewery in the City of London, attended by the winners, BPG members and leading broadcasting executives. (Full list of winners below). The BPG Awards are given for TV, streaming and audio productions commissioned or premiered in the UK and screened in 2021. They are highly prized by programme-makers because they are selected independently by TV and radio correspondents, critics and previewers.

Bob Mortimer and Paul Whitehouse won the BPG Best Entertainment award for the third time with Mortimer & Whitehouse: Gone Fishing (BBC Two), ahead of Michael MacIntyre’s The Wheel, Strictly Come Dancing (both BBC One), Mel Giedroyc: Unforgivable (Dave) and The Masked Singer (ITV). The Best Comedy award went to Alma’s Not Normal (BBC Two), in competition with Sex Education (Netflix) Stath Lets Flats (C4) and Starstruck (BBC Three).

The BBC Two series Blair & Brown: The New Labour Revolution was named Best Documentary Series, ahead of Clarkson’s Farm (Prime Video), David Attenborough’s A Perfect Planet (BBC One) and Grayson’s Art Club (Channel 4). Peter Jackson’s Disney+ series The Beatles: Get Back was voted Best Documentary Mini-Series, in competition with Grenfell: The Untold Story (Channel 4) and two BBC Two series – Four Hours at the Capitol and Gods of Snooker.

Grant Tucker, the chair of the BPG, said: “In their 48th year, the BPG awards remain true to the values on which they were founded: celebrating the best work on TV and radio, voted for by those whose job is to write about broadcasting.

“2021 was a fantastic year for British television. The industry bounced back from the worst days of the pandemic with record levels of investment and programming, and our winners announced today are testimony to that creative explosion.

“It is also evident that, despite reports of their death, our public service broadcasters are very much alive and thriving. “

Aasmah Mir of Times Radio was named as BPG Audio Presenter of the Year, for her performance on the station’s breakfast show, Aasmah Mir and Stig Abell with Times Radio Breakfast. The other nominees were Amol Rajan (BBC Radio 4), Iain Dale (LBC), Petroc Trelawny (BBC Radio 3) and Vick Hope (BBC Radio 1).

Jamz Supernova won the Radio Programme of the Year award, for her BBC 6 Music show Jamz Supernova on 6, ahead of Aasmah Mir and Stig Abell with Times Radio Breakfast (Times Radio), The Eco Show (Marlow FM 97.5), Uncanny with Danny Robins (BBC Radio 4), and Woman’s Hour (BBC Radio 4).

The UK Podcast of the Year was Things Fell Apart – Jon Ronson (BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds), in competition with Backlisted (Unbound), Finding Q: My Journey into QAnon (Audible), Sweet Bobby (Tortoise Media) and The Rest Is History (Goalhanger Films)

Scott Bryan, chair of the audio jury, said: “It has been another exceptional year for audio. For much of the time, many of us were apart and radio and podcasts continued to keep us together. It is notable that whilst the internet has continued to change the way we live our lives, the intimacy of radio and audio has been retained and even enhanced.”

As announced earlier this week, Jon Snow of Channel 4 News won the Harvey Lee Award for Outstanding Contribution to Broadcasting.

The BPG Breakthrough Award went to the actor and writer of BBC Three’s Starstruck, Rose Matafeo. She was up against the creator of We Are Lady Parts (C4), Nida Manzoor, and the ‘Pink Palace’ cast members of C4’s It’s A Sin – Omari Douglas, Olly Alexander, Callum Scott Howells, Lydia West and Nathaniel Curtis.

A new award, the BPG Emerging Creators Award for video creativity on social media platforms, was given to Chunkz (YouTube), in competition with Francis Bourgeois (TikTok), Lucy Edwards (TikTok), Michael Dappah (YouTube) and Rosie Holt (Twitter).

The BPG Innovation in Broadcasting award went to Channel 4 for its Black to Front project and ongoing inclusion initiatives. Also on the shortlist were Albert, BAFTA’s sustainable production certificate, and Lights Up, the virtual theatre festival in lockdown (BBC Four).

Further information from Torin Douglas, BPG, 07860 422992 or torindouglas@aol.com.

