The television community of the West of England turned out in force tonight to celebrate their work over the last twelve months.
The Royal Television Society West of England Awards in association with Evolutions Bristol took place at the Bristol Old Vic on Sunday 6th March with a glittering gala ceremony hosted by BAFTA winning actor Jason Watkins.
Guests included historian, curator and TV presenter Lucy Worsley, antique sleuth Philip Mould (Fake or Fortune), Nick Knowles and upcoming actress Ruby Ashbourne Serkis (Cider with Rosie).
BBC Features had a successful evening, scooping four awards for shows Fake or Fortune and DIY SOS:Homes for Veterans as well as for on screen talent with Anita Rani for Countryfile.
Drummer TV scooped two awards for CBBC show Ice Stars in Children’s and hard hitting BBC3 documentary ‘Where am I Sleeping Tonight?’ Best Natural History programme went to Silverback Films for its landmark BBC One series, The Hunt, voiced by Sir David Attenborough.
The evening also celebrated the range of dramas filmed in the region over the last year either on location or at The Bottle Yard Studios and in these drama categories, The Lost Honour of Christopher Jefferies (Carnival Films) won five of the seven categories. This included Best Drama which was presented by
Mayor George Ferguson, along with On Screen Performance for host Jason Watkins, for his portrayal of the Clifton landlord vilified by the press over the murder of Joanna Yeates.
Best Director was awarded to Wolf Hall’s Peter Kosminsky and Best Composer to Debbie Wiseman, also for Wolf Hall.
Other winners on the night included local independent production company John Downer Productions for its BBC show, Pets - Wild at Heart - Will Gregory (Goldfrapp) won for its music alongside its editors.
In News, it was two wins for BBC Points West, for reporter Fiona Lamdin, for her exclusive handling of the Becky Watts case and to the team behind the Points West Abuse Special.
RTS Bristol presented a Special Award to See Hear, part of BBC Features and Daytime Production, which has been on air for 35 years. Sophie Stone, the deaf actress who has recently starred in Doctor Who presented the award to the team and talked of its importance as the voice of the deaf community and its portrayal of deaf people as ‘people with potential.
The Sir Ambrose Fleming Memorial Award for outstanding contribution to television in the RTS Bristol area went to Steve Humphries, Managing Director of Testimony Films, who for almost 25 years, has been producing a raft of memorable and inspirational documentaries, for example with WW1 soldier Harry Patch and on the survivors of the Twin Tower tragedies.
SEE ALL WINNERS AND NOMINEES HERE