Have I Got News For You wins special prize at Broadcast Awards
- Have I Got News For You has won the Special Recognition Award at the Broadcast Awards 2016
- Catastrophe won in the Comedy category, whilst Car Share was named Best Original Programme
- CBBC sitcom So Awkward also picked up a prize at the TV industry event
Have I Got News For You has been singled out for special recognition at the Broadcast Awards 2016.
The long-running panel show was handed the Special Recognition Award at the TV industry event, for "expertly skewering the powerful and pompous for 50 series".
In the awards' summary, the panel commented: "Against its famously low-budget set and props - including the Wheel of News, the One-Armed Bandit of News and the Strengthometer of News - the format has remained reassuringly familiar, while somehow striking the right tone on many of the complex and upsetting news stories that have come its way, from 9/11 to phone hacking, the Jimmy Savile revelations and the Charlie Hebdo massacre."
Speaking about the format's success, the awards added: "The show has entertained viewers of up to 7 million following its move from BBC Two to BBC One in 2002 and, despite the acceleration of rolling news and the rapid responses of social media, it shows no signs of slowing down. Here's to the next 25 years..."
Have I Got News For You, which is produced by Hat Trick Productions, is due to return to BBC One at the start of April.
Elsewhere in the awards, Channel 4 sitcom Catastrophe beat Car Share, Detectorists, Inside No. 9, People Just Do Nothing and The Keith Lemon Sketch Show to claim the win in the Comedy category.
The judges' comments say: "So perfectly formed was Channel 4's hit comedy upon its arrival in January 2015 that it was hard to believe this was the first collaboration between its writers/stars Sharon Horgan and Rob Delaney."
They added: "From the start, viewers felt in safe hands: here were real people, raw emotions, a story to invest in - and, crucially, big, often filthy, laughs every few seconds."
Judges summarised: "In an exceptionally fertile period for comedy, Channel 4 struck gold. It clearly knew what a rare gem it had on its hands, recommissioning it almost instantly and getting series two to air within 10 months."
"It's got it all - original and honest characters, with sharp, funny dialogue - and never slips into the obvious," said one judge. "It's already a classic British sitcom."
Meanwhile Peter Kay sitcom Car Share was named Best Original Programme at tonight's awards ceremony. The sitcom has previously been voted as Comedy Of The Year in the Comedy.co.uk Awards.
The Broadcast Awards note: "Not only was Car Share one of the standout comedy hits of 2015, it was also groundbreaking in many ways. Two years in the making, the Goodnight Vienna Productions series was a labour of love for all involved. Peter Kay directed, produced and starred in the BBC One hit, developed by Tim Reid and Paul Coleman. It even got its own bespoke radio station, Forever FM, the third character to commuters John and Kayleigh (Sian Gibson), whose conversation is underscored and frequently interrupted by the DJs' inane patter and playlist."
The show was also praised for being a "digital pioneer". The notes say: "Kay insisted that the full series be made available online before transmission on BBC One. It became the corporation's most successful series to premiere as a box set to date, amassing 2.8 million requests on iPlayer ahead of a linear transmission."
Another comedy programme to win at the awards was CBBC's So Awkward. The sitcom, which was created by new-to-TV writer Julie Bower, follows the adventures of three school girls. It received universal praise from the judging panel.
They noted: "The brief from CBBC and Australia's ABC was to deliver a smart comedy with a particular skew towards older girls, showing the appeal of science and academia rather than just the well-trodden path of relationships and growing up. This was delivered with a lightness of touch and a slick filming style, including some imaginative and heightened pre-title sequences that impressed the judges."
Broadcast explained: "Series like this can stand or fall by their casting and this mix of one newcomer and four more established performers played favourably with the judges."
Although Detectorists didn't win in the Comedy category, the BBC Four sitcom did pick up a Highly Commended nod for Best Multichannel Programme. The awards note: "Poignant, true and grounded, Mackenzie Crook's quiet gem was universally praised. The judges highlighted the warm chemistry between Crook and Toby Jones, its moments of poignancy and its breathtakingly beautiful shots of the English countryside in summer."
Meanwhile the comedy-focused Tiger Aspect Productions, the company that produces shows including Benidorm and Murder In Successville, was named Best Independent Production Company.
Other winners at the awards, which were presented by Jonathan Ross, included Emmerdale, Clangers and Britain's Got Talent and Channel 4 took home the coveted Channel Of The Year title. To find out more about the Broadcast Awards visit broadcastawards.co.uk