Warp Films, Matriarch Productions & Plan B for Netflix
This unconventional and deeply moving drama has been rightly lauded around the world since its launch but it is easy to forget in hindsight just what a risk the show was when it was commissioned. Co-created by Stephen Graham and Jack Thorne, Adolescence aimed to shine a light on the societal factors contributing to the harrowing consequences of youth violence, with director Philip Barantini employing the much-discussed one-shot technique to devastating effect.
Adding to the unique ingredients that made up the show was a narrative that consciously shifted focus to the perpetrator’s family, rather than concentrating on the victim.
Months of meticulous preparation, weeks of rehearsals, and an incredible team delivered what judges described as “the clear winner in the room”, with actor Owen Cooper producing a stunning breakout performance.
“It feels like a landmark achievement in the world of scripted, Stephen Graham is a genius,” said one judge, while another said the show “combined dramatic and technical brilliance with agenda-setting real-world impact”.
Adolescence has gone on to become one of Netflix’s most-watched shows of 2025, kickstarting a much-needed conversation around youth violence and misogynistic online influences. MPs in parliament have discussed the series, while its impact has been felt among viewers around the world.
“It’s a bold and incredibly immersive, one-of-a-kind drama that pairs the groundbreaking technical achievement of one-shot filmmaking with fearless storytelling,” said one judge, delivering “a visceral, urgent and universally acclaimed piece of television that genuinely shifts the conversation”.
SHORTLISTED
A Thousand Blows
The Story Collective, Matriarch Productions & Water & Power Productions for Disney+
This Stephen Knight-penned drama employed renowned social historians such as David Olusoga to create a drama of richness and realism that explores the brutal world of the East End’s bare-knuckle boxing scene in Victoria London. A raft of new writers from diverse backgrounds joined Knight in creating a complex three-stranded story that looked to represent the real lives of working-class people who have been ignored by the history books.
I Fought The Law
Hera Pictures for ITV1 & ITVX
Sheridan Smith’s Ann Ming was the centrepiece to one of the stand-out shows of 2025 in I Fought The Law, telling a David vs Goliath story of a mother who battled the establishment to see her daughter’s murderer brought to justice. Based on Ming’s book For the Love of Julie, the series accurately captures the life of a woman across almost two decades to tell an authentic and vitally important story.
Mr Loverman
Fable Pictures for BBC
Bernardine Evaristo’s novel was brought to screen for this groundbreaking show, telling a small story with an emotional power. At the centre is a magnetic 74-year-old Black married man who has been hiding his sexuality his entire life, with the show aiming to accurately reflect his experiences and feelings. All key creatives and head of departments had a personal connection to the story, enabling them to deliver a series with incredible heart.
Reunion
Warp Films for BBC
Told through British Sign Language and English, this moving series was created and written by William Mager, who used his lived experience to portray a deaf man named Brennan (Matthew Gurney) returning society after a decade in prison for killing a man. Tracking his attempt to rebuild a relationship with his estranged daughter while the wife of the man killed searches for answers of her own, the show delivered authenticity to a subject that has been little explored before.
Rivals
Happy Prince, part of ITV Studios for Disney+
An adaptation of the late Jilly Cooper’s second book in the Rutshire Chronicles, this 1986-set drama follows attempts to overthrow an unscrupulous television magnate. The show was years in the making for writer and creator Dominic Treadwell-Collins, and the result is a fitting tribute to the beloved author.
AWARD SPONSORED BY ON-SET LOCATION SERVICES
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