It was a night of glitz and glamour, with the stars descending on the Royal Festival Hall for the biggest night in the UK television calendar.
Oscar-winning actress Kate Winslet picked up an award for best leading actress while Ben Whishaw took the gong for leading actor for his performance as the under-pressure doctor in This Is Going to Hurt.
The night was not without its surprises though, with long-running drama Casualty beating EastEnders, Emmerdale and last year’s winner Coronation Street for best soap and continuing drama.
And child actor Lenny Rush, 14, from Daisy May Cooper’s dark comedy Am I Being Unreasonable? also won the award for best male performance in a comedy programme – beating the likes of Daniel Radcliffe, Jon Pointing and Matt Berry.
Meanwhile, The Masked Singer also fought off competition from Ant And Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway and Strictly Come Dancing to win best entertainment programme.
During the night, Sir Mo Farah, who won a BAFTA award for his BBC One documentary The Real Mo Farah, dedicated his documentary to “children who are being trafficked”.
Ben Whishaw
Sir Mo Farah and his partner Tania
Collecting the prize at the event, the four-time Olympic champion said he hoped his story showed the “kids who have no say at all” that “they are not alone”.
He said: “The kids have no say at all, they are just kids and no child should ever go through what I did, I hope my story shows they aren’t alone, we are in it together.”
The award show also saw the musical drama Mood, which tells the story of a budding singer trying to make it in the industry, take the award for best mini-series.
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Creator and writer Nicole Lecky thanked the women who entrusted her with their stories and dedicated her award to her mother who passed away when she was 19 years old.
“It was such an uphill battle in life,” she said.
“For me to be stood here, I hope it inspires others who have been through something that is insurmountable.”
Also picking up the award for best feature show was Joe Lycett Vs Beckham: Got Your Back at Xmas which saw the comedian lock horns with the former footballer last year to highlight the true cost of the Qatar World Cup.
Claudia Winkleman
(Left to right) Eva Birthistle, Sarah Greene, Sharon Horgan and Anne-Marie Duff, with the award for Drama Series, for Bad Sisters
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While Lycett was not present to pick up his award, a member of his production team read a statement from the comedian on stage in which he thanked Channel 4 for its support and dedicated the award to the “people still being oppressed in Qatar”.
The ceremony also saw actress Siobhan McSweeney win best female performance in a comedy programme for her role as headteacher Sister Michael in the hit comedy Derry Girls.
In her humorous speech she said: “To the people in Derry, thank you taking me into your hearts and your living rooms.”
She also hit out at leaders in Dublin, Stormont and Westminster, adding: “In the words of my beloved Sister Michael, ‘it’s time they started to wise up’.”
Other poignant speeches came from Winslet who won the best actress award for her performance in Channel 4’s drama I Am Ruth, which sees the actress witness her real-life daughter Mia Threapleton retreat into herself due to the pressures of social media.
Kate Winslet and Mia Threapleton
In an emotional speech, Winslet said: “If I could break it in half, I would give the other half to my daughter, we did this together, kiddo.”
The actress also said that “small British television dramas can be mighty” and mental health stories such as this one “need to be heard”.
It was the second appearance from Winslet who joined the team of I Am Ruth on stage earlier in the night as they accepted the BAFTA TV award for single drama.