The BAFTA TV Awards winners have been announced, and it was a big night for Michaela Coel, whose BBC and HBO series I May Destroy You scooped two of the biggest prizes of the evening.
During a pre-recorded ceremony at London’s iconic Television Centre, Coel walked away with best leading actress for her performance as sexual assault survivor Arabella, while I May Destroy You also scooped best mini-series, beating Steve McQueen’s Small Axe.
It follows I May Destroy You’s strong showing last month at the BAFTA TV Craft Awards, which celebrates the work of those working behind the scenes. Coel scored a BAFTA mask for best drama writer and best director at the ceremony.
After winning leading actress on Sunday, Coel collected her award in-person and thanked intimacy coach Ita O’Brien. Coel said O’Brien’s presence meant she could make a series about “exploitation, loss of respect, about abuse of power without being exploited or abused in the process.”
I May Destroy You’s BAFTA success is likely to bode well ahead of the Emmys in September. It also raises further questions about the Hollywood Foreign Press Association’s decision to completely overlook the series at the Golden Globes in February.
Other big winners on the night included Paul Mescal, who took home the BAFTA for best leading actor for his turn in BBC Three and Hulu drama Normal People. He beat hotly-tipped rivals including John Boyega (Small Axe) and Josh O’Connor (The Crown).
Indeed, Season 4 of The Crown did not collect a single prize on Sunday night, despite success elsewhere, including the Golden Globes. It was not all bad news for Netflix, however, after the streamer won best specialist factual program for The Surgeon’s Cut, while Aimee Lou Wood won best female performance in a comedy for Sex Education.
Elsewhere, Sky’s Save Me Too triumphed in the best drama series category, while there were prizes for Malachi Kirby (Small Axe) and Rakie Ayola (Anthony) in supporting roles.
The awards were presided over by Richard Ayoade in what was BAFTA’s first major in-person event since the spread of coronavirus last year. Nominees in attendance included Coel, Jodie Comer, Paul Mescal, and Billie Piper. It’s A Sin star and Years & Years singer Olly Alexander opened the show a performance of his new single Starstruck.
Below are the nominations and winners (bold) in full:
COMEDY ENTERTAINMENT PROGRAM
CHARLIE BROOKER’S ANTIVIRAL WIPE Charlie Brooker, Annabel Jones, Ali Marlow – Broke & Bones, Endemol Shine Group/BBC Two
ROB & ROMESH VS Jack Shillaker, David Taylor, Murray Boland, Danielle Lux, Bill Righton – CPL Productions/Sky One
THE BIG NARSTIE SHOW Obi Kevin Akudike, Nathan Brown, Rina Dayalji, Ben Wicks, Toby Baker – Expectation, Dice Productions Entertainment/Channel 4
THE RANGANATION Production Team – Zeppotron/BBC Two
CURRENT AFFAIRS
AMERICA’S WAR ON ABORTION (EXPOSURE) Deeyah Khan, Darin Prindle, Andrew Smith – Fuuse Films/ITV
ITALY’S FRONTLINE: A DOCTOR’S DIARY Sasha Joelle Achilli, Dan Edge, Ella Claire Newton, Paul van Dyck, Sarah Waldron – Mongoose Pictures/BBC Two
THE BATTLE FOR HONG KONG (DISPATCHES) Robin Barnwell, Gesbeen Mohammad, Guy Creasey, David Henshaw, Evan Williams – Hardcash Productions, Evan Williams Productions/Channel 4
THE CYPRUS PAPERS UNDERCOVER (AL JAZEERA INVESTIGATIONS) Phil Rees, Sarah Yeo, Leonidas Sofogiannis, James Kleinfeld, David Harrison, Jason Gwynne – Al Jazeera Media Network/Al Jazeera English
