‘Fleabag’ was the big winner at the Royal Television Society Programme Awards.
The BBC comedy show – which is fronted by Phoebe Waller-Bridge, as writer and its leading star – took home two prizes at the awards show, which were livestreamed from the Grosvenor House Hotel with no audience or guests due to the current situation surrounding the coronavirus.
‘Fleabag’ took home the gong for Best Scripted Comedy, which was described as "beautifully accomplished, supremely well written and performed" as well as Best Writer, Comedy for Phoebe herself, who was praised by the judges for a "truly stand-out performance in a brilliantly funny series".
They added: "She confidently commits to the character despite the craziness of the world she inhabits."
Elsewhere, ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race UK’ picked up Best Entertainment Show, beating out ‘Love Island’ and ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ to the crown.
The judges described Drag Race as "in its own unique way, it said something rather unexpected and fun about being British, as well as being full of warmth and laughs".
Other winners included ‘Gentleman Jack’ for Best Drama Series and ‘The British Tribe Next Door’ – starring Scarlett Moffatt and her family – won Best Formatted Popular Factual.
Wayne Garvie, Chair of the RTS Programme Awards, said: "We are all facing an incredibly difficult time and rightfully have made responsible changes to the format of the RTS Programme Awards. Despite this, we would like to acknowledge the incredible contribution of all our nominees to the UK’s television output and celebrate our deserving winners. This is my last year in the role of Chair of the RTS Programme Awards and throughout my tenure I have been proud to witness the outstanding talent in the UK, and have been repeatedly inspired by the creativity across our industry."
A full list of winners at the Royal Television Society Programme Awards are as follows:
Best Scripted Comedy – ‘Fleabag’
Best Comedy Performance, Female – Saoirse-Monica Jackson, ‘Derry Girls’
Best Comedy Performance, Male – Ncuti Gatwa, ‘Sex Education’
Best Daytime Programme – ‘The Repair Shop’
Best Children’s Programme – ‘Zog’
Arts Award – ‘Bros After the Screaming Stops’
Live Event Award – Stormzy at Glastonbury 2019
Best Presenter – Mobeen Azhar, ‘Hometown: A Killing’
Best Sports Presenter, Commentator or Pundit – Alex Scott, 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup
Best Sports Programme – ICC Cricket World Cup Final
Best Formatted Popular Factual – ‘The British Tribe Next Door’
Best Single Documentary – ‘War In The Blood’
Best Documentary Series – ‘The Choir: Our School By The Tower’
History Award – ‘Jade: The Reality Star Who Changed Britain’
Science and Natural History Award – ‘The Parkinson’s Drug Trial: A Miracle Cure?’
Breakthrough Award – Tanya Moodie, ‘Motherland’
Best Entertainment Show – ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race UK’
Best Entertainment Performance – London Hughes, ‘Don’t Hate the Playaz’
Best Writer, Comedy – Phoebe Waller-Bridge, ‘Fleabag’
Best Writer, Drama – Craig Mazin, ‘Chernobyl’
Best Soap and Continuing Drama – ‘Casualty’
Best Single Drama – ‘The Left Behind’
Best Drama Series – ‘Gentleman Jack’
Best Mini-Series – ‘The Long Song’
Best Actor, Male – Stephen Graham, ‘The Virtues’
Best Actor, Female – Tamara Lawrance, ‘The Long Song’
2020 Judges’ Award – Jane Featherstone, Sister Global
RTS Channel of the Year – Channel 5