Notes to editors:

  1. The awards are being announced at the 48th BPG Awards lunch at The Brewery in the City of London on Friday March 25th 2022 and simultaneously on Twitter @BPGPress #BPGAwards.
  2. The Broadcasting Press Guild was founded in 1974 and has more than 150 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. Harvey Lee (1950-1991) – after whom the award is named – was the media correspondent for the Daily Telegraph and a leading light in the BPG throughout the 1980s. Previous winners of the BPG’s Harvey Lee Award, for an outstanding contribution to broadcasting, include Sir Lenny Henry, Moira Stuart, John Humphrys, Nicholas Parsons, Sir Terry Wogan, Cilla Black, Melvyn Bragg, Andrew Davies, Sir David Frost, Michael Grade, Norma Percy, Biddy Baxter & Edward Barnes, Phil Redmond, Beryl Vertue, Tony Warren, Anne Wood, John Lloyd and Charles Wheeler. See more details at http://www.broadcastingpressguild.org/bpgawards/harvey-lee/
  4. The 48th BPG Awards are sponsored by YouTube, the world’s largest video-sharing platform, owned by Google. Launched in 2005, YouTube’s mission is to give everyone a voice and show them the world. They say: We believe that everyone deserves to have a voice, and that the world is a better place when we listen, share and build community through our stories. https://www.youtube.com

The full list of BPG TV and Radio Awards winners is:

Best Documentary Series
Blair & Brown: The New Labour Revolution
A BBC Studios Documentary Unit Production for BBC Two

Best Documentary Mini-Series
The Beatles: Get Back
Apple Corps Ltd. & WingNut Films Productions Ltd. for Disney+

Best Drama Mini-Series
A Very British Scandal
A Blueprint Television production for BBC One

Best Drama Series
It’s a Sin
A RED Production Company production for Channel 4 and HBO Max in association with All3Media International

Best Entertainment
Mortimer & Whitehouse: Gone Fishing Series 4
An Owl Power Television production for BBC Two

Best Comedy
Alma’s Not Normal
An Expectation production for BBC Two

Best Actor
Stephen Graham
For his roles as:
   Tony in Help
   The Forge Entertainment and One Shoe Films for Channel 4
and as
   Eric McNally in Time
   BBC Studios Drama Productions for BBC One

Best Actress
Claire Foy
For her role as Margaret Campbell, Duchess of Argyll, in A Very British Scandal
A Blueprint Television production for BBC One

Best Writer
Russell T Davies
It’s a Sin
A RED Production Company production for Channel 4 and HBO Max in association with All3Media International

Audio Presenter of the Year
Aasmah Mir
Times Radio Breakfast, a Times Radio production

Radio Programme of the Year
Jamz Supernova on 6
A BBC Audio production for BBC Radio 6 Music

Podcast of the Year
Things Fell Apart – written and presented by Jon Ronson
A BBC Audio production for BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds

BPG Innovation in Broadcasting Award
Channel 4’s Black to Front Project and ongoing inclusion initiatives

BPG Breakthrough Award
Rose Matafeo
Writer and Actor, Starstruck
An Avalon production for BBC Three and HBO Max

BPG Emerging Creators Award
Amin Mohamed aka Chunkz
for YouTube

Harvey Lee Outstanding Contribution to Broadcasting Award
Jon Snow
Channel 4 News

Filed Under: Awards Latest, BPG Latest, Events, Press Releases

Jon Snow to be honoured by TV and radio writers at Broadcasting Press Guild Awards lunch

March 23, 2022 By Torin Douglas

Jon Snow to be honoured by TV and radio writers at Broadcasting Press Guild Awards lunch
www.broadcastingpressguild.org

The journalist and broadcaster, Jon Snow, is to be honoured later this week at the 48th annual Broadcasting Press Guild Awards, chosen by journalists who write about television, streaming and audio, sponsored by YouTube.

On Friday March 25th, he will receive the Harvey Lee Award for Outstanding Contribution to Broadcasting at the awards lunch at The Brewery, Chiswell Street, in the City of London. The award celebrates his 48 years of reporting and presenting the news, most notably as the face of Channel 4 News from 1989 to 2021.