DAYTIME
JIMMY MCGOVERN’S MOVING ON Production Team – LA Productions/BBC One
RICHARD OSMAN’S HOUSE OF GAMES Production Team – Remarkable TV/BBC Two
THE CHASE Michael Kelpie, Martin Scott, Helen Tumbridge – Potato/ITV
THE GREAT HOUSE GIVEAWAY Production Team – Chwarel/Channel 4
DRAMA SERIES
GANGS OF LONDON Gareth Evans, Matt Flannery, Thomas Benski, Jane Featherstone, Lucas Ochoa, Hugh Warren – Pulse Films, SISTER/Sky Atlantic
I HATE SUZIE Lucy Prebble, Billie Piper, Andrea Dewsbery, Julie Gardner, Georgi Banks-Davies, Anthony Neilson – Bad Wolf/Sky Atlantic
SAVE ME TOO Simon Heath, Jessica Sykes, Lennie James, Lizzie Rusbridger, Coky Giedroyc, Jim Loach – World Productions/Sky Atlantic
THE CROWN Peter Morgan, Suzanne Mackie, Michael Casey, Oona O’Beirn, Andy Stebbing, Martin Harrison – Left Bank Pictures in association with Sony Pictures Television/Netflix
ENTERTAINMENT PERFORMANCE
ADAM HILLS The Last Leg – Open Mike Productions/Channel 4
BRADLEY WALSH Beat the Chasers – Potato/ITV
CLAUDIA WINKLEMAN Strictly Come Dancing – BBC Studios/BBC One
DAVID MITCHELL Would I Lie to You? At Christmas – Zeppotron/BBC One
GRAHAM NORTON The Graham Norton Show – So Television/BBC One
ROMESH RANGANATHAN The Ranganation – Zeppotron/BBC Two
ENTERTAINMENT PROGRAM
ANT & DEC’S SATURDAY NIGHT TAKEAWAY Pete Ogden, Tim Dean, Ben Aston, Doran Azouelos, Kerry Shaw, Chris Power – ITV Studios, Mitre Television/ITV
LIFE & RHYMES Production Team – CPL Productions, Licklemor Productions/Sky Arts
STRICTLY COME DANCING Production Team – BBC Studios/BBC One
THE MASKED SINGER Daniel Nettleton, Derek McLean, Claire Horton, Marc Bassett, Simon Staffurth – Bandicoot Scotland/ITV
FACTUAL SERIES
CRIME & PUNISHMENT Production Team – 72 Films/Channel 4
HOSPITAL Production Team – Label1/BBC Two
LOSING IT: OUR MENTAL HEALTH EMERGENCY Production Team – Story Films/Channel 4
ONCE UPON A TIME IN IRAQ James Bluemel, Jo Able, Miriam Walsh, Simon Sykes, Andrew Palmer, Will Anderson – Keo Films/BBC Two
FEATURES
BIG ZUU’S BIG EATS Production Team – Boomerang/Dave
LONG LOST FAMILY: BORN WITHOUT TRACE Sally Benton, Rosie Schellenberg, Alice Goodyear, Paddy Lynas – Wall to Wall Media/ITV
MORTIMER AND WHITEHOUSE: GONE FISHING Bob Mortimer, Paul Whitehouse, Lisa Clark, Rob Gill, Stephanie Fyfe, Doug Bryson – Owl Power/BBC Two
THE REPAIR SHOP Production Team – Ricochet/BBC One
FEMALE PERFORMANCE IN A COMEDY PROGRAMME
AIMEE LOU WOOD Sex Education – Eleven Film/Netflix
DAISY HAGGARD Breeders – Avalon, FX Productions/Sky One
DAISY MAY COOPER This Country – BBC Studios/BBC Three
EMMA MACKEY Sex Education – Eleven Film/Netflix
GBEMISOLA IKUMELO Famalam – BBC Studios/BBC Three
MAE MARTIN Feel Good – Objective Fiction, Objective Media Group Scotland/Channel 4
INTERNATIONAL
LITTLE AMERICA Lee Eisenberg, Alan Yang, Kumail Nanjiani, Emily V. Gordon – Apple, Universal Television/Apple TV+
LOVECRAFT COUNTRY Production Team – Afemme, Monkeypaw, Bad Robot, Warner Bros., HBO/Sky Atlantic
UNORTHODOX Anna Winger, Alexa Karolinski, Maria Schrader – Studio Airlift, RealFilm/Netflix
WELCOME TO CHECHNYA: THE GAY PURGE (STORYVILLE) David France, Alice Henty, Askold Kurov, Joy A. Tomchin – Public Square Films/BBC Four
LEADING ACTOR
JOHN BOYEGA Small Axe – Turbine Studios, Lammas Park /BBC One
JOSH O’CONNOR The Crown – Left Bank Pictures, Sony Pictures Television/Netflix
