An eve to remember for TV’S female stars
Jodie Comer named best actress for Phoebe Wallerbridge show as Bodyguard wins must-see moment
Phoebe Waller-bridge, left, creator of best drama Killing Eve, and Jodie Comer, winner of the best actress award for her portrayal of the drama’s assassin Villanelle, with their Baftas last night. Productions featuring female leads dominated the evening.
IT WAS the year that women dominated television, from the first female Doctor Who to Killing Eve and the killing off of Keeley Hawes in Bodyguard.
The Bafta TV awards stuck to the script, with Killing Eve winning best drama, accepted by its creator Phoebe Waller-bridge, and Bodyguard’s most heart-stopping scene being named the year’s must-see moment.
Bafta bent its rules to allow its inclusion, as the drama category is usually restricted to shows that have their premiere in the UK and Killing Eve was first broadcast in the United States.
The best actress award went to Jodie Comer as Killing Eve’s assassin, beating her co-star Sandra Oh and Hawes.
A tearful Comer dedicated the award to her grandmother, who died before the show began. “She never got to see Villanelle but she was the life and soul of everything when she was here.”
Fiona Shaw won best supporting actress for her role as spy chief Carolyn Martens in Killing Eve, her first Bafta nomination. She called playing the role “probably the greatest pleasure of my life” and thanked Waller-bridge for her “glass-shattering genius and wayward imagination”. In a category dominated by women, Julia Davis won the best scripted comedy category for Sally4ever. Lucy Worsley won the specialist factual award for her documentary Suffragettes, and Baroness Bakewell was honoured with the Bafta Fellowship.
Virgin Media’s Must-see Moment, chosen by the public, went to the scene in Bodyguard where Hawes’ character was assassinated. A Doctor Who episode retelling the story of Rosa Parks was a runner-up.
If the past 12 months have also seen women promoted to top presenting jobs at the BBC, the Bafta host, Graham Norton, was on hand to poke fun at the corporation’s gender pay gap. Referring to the all-female line-up of Newsnight and Fiona Bruce hosting Question Time, Norton quipped: “It’s not only great for equality, but it saves the BBC a fortune.”
Ruth Wilson, whose miniseries Mrs Wilson was among the nominees, said Britain still lagged behind the US when it comes to strong female roles.
“I think that American TV has had women at the forefront of their TV shows for a long time. We just need to catch up here,” she said.
Patrick Melrose, the Sky Atlantic drama, won best miniseries, and Benedict Cumberbatch, its star, best actor. “I’m used to being a bridesmaid, not the bride,” he said. Ben Whishaw won best supporting actor for his role in A Very English Scandal.