[Amy]

LITTLE Britain has triumphed at the British Academy Television Awards, winning yet more honours for the comedy take on British life.

The show tonight won both its nominations for comedy performance and comedy series.

Matt Lucas and David Walliams, who created and star in the show as an eclectic mix of British characters, beat Rory Bremner, Julia Davis and Tamsin Greig for the comedy performance title.

The show itself, which began life as a radio pilot before becoming a radio show and then a BBC Three television series, also won comedy series over the Catherine Tate show, Harry Hill’s TV Burp and The Mark Steel Lectures.

Rhys Ifans was named best actor for the Channel 4 drama Not Only But Always — his portrayal of comic legend Peter Cooke.

Romanian actress Anamaria Marinca won best actress for her TV debut in Sex Traffic, the Channel 4 drama about Eastern Europeans being sold into prostitution in London.

Paul O’Grady won the award for entertainment performance for his new chat show The Paul O’Grady Show, beating Paul Merton for Have I Got News For You, Stephen Fry for QI and Ant and Dec for I’m a Celebrity ... Get Me Out of Here.

Coronation Street continued its winning year with an award for continuing drama, while Shameless, the Channel 4 drama set in a sink Manchester estate, won one of its two nominations for drama series.

It is not the first time Little Britain has scooped a Bafta. It won the award for comedy series in 2003, but in the same year Lucas and Walliams went away empty-handed in the comedy performance category despite being nominated.

The full list of winners of the British Academy Television Awards is:

Actor: Rhys Ifans for Not Only But Always, Channel 4.
Actress: Anamaria Marinca for Sex Traffic, C4
Entertainment performance: Paul O’Grady for The Paul O’Grady Show, ITV1
Comedy performance: Matt Lucas and David Walliams for Little Britain, BBC3

Single drama: Omagh, Tiger Aspect Productions, C4
Drama series: Shameless, Company Pictures, C4
Drama serial: Sex Traffic, Granada Drama London, C4
Continuing drama: Coronation Street, Granada Television, ITV1
Factual series or strand: The Power Of Nightmares, BBC2

Huw Wheldon award for specialist factual: Dunkirk, BBC2
Flaherty award for single documentary: The Orphans Of Nkandla, True Vision, BBC4

Features: Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares, Optomen Television, C4
Sport: Olympics 2004, (Matthew Pinsent’s rowing for gold), BBC1
News coverage: BBC Ten O’Clock News: Madrid Bombing, BBC1
Current affairs: Death In Gaza , Frostbite Films/HBO, C4

Lew Grade award for entertainment programme or series: I’m A Celebrity ... Get Me Out Of Here!, Granada Television, ITV1
Situation comedy: Black Books, Assembly Film & Television Ltd, C4
Comedy programme or series: Little Britain, BBC3
Pioneer Award voted for by the TV audience: The Green Wing, C4

Special awards

Academy Fellowship: Sir David Frost
Special Award: Michael Palin
Richard Dimbleby award for the year’s most important personal contribution on the screen in factual television: Jon Snow
Dennis Potter award for outstanding writing for television: Alan Plater
Alan Clarke award for outstanding creative contribution to television: Paul Greengrass

Article The Sun