PAAPA ESSIEDU I May Destroy You – Various Artists, FALKNA/BBC One
PAUL MESCAL Normal People – Element Pictures/BBC Three
SHAUN PARKES Small Axe – Turbine Studios, Lammas Park/BBC One
WALEED ZUAITER Baghdad Central – Euston Films/Channel 4
LEADING ACTRESS
BILLIE PIPER I Hate Suzie – Bad Wolf/Sky Atlantic
DAISY EDGAR-JONES Normal People – Element Pictures/BBC Three
HAYLEY SQUIRES Adult Material – Fifty Fathoms Productions/Channel 4
JODIE COMER Killing Eve – Sid Gentle Films/BBC One
LETITIA WRIGHT Small Axe – Turbine Studios, Lammas Park/BBC One
MICHAELA COEL I May Destroy You – Various Artists, FALKNA/BBC One
LIVE EVENT
LIFE DRAWING LIVE! Emyr Afan, Sally Dixon, Josie d’Arby, Lachlan Goudie, Diana Ali, Nicky Philipps – Avanti Media/BBC Four
SPRINGWATCH 2020 Production Team – BBC Studios Natural History Unit/BBC Two
THE ROYAL BRITISH LEGION FESTIVAL OF REMEMBRANCE Production Team – BBC Studios/BBC One
THE THIRD DAY: AUTUMN Production Team – Sky Studios, Plan B Entertainment, Punchdrunk Entertainment, HBO/Sky Atlantic
MALE PERFORMANCE IN A COMEDY PROGRAMME
CHARLIE COOPER This Country – BBC Studios/BBC Three
GUZ KHAN Man Like Mobeen – Tiger Aspect Productions/BBC Three
JOSEPH GILGUN Brassic -Calamity Films/Sky One
NCUTI GATWA Sex Education – Eleven Film/Netflix
PAUL RITTER Friday Night Dinner – Popper Pictures, Big Talk Productions/Channel 4
REECE SHEARSMITH Inside No.9 – BBC Studios/BBC Two
MINI-SERIES
ADULT MATERIAL Lucy Kirkwood, Dawn Shadforth, Sara Hamill, Patrick Spence – Fifty Fathoms Productions/Channel 4
I MAY DESTROY YOU Production Team – Various Artists, FALKNA/BBC One
NORMAL PEOPLE Lenny Abrahamson, Sally Rooney, Ed Guiney, Andrew Lowe, Emma Norton, Catherine Magee – Element Pictures/BBC Three
SMALL AXE Steve McQueen, Tracey Scoffield, David Tanner, Michael Elliott, Anita Overland – Turbine Studios, Lammas Park/BBC One
NEWS COVERAGE
BBC NEWS AT TEN: PRIME MINISTER ADMITTED TO INTENSIVE CARE Production Team -BBC News/BBC One
CHANNEL 4 NEWS: DETERRING DEMOCRACY Production Team – ITN, Channel 4 News/Channel 4
NEWSNIGHT: COVID CARE CRISIS Production Team – BBC Newsnight/BBC Two
SKY NEWS: INSIDE IDLIB Production Team – Sky News/Sky News
REALITY & CONSTRUCTED FACTUAL
MASTERCHEF: THE PROFESSIONALS David Ambler, Katie Attwood, Genevieve Welch, Anthony Crumpton – Shine TV/BBC One
RACE ACROSS THE WORLD Production Team – Studio Lambert/BBC Two
THE SCHOOL THAT TRIED TO END RACISM Production Team – Proper Content/Channel 4
THE WRITE OFFS Production Team – Shine TV/Channel 4
SCRIPTED COMEDY
GHOSTS Production Team – Monumental Television/BBC One
INSIDE NO. 9 Adam Tandy, Steve Pemberton, Reece Shearsmith, Matt Lipsey, Guillem Morales – BBC Studios/BBC Two
MAN LIKE MOBEEN Production Team – Tiger Aspect Productions/BBC Three
THIS COUNTRY Daisy May Cooper, Charlie Cooper, Tom George, Simon Mayhew-Archer – BBC Studios/BBC Three
SHORT FORM PROGRAM
CRIPTALES Mat Fraser, Amit Sharma, Ewan Marshall, Jenny Sealey, Debbie Christie – BBC Studios/BBC Four
DISABLED NOT DEFEATED: THE ROCK BANS WITH LEARNING DISABILITIES – DELTA 7 Rosie Baldwin, Holly Stimson, Dan Knight – Vice/Noisey
THE MAIN PART Rosie Westhoff, Jen Wakefield, Sara Huxley, Tom Payne, Jody Smith – Studio71 UK/BBC iPlayer
THEY SAW THE SUN FIRST Stefan Hunt, Jess Lowe, Adam Gee – Fresh Film, Red Bull Media House/Red Bull TV
SINGLE DOCUMENTARY