It recognises a career of remarkable broadcasting, in which he has covered elections, wars, earthquakes and many of the world’s most memorable events, including the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, the fall of the Berlin Wall, the release of Nelson Mandela, earthquakes in Haiti and Japan, and the elections of Margaret Thatcher, Ronald Reagan, Tony Blair and Barack Obama.

Jon Snow began his career at LBC Radio in 1973, where he established his reputation for getting quickly to the story (often on his bicycle) and securing interviews with those at the centre of it. He joined ITN in 1978, serving as its Washington correspondent in the mid 1980s; as diplomatic editor in the second half of the eighties and, in 1992 as the main anchor for ITN’s election night programme on ITV. He also presented the award-winning documentary Sri Lanka’s Killing Fields, as well as reaching out to audiences through his daily news email ‘Snowmail’ from 2000 to 2021.

The BPG also recognises him for being outspoken and idealistic – even declining to accept an OBE, believing journalists should not receive honours from the people on whom they report – and, on a lighter note, for his sartorially famous collection of brightly coloured ties that underline his irreplaceable on-air style.

The BPG’s chairman Grant Tucker, said: “A fearless journalist, Jon Snow has spent his life holding the powerful to account and in doing so has earnt his place among Britain’s greatest news presenters. As war once again dominates headlines around the world, we are also reminded of Snow’s tenacious reporting from countless conflicts to ensure audiences witnessed the horrors of war.”

The BPG Television, Streaming and Audio Awards are highly prized by programme-makers because they are selected independently by journalists who write about TV, radio, streaming and podcasts – correspondents, critics and previewers. The awards lunch, sponsored by YouTube, will be attended by the winners, BPG members and leading broadcasting executives.
www.broadcastingpressguild.org

For more information about the Broadcasting Press Guild, including a full list of winners over the past 47 years, and see pictures and videos from previous BPG awards ceremonies at:
http://www.broadcastingpressguild.org/2014/03/25/history-of-the-broadcasting-press-guild

Notes to editors:

  1. The remaining award winners will be announced at the 48th BPG Awards lunch at The Brewery in the City of London on Friday March 25th 2022 and simultaneously on Twitter @BPGPress #BPGAwards. Winners have been informed in advance and places at the lunch are by invitation only. A full news release about the winners, embargoed till 2pm on Friday, will be available on our website: www.broadcastingpressguild.org
  2. The Broadcasting Press Guild was founded in 1974 and has more than 130 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. Harvey Lee (1950-1991) – after whom the award is named – was the media correspondent for the Daily Telegraph and a leading light in the BPG throughout the 1980s. Previous winners of the BPG’s Harvey Lee Award, for an outstanding contribution to broadcasting, include Sir Lenny Henry, Moira
    Stuart, John Humphrys, Nicholas Parsons, Sir Terry Wogan, Cilla Black, Melvyn Bragg, Andrew Davies, Sir David Frost, Michael Grade, Norma Percy, Biddy Baxter & Edward Barnes, Phil Redmond, Beryl Vertue, Tony Warren, Anne Wood, John Lloyd and Charles Wheeler. See more details at
    http://www.broadcastingpressguild.org/bpgawards/harvey-lee/
  4. The 48th BPG Awards are sponsored by YouTube, the world’s largest video-sharing platform, owned by Google. Launched in 2005, YouTube’s mission is to give everyone a voice and show them the world. It says: We believe that everyone deserves to have a voice, and that the world is a better place when we listen, share and build community through our stories. https://www.youtube.com

Further information: Torin Douglas, BPG: torindouglas@aol.com or 07860 422992

Filed Under: Awards Latest, BPG Latest, Events, Press Releases

BPG Awards 2022: Television And Streaming Nominations

March 12, 2022 By Torin Douglas

 

Jeremy Clarkson will go head-to-head with David Attenborough and Grayson Perry in this year’s Broadcasting Press Guild Awards, to be presented next month in London.

