This award is given by the Royal Television Society to an individual or team making a lasting impact on the creative sector in this part of the UK.

WINNER:
PRODUCTION TEAM OF INSPECTOR GEORGE GENTLY, Company Pictures for BBC1

 

The Judges said:

One of the great advantages of having a thriving production sector outside London is the opportunities it creates for new talent.  And if it’s filmed here, a long running hit on the network can also show off our unique North East landscape.

One production team who’ve achieved both those things has been working here for eight years telling stories created by a North East writer using recognizable North East locations.  The Inspector George Gently production machine rolled into Durham in 2010 after Northern Film and Media and One North East ensured the drama — set in the North East — was also filmed in the region.  Since then, 18 George Gently episodes have been made here, including the show’s finale in which the main character’s trip to the seaside ended all hopes of a recommission.

Writer Peter Flannery has, of course, been the creator, the driving force and ‘godfather’ of the project.  Originally from Jarrow, he’s successfully put the North East on the map through shows like Gently and Our Friends in the North.  He and his production team have been a welcome addition to the region’s creative sector, bringing established actors and crew to work alongside emerging talent.  The results can be measured in ratings success both here in Britain and internationally, as well as in the careers helped along by involvement in the Gently project.

George met his less than gentle demise when the final episode was screened in October last year — the end of an era for a production that had contributed so much to the creative economy of the North East. The Outstanding Achievement Award goes to the team that brought us Inspector George Gently.