AMERICAN MURDER: THE FAMILY NEXT DOOR Jenny Popplewell, James Marsh, Jonathan Stadlen, Simon Barker – Netflix Originals/Netflix
ANTON FERDINAND: FOOTBALL, RACISM & ME Sian Guerra, Jeremy Lee, Wendie Ottewill, James Ross – Wonder, New Era Global Productions/BBC One
LOCKED IN: BREAKING THE SILENCE (STORYVILLE) Xavier Alford, Colette Hodges, Sacha Mirzoeff, Poppy Goodheart – Marble Films/BBC Four
SURVIVING COVID Production Team – Sandpaper Films/Channel 4
SINGLE DRAMA
ANTHONY Jimmy McGovern, Colin McKeown, Donna Molloy, Terry McDonough – LA Productions/BBC One
BBW (ON THE EDGE) Ben Bickerton, Philip Trethowan, Lisa Walters, William Stefan Smith, Yolanda Mercy – BlackLight Television/Channel 4
SITTING IN LIMBO Production Team – Left Bank Pictures/BBC One
THE WINDERMERE CHILDREN Eleanor Greene, Leanne Klein, Tim Rostock, Simon Block, Michael Samuels, Alison Sterling – Wall to Wall Media, Warner Bros. ITVP Germany/BBC Two
SOAP & CONTINUING DRAMA
CASUALTY Simon Harper, Loretta Preece, Sarah Beeson, Jenny Thompson – BBC Studios/BBC One
CORONATION STREET Production Team – ITV Studios/ITV
EASTENDERS Jon Sen, Kate Oates, Sharon Batten, Liza Mellody – BBC Studios/BBC One
HOLLYOAKS Bryan Kirkwood, Hannah Sowden, Josie Day, Gary Sewell, Colette Chard – Lime Pictures/Channel 4
SPECIALIST FACTUAL
EXTINCTION: THE FACTS Serena Davies, Helen Thomas, Stephen Moore, Charlotte Lathane – BBC Studios/BBC One
PUTIN: A RUSSIAN SPY STORY James Rogan, Nick Green, Paul Mitchell, Adam Finch – Rogan Productions/Channel 4
THE RISE OF THE MURDOCH DYNASTY David Glover, Cate Hall, Jamie Roberts, Owen Phillips, Justin Badger, Sam Santana – 72 Films/BBC Two
THE SURGEON’S CUT James Newton, James Van Der Pool, Andrew Cohen – BBC Studios/Netflix
SPORT
BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX Production Team – Sky Sports F1/Sky Sports Formula 1
ENGLAND V FRANCE: THE FINAL OF AUTUMN NATIONS CUP Production Team – Sunset+Vine/Amazon Prime Video
ENGLAND V WEST INDIES TEST CRICKET Production Team – Sky Sports/Sky Sports Cricket
LONDON MARATHON 2020 Alastair McIntyre, Micky Payne, Matthew Griffiths, Adam Duncan – BBC Sport/BBC One
SUPPORTING ACTOR
KUNAL NAYYAR Criminal: UK – Idiotlamp Productions/Netflix
MALACHI KIRBY Small Axe – Turbine Studios, Lammas Park/BBC One
MICHAEL SHEEN Quiz – Left Bank Pictures/ITV
MICHEAL WARD Small Axe – Turbine Studios, Lammas Park/BBC One
RUPERT EVERETT Adult Material – Fifty Fathoms Productions/Channel 4
TOBIAS MENZIES The Crown – Left Bank Pictures, Sony Pictures Television/Netflix
SUPPORTING ACTRESS
HELENA BONHAM CARTER The Crown – Left Bank Pictures, Sony Pictures Television/Netflix
LEILA FARZAD I Hate Suzie – Bad Wolf/Sky Atlantic
RAKIE AYOLA Anthony – LA Productions/BBC One
SIENA KELLY Adult Material – Fifty Fathoms Productions/Channel 4
SOPHIE OKONEDO Criminal: UK – Idiotlamp Productions/Netflix
WERUCHE OPIA I May Destroy You – Various Artists, FALKNA/BBC One
VIRGIN MEDIA’S MUST-SEE MOMENT (voted for by the public)
BRIDGERTON Penelope is revealed as Lady Whistledown – Netflix Originals, Shondaland/Netflix
BRITAIN’S GOT TALENT Diversity perform a routine inspired by the events of 2020 – Thames, Syco/ITV
EASTENDERS Gray kills Chantelle – BBC Studios/BBC One
GOGGLEBOX Reactions to Boris Johnson’s press conference – Studio Lambert/Channel 4
NIGELLA’S COOK, EAT, REPEAT Mee-cro-wah-vay – BBC Studios Unscripted Productions/BBC Two
THE MANDALORIAN Luke Skywalker arrives – Lucasfilm/Disney+