Adolescence picks up four RTS Programme Awards

Furthermore, Cooper’s co-star Erin Doherty presented the Judges’ Award to Stephen Graham, Hannah Walters, and Matriarch Productions, which was highlighted for providing a platform for underrepresented voices, telling authentic stories, and offering opportunities to people from all cultural backgrounds and social classes.

The Royal Television Society (RTS) event, held in partnership with Cast & Crew, was hosted by Comedian Tom Allen at London’s JW Marriott Grosvenor House Hotel.

Across the 29 categories, the BBC led with 16 awards, including Entertainment and Reality for The Celebrity Traitors, and wins for the stars of Unforgivable, Bobby Schofield and Anna Friel, in the Leading Actor – Male and Supporting Actor – Female categories. Hamza Yassin picked up his first RTS Award in the Presenter category for Hamza’s Hidden Wild Isles, while Gabby Logan won Sports Presenter, Commentator or Pundit for Women's Rugby World Cup 2025. The BBC also won the Drama Series category for Blue Lights.

In the Comedy categories, Prime Video’s Last One Laughing won Comedy Entertainment, while Steve Coogan won Comedy Performance – Male for How Are You? It's Alan (Partridge). Channel 4’s Big Boys took home the Comedy Drama award, and the BBC’s Things You Should Have Done, fronted by Comedian and Internet Personality Lucia Keskin (or “Chi With A C”), won the Scripted Comedy category for the second year running.

For 2026, the RTS presented Sir Michael Palin with the Outstanding Achievement Award, for his stellar career now in its seventh decade as a comic performer, writer, actor, and an acclaimed presenter, including as a founding member of legendary comedy group Monty Python and as the presenter of docuseries Great Railway Journeys of the World.

Kenton Allen, Chair of the RTS Programme Awards, said: “Tonight’s winners are a powerful reminder that British television remains one of this country’s greatest creative and economic success stories – bold in ambition, world-class in craft, and fearless in the stories it chooses to tell. From breakout new talent to national treasures, these awards celebrate the extraordinary range of voices shaping modern television. In a fiercely competitive global market, UK producers, writers, actors, directors, and our phenomenal crews are creating work that moves audiences, starts conversations, and travels the world.”

 

Full list of RTS Programme Awards 2026 winners:

 

Arts

The Last Musician of Auschwitz (Two Rivers Media in association with Access for BBC)

 

Breakthrough Award

Owen Cooper – Adolescence (Warp Films, Matriarch Productions and Plan B for Netflix)

 

Children’s Programme

Crongton (New Pictures for BBC)

 

Comedy Drama

Big Boys (Roughcut TV for Channel 4)

 

Comedy Entertainment

Last One Laughing (Zeppotron/Initial for Prime Video)

 

Comedy Performance – Female

Philippa Dunne – Amandaland (Merman Television for BBC)

 

Comedy Performance – Male

Steve Coogan – How Are You? It's Alan (Partridge) (Baby Cow Productions for BBC)

 

Daytime Programme

BBC Breakfast – Our Girls: The Southport Families (BBC Breakfast for BBC)

 

Documentary Series

Bibaa & Nicole: Murder in the Park (True Vision for Sky Documentaries)

 

Drama Series

Blue Lights (Two Cities Television/Gallagher Films for BBC)

 

Entertainment and Reality

The Celebrity Traitors (Studio Lambert for BBC)

 

Entertainment Performance

Rob Beckett and Romesh Ranganathan – Rob and Romesh Vs (CPL Productions for Sky Max)

 

Formatted Popular Factual

The Assembly (Rockerdale Studios for ITV1/ITVX)

 

History

Flight 149: Hostage of War (Drum Studios for Sky Documentaries)

 

Leading Actor – Female

Narges Rashidi – Prisoner 951 (Dancing Ledge Productions for BBC)

 

Leading Actor – Male

Bobby Schofield – Unforgivable (LA Productions for BBC)

 

Limited Series and Single Drama

Adolescence (Warp Films, Matriarch Productions and Plan B for Netflix)

 

Live Event

Holocaust Memorial Day 2025 (BBC Studios Events for BBC)

 

Presenter

Hamza Yassin – Hamza’s Hidden Wild Isles (Silverback Films for BBC)

 

Science and The Natural World

Underdogs (Wildstar Films, a Fremantle company, in partnership with Maximum Effort for National Geographic and Disney+)

 

Scripted Comedy

Things You Should Have Done (Roughcut TV for BBC)

 

Single Documentary

Grenfell: Uncovered (Rogan Productions for Netflix)

 

Soap and Continuing Drama

EastEnders (BBC Studios for BBC)

 

Sports Presenter, Commentator or Pundit

Gabby Logan - Women's Rugby World Cup 2025 (Whisper Cymru for BBC)

 

Sports Programme

2025 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (Sky Sports)

 

Supporting Actor – Female

Anna Friel – Unforgivable (LA Productions for BBC)

 

Supporting Actor – Male

Owen Cooper – Adolescence (Warp Films, Matriarch Productions and Plan B for Netflix)

 

Writer – Comedy

Kat Sadler – Such Brave Girls (Various Artists Limited for BBC)

 

Writer – Drama

Jack Thorne and Stephen Graham - Adolescence (Warp Films, Matriarch Productions and Plan B for Netflix)

 

Judges’ Award

Stephen Graham, Hannah Walters and Matriarch Productions

 

Outstanding Achievement Award

Sir Michael Palin

 

The BBC recently won seven accolades at the RTS Television Journalism Awards. Discover more here.