Clarkson’s Farm (Prime Video) has been shortlisted for best TV and streaming documentary series, alongside Attenborough’s A Perfect Planet (BBC One), Grayson’s Art Club (Channel 4) and two BBC Two series – Life In Ten Pictures and Blair & Brown: The New Labour Revolution.

Olivia Colman, Jodie Comer, Claire Foy and Lydia West will compete for the best actress award. Colman is nominated for her role in Landscapers (HBO/Sky), Comer for Help (Channel 4), Foy for A Very British Scandal (BBC One) and West for It’s a Sin (Channel 4)

Shortlisted as best actor are Sean Bean and Stephen Graham for Time (BBC One), Sanjeev Bhaskar for Unforgotten (ITV) and Olly Alexander and Callum Scott Howells for It’s a Sin. Graham is also nominated for his role in Help.

The BPG Television, Streaming and Audio Awards – for work commissioned or premiered in the UK and screened in 2021 – are prized by programme-makers because they are chosen independently by TV and radio correspondents, critics and previewers. The 48th annual BPG Awards ceremony – attended by the winners, BPG members and guests – will take place at lunchtime on Friday March 25th 2022 at The Brewery in the City of London. It will be supported for the first time by YouTube, the video sharing and social media platform owned by Google.

The Best Writer award will be contested by Jimmy McGovern (Time), Russell T Davies (It’s a Sin), Chris Lang (Unforgotten), Sarah Phelps (A Very British Scandal) and Neil Forsyth for Guilt, screened on BBC Scotland and BBC Two.

Guilt is also nominated for best drama series, alongside It’s a Sin, Landscapers, Line of Duty (BBC One) and The Serpent (BBC One). Help, Time and A Very British Scandal are shortlisted for best drama mini-series (1-3 episodes) along with Stephen (ITV) and Romeo and Juliet (the National Theatre production on Sky Arts).

Alma’s Not Normal on BBC Two is nominated as best comedy, with Sex Education (Netflix), Stath Lets Flats (Channel 4) and Starstruck (BBC Three). Mel Giedroyc: Unforgivable (Dave) will compete for the best entertainment award against Michael McIntyre’s The Wheel (BBC One), Mortimer & Whitehouse: Gone Fishing (BBC Two), Strictly Come Dancing (BBC One) and The Masked Singer (ITV).

Two BBC Two series – Four Hours at the Capitol and Gods of Snooker – are shortlisted for best documentary mini-series against Grenfell: The Untold Story (Channel 4) and The Beatles: Get Back (Disney+).

Two Channel Four shows are acknowledged in the lineup for the BPG Breakthrough Award. The creator of We Are Lady Parts, Nida Manzoor, is up against the ‘Pink Palace’ cast members of It’s a Sin – Omari Douglas, Olly Alexander, Callum Scott Howells, Lydia West and Nathaniel Curtis – and also BBC Three’s Starstruck writer and actor, Rose Matafeo.

Other newcomers are recognised in a new award, the BPG Emerging Creators Award for video creativity on social media platforms. The nominees are Chunkz (YouTube), Francis Bourgeois (TikTok), Lucy Edwards (TikTok), Michael Dappah (YouTube) and Rosie Holt (Twitter).

And three broadcasting initiatives are shortlisted for the BPG Innovation in Broadcasting award: Albert, BAFTA’s sustainable production certificate; Channel 4’s Black to Front project and ongoing inclusion initiatives; and Lights Up, the virtual theatre festival in lockdown (BBC Four).

