Chernobyl among the big winners at virtual BAFTA TV Awards

Chernobyl has won two top prizes at this year’s virtual BAFTA TV ceremony following huge success at the organisation’s craft awards earlier this month.

Telling the story of the nuclear disaster at the Ukraine plant on 26 April 1986, the five-part Sky original series took home the gongs for best mini-series and leading actor, for Jared Harris – bringing the show’s total number of BAFTAs this year to nine.

With the winners accepting their prizes virtually, many nominees got glammed up at home despite the lack of a red carpet – and shared their pictures on social media as they enjoyed the ceremony.

Other big winners included comedy Stath Lets Flats, starring Jamie Demetriou as an incompetent Greek-Cypriot lettings agent, picking up the awards for scripted comedy and male performance in a comedy programme, and dark comedy The End Of The F***ing World, which also scooped two prizes – the big one for drama series, and supporting actress for Naomi Ackie.

The leading actress award went to Glenda Jackson, for her role in Elizabeth Is Missing – 48 years after her first BAFTA win.

Will Sharpe, who plays Rodney in Giri/Haji, was named best supporting actor, while a tearful Sian Clifford beat her on-screen sister and Fleabag creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge to win the female performance in a comedy programme prize.

And the prize for news coverage went to Sky News, for its reporting on the protests in Hong Kong, beating competition from ITV News At Ten’s election results, Victoria Derbyshire’s Men Who Lost Loved Ones To Knife Crime and Newsnight’s Prince Andrew & The Epstein Scandal interview.

Broadcast as live on BBC One from a closed-doors studio with just host Richard Ayoade and some of the award presenters there in person, the nominees relied on their wifi connections to accept their prizes – and all seemed to go smoothly.

Idris Elba received the night’s special award, one of BAFTA’s top honours, for his creative contribution to television and his work promoting diversity and new talent in the industry.

Accepting the prize, the star said: “I feel very grounded coming from east London, where I was born and raised, and I know that in east London we try and treat people with respect because everyone comes from the same cloth.

“In the world of film and television nothing is different, in other words no one is different, so me giving an opportunity to someone else is just part of my inheritance, part of my upbringing.”

Elba also joked that “one day I might get an acting award but until that day I am going to make more opportunities for more actors, more writers and more people to come and tell their story”.

Speaking about his award, Chernobyl actor Harris said: “Of course you want as many people to see what you do and love it and feel about it the same way you do, so it’s tremendously gratifying when you get this response.”

This year’s “must-see moment” award, the only prize voted for by the public, went to Gavin And Stacey for the scene in which Nessa proposed to Smithy during last year’s Christmas special comeback – beating competition from Game Of Thrones, Love Island, Coronation Street, Line Of Duty and Fleabag.

Stars and co-creators Ruth Jones and James Corden accepted the award, with Jones describing the win a “immense” and Corden saying: “This is the lovely icing on an already really lovely cake.”

Here are the 2020 winners in full:

• Leading actress – Glenda Jackson, Elizabeth Is Missing – BBC One

• Leading actor – Jared Harris, Chernobyl – Sky Atlantic

• Supporting actress – Naomi Ackie, The End Of The F***ing World – Channel 4

• Supporting actor – Will Sharpe, Giri/Haji – BBC Two

• Female performance in a comedy programme – Sian Clifford, Fleabag – BBC

• Male performance in a comedy programme – Jamie Demetriou, Stath Lets Flats – Channel 4

• Drama series – The End Of The F***ing World – Channel 4

• Single drama – The Left Behind – BBC Three

• Mini-series – Chernobyl – Sky Atlantic

• Entertainment performance – Mo Gilligan, The Lateish Show With Mo Gilligan – Channel 4

• Soap and continuing drama – Emmerdale – ITV

• International – When They See Us – Netflix

• Entertainment programme – Strictly Come Dancing – BBC One

• Comedy entertainment programme – Taskmaster – Dave

• Scripted comedy – Stath Lets Flats – Channel 4

• Reality and constructed factual – Race Across The World – BBC Two

• Features – The Misadventures Of Romesh Ranganathan – BBC Two

• Must-see moment (voted for by the public) – Gavin And Stacey, Nessa proposes to Smithy – BBC One

• Current affairs – Undercover: Inside China’s Digital Gulag (Exposure) – ITV

• Single documentary – The Last Survivors – BBC Two

• Factual series – Leaving Neverland – Channel 4

• Specialist factual – Yorkshire Ripper Files: A Very British Crime Story – BBC Four

• News coverage – Hong Kong Protests – Sky News

• Sport – 2019 Rugby World Cup Final: England v South Africa – ITV

• Live event – Blue Planet Live – BBC One

• Short-form programme – Brain In Gear – BBC iPlayer

• Special award – Idris Elba