Rock band The Last Dinner Party, comedian Fern Brady and hit TV show Mr Bates Vs The Post Office are among the winners at this year's Sky Arts Awards. The inaugural event, building on the legacy of the South Bank Sky Arts Awards, was hosted by Joe Lycett at the Roundhouse, in London, on Tuesday. The night showcased the very best of British and Irish arts and culture, celebrating incredible achievements across the arts.
Indie rock band The Last Dinner Party took home the popular music award, while Mr Bates Vs The Post Office won in the television category. Fern Brady won for comedy, and How to Have Sex, the coming-of-age drama film written and directed by Molly Manning Walker, took home the film gong. Boy Blue's body of work was awarded the accolade for dance, and opera singer Aigul Akhmetshina took The Times breakthrough award.
The Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to broadcaster, author and parliamentarian Melvyn Bragg, whose career spans six decades. Each winner received a statuette designed by artist and comedian Jim Moir, better known as Vic Reeves. Speaking about creating the trophies, Moir said: "The finished pieces are Bronze sculptures standing roughly one foot tall, they're heavy too at four kilograms so will fit perfectly on a mantlepiece.
..or used as a doorstop!" There were live performances during the evening from acts including The Darkness, TikTok sensation Ren, and poet Lemn Sissay.
And there was a never-before-seen ultimate rock collaboration between AC.