Further information from Torin Douglas, BPG, 07860 422992

Notes to editors

  1. The winners will be announced at the 48th BPG Awards lunch on Friday March 25th 2022, at The Brewery in the City of London, sponsored by YouTube. The Harvey Lee Award for outstanding contribution to broadcasting is in the gift of the BPG Executive Committee and will be presented as well.
  2. The BPG Twitter handle for the Awards is #BPGAwards @BPGPressGuild.
  3. Launched in 2005, YouTube’s mission is to give everyone a voice and show them the world. We believe that everyone deserves to have a voice, and that the world is a better place when we listen, share and build community through our stories. YouTube is a Google company.
  4. The BPG Television, Streaming and Audio Awards are presented for work commissioned or premiered in the UK and screened in 2021. Programmes which were first streamed online are nominated and voted for alongside broadcast channel commissions originating in the UK.
  5. The shortlists for Audio Broadcaster of the Year, UK Podcast of the Year and Radio Programme of the Year will be announced in a week’s time on March 3rd 2022.
  6. The Broadcasting Press Guild was founded in 1974 and has more than 175 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.
  7. Past BPG Best Actress winners include Glenda Jackson, Dame Eileen Atkins, Dame Helen Mirren, Dame Peggy Ashcroft, Gillian Anderson, Vanessa Redgrave, Maxine Peake, Anne-Marie Duff, Dame Diana Rigg, Zoe Wanamaker, Gina McKee, Dame Julie Walters, Olivia Colman, Keeley Hawes, Sheridan Smith, Juliet Stevenson and Jodie Comer.
  8. The BPG Best Actor award has been awarded in previous years to Sir Mark Rylance, Sir Kenneth Branagh, Hugh Grant, Colin Firth, Sir Alec Guinness, Albert Finney, Charles Dance, Robert Hardy, Jim Broadbent, Christopher Ecclestone, Benedict Cumberbatch, Toby Jones and Dominic West among others (see more details and photos at http://www.broadcastingpressguild.org/.)

The full list of nominations is:

 

Best Drama Mini Series, 1-3 episodes

A Very British Scandal (BBC One)

Help (C4)

Romeo and Juliet (Sky Arts)

Stephen (ITV)

Time (BBC One)

Best Drama Series, 4+ episodes

Guilt (BBC Scotland)

It’s a Sin (C4)

Landscapers (HBO/Sky)

Line of Duty S6 (BBC One)

The Serpent (BBC One)

Best Documentary Mini Series, 1-3 episodes

Four Hours at the Capitol (BBC Two)

Gods of Snooker (BBC Two)

Grenfell: The Untold Story (C4)

The Beatles: Get Back (Disney+)

Best Documentary Series, 4+ episodes

A Perfect Planet (BBC One)

Blair & Brown: The New Labour Revolution (BBC Two)

Clarkson’s Farm (Prime Video)

Grayson Art Club (C4)

Life in Ten Pictures (BBC Two)

Best Comedy

Alma’s Not Normal (BBC Two)

Sex Education S3 (Netflix)

Stath Lets Flats S3 (C4)

Starstruck (BBC Three)

Best Entertainment

Mel Giedroyc: Unforgivable (Dave)

Michael McIntyre’s The Wheel S2 (BBC One)

Mortimer & Whitehouse: Gone Fishing S4 (BBC Two)

Strictly Come Dancing S19 (BBC One)

The Masked Singer S2 (ITV)

Best Actor

Olly Alexander, It’s a Sin

Sanjeev Bhaskar, Unforgotten

Sean Bean, Time

Stephen Graham, Help, Time

Callum Scott Howells, It’s a Sin

Best Actress

Olivia Colman, Landscapers

Jodie Comer, Help

Claire Foy, A Very British Scandal

Lydia West, It’s a Sin

Best Writer

Russell T Davies, It’s a Sin

Neil Forsyth, Guilt

Chris Lang, Unforgotten

Jimmy McGovern, Time

Sarah Phelps, A Very British Scandal 

BPG Innovation in Broadcasting Award

Albert, BAFTA’s sustainable production certificate

Channel 4’s Black to Front project and ongoing inclusion initiatives

Lights Up, virtual theatre festival in lockdown (BBC Four)

BPG Emerging Creators Award

Chunkz (YouTube)

Francis Bourgeois (TikTok)

Lucy Edwards (TikTok)

Michael Dappah (YouTube)

Rosie Holt (Twitter)

BPG Breakthrough Award

Rose Matafeo, writer and actor, Starstruck (BBC Three)

The ‘Pink Palace’ cast members of It’s a Sin (C4)

(Omari Douglas, Olly Alexander, Callum Scott Howells, Lydia West and Nathaniel Curtis)

Nida Manzoor, creator & director, We Are Lady Parts (C4)

Filed Under: Awards Latest, BPG Latest, Events, Press Releases
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