Victory for Sir David Attenborough – half a century since his first win
Channel 4 wins seven BAFTAs, ITV five, and BBC One wins four
Harry Enfield, Bruce Parry, Stephen Dillane & Kenneth Branagh win their first television BAFTAs
Harry Hill is victorious again, while X Factor reclaims the entertainment crown
First time winner The Bill wins the battle of the Soaps
The crowds on London’s South Bank were treated to the cream of British Television talent as presenters and nominees arrived at the Royal Festival Hall, for the British Academy Television Awards, hosted by Graham Norton. This year’s stellar line-up included David Tennant, James Nesbitt, Jonathan Ross, Lindsay Duncan, Jools Holland, Ant & Dec, Louis Theroux, Michael McIntyre and Dame Helen Mirren, to name but a few.
48 years after receiving his first BAFTA, Sir David Attenborough picked up the _Specialist Factual(1)_ BAFTA for Life In Cold Blood, his third BAFTA(2) and the sixth for his globally acclaimed wildlife series(3).
Harry Enfield received the coveted BAFTA mask for the first time, alongside four-time winner Paul Whitehouse in the _Comedy Programme_ category for BBC One’s Harry & Paul. Another first was The Bill (ITV1) claiming victory over _EastEnders, Casualty_ and _Emmerdale_ in the fiercely contested _Continuing Drama_ category.
Harry Hill’s _Entertainment Performance_ in ITV1’s _Harry Hill’s TV Burp,_ saw him triumph for the second year running, ahead of Stephen Fry for _QI,_ Ant and Dec for _I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!_ and Jonathan Ross for _Friday Night With Jonathan Ross._ C4 had a strong showing in Comedy; David Mitchell won in the _Comedy Performance_ category for _Peep Show_ while The IT Crowd triumphed in _Situation Comedy._
In a television, theatre and film career spanning some 24 years, Stephen Dillane received his first BAFTA in the _Actor_ category for his sensitive and intelligent portrayal of a grieving father fighting for justice following the death of his son, in C4’s _The Shooting of Thomas Hurndall._ He fought off strong competition from Ken Stott (_Hancock and Joan_), Jason Isaacs (_The Curse of Steptoe_) and Ben Whishaw (_Criminal Justice_). Anna Maxwell Martin, who won the Actress BAFTA back in 2005 for her portrayal of Esther Summerson in _Bleak House,_ claimed victory once again in this category, this time for her role as the troubled and malevolent mental-health patient ‘N’ in _Poppy Shakespeare,_ ahead of rivals June Brown (_EastEnders_), Maxine Peake (_Hancock and Joan_) and Andrea Riseborough (_Margaret Thatcher: The Long Walk to Finchley_).
Despite its widely reported financial woes, ITV had something to smile about tonight, claiming five victories. Its entertainment juggernaut, X Factor, reclaimed its crown after winning in 2005 and 2006 in the _Entertainment Programme(4)_ category, over rivals _QI, Harry Hill’s TV Burp_ and _Friday/Sunday Night Project._ ITV1 also saw a third consecutive win for its coverage of Formula One with ITV1 F1: Brazilian Grand Prix 2008 winning in the _Sport_ category, while News At Ten won _News Coverage_ for its reporting of the Chinese Earthquake.
Aside from the _Continuing Drama_ category, BBC One was victorious in all of the other drama categories; Kenneth Branagh received his first BAFTA as a producer for his highly acclaimed Wallander in the _Drama Series_ category, beating previous winners _Spooks, Shameless_ and _Doctor Who,_ while powerful courtroom drama Criminal Justice saw off rivals _Dead Set, The Devil’s Whore_ and _House of Saddam_ in _Drama Serial._ The _Single Drama_ BAFTA went to White Girl and the award-winning BBC acquisition, Mad Men, was victorious in a strong line-up for the _International_ category, which included cult hit _The Wire, Dexter_ and _The Daily Show with Jon Stewart._
_Top Gear, The Apprentice_ and first time-nominee _Celebrity MasterChef_ were all outperformed by The Choir: Boys Don’t Sing (the sequel to previous BAFTA winner _The Choir_) which was the proud recipient of the BAFTA mask for _Features._ The _Interactivity_ BAFTA went to Embarrassing Bodies Online.
In the _Factual Series_ category, Bruce Parry received his first BAFTA for Amazon with Bruce Parry beating _Ross Kemp in Afghanistan, Blood Sweat and T-Shirts_ and fly-on-the-wall documentary series _The Family,_ while Saving Africa’s Witch Children was victorious in _Current Affairs._ Brian Wood’s powerful documentary Chosen, featuring very personal and disturbing accounts of sexual abuse by teachers at the Caldicott Prep School in the 1960s, triumphed in _Single Documentary(5)._
This year’s public vote for the _Philips Audience Award_ was won by Skins, over rivals _The Apprentice, Coronation Street, Outnumbered, Wallander,_ and _X Factor._ The public voted online, by text and by phone.
_The Fellowship,_ the highest accolade bestowed by the Academy, was presented to Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders in recognition of their outstanding body of work which includes _French & Saunders, Absolutely Fabulous, Jam and Jerusalem, The Life and Times of Vivienne Lyle,_ the immensely popular _The Vicar of Dibley_ and many memorable appearances for Comic Relief. The Award was presented to them by Dame Helen Mirren and Richard Curtis.
The _Special Award,_ presented by David Tennant, went to the BBC’s former controller of BBC Fiction, Jane Tranter who was responsible for the hugely successful renaissance of _Doctor Who_ and for leading a stable of diverse productions such as _Tess Of The D’Urbevilles, Gavin and Stacey, Life On Mars, Summer Heights High, Survivors, Blackpool, Heroes, The No.1 Ladies Detective Agency, A Short Stay In Switzerland_ and for acclaimed costume dramas such as _Little Dorrit, Bleak House,_ and _Cranford._
Red carpet highlights, backstage interviews with all the winners, clips of the nominated programmes and all the latest images from the night’s events will be free to view online at bafta.org/awards/television
TV09 Winners Press Release (106.9 KB)
Notes To Editors
*(1) The Specialist Factual category is in honour of Huw Wheldon
*(2) In 1961 Sir David Attenborough won an Individual Honour award and in 1970 he won the Desmond Davis Award
*(3) In 1990 The Trial of Life won, in 1993 Life In The Freezer won, in 1997 Wildlife Special: Polar Bear won, in 1998 The Life Of Birds won, in 1999 Wildlife Special: Tiger won
* (4)The Entertainment Programme category is in honour of Lew Grade
* (5)The Single Documentary category is in honour of Robert Flaherty
Wins by channel:
Channel 4 has won 7, ITV1 has won 5, BBC One has won 4, BBC Two has won 3, BBC Four has won 1 (BBC has won 8 in total).
Eligibility period for the awards: Calendar year 2008
About BAFTA: The British Academy of Film and television Arts supports, develops and promotes the art forms of the moving image by identifying and rewarding excellence, inspiring practitioners and benefiting the public.
Philips Audience Award is for the Programme of the Year in 2008 and is the only award voted for by the public. The shortlist was compiled by panellists from a broad range of print media and the public voted online, by text and by phone.
