TVChoice Awards 2011
We're in one of London’s swankiest hotels, The Savoy, for 2011’s TVChoice Awards, and I’m here to interview the winners as they come off stage. It’s lovely to see them all – even Jeremy Kyle (who wins Best Daytime Show) – as they really appreciate all the readers who have voted for them. We catch up with what they had to say...
Jamie Oliver – Best Food Show for Jamie’s 30 Minute Meals
‘I’ve been working for the last year and a half on a big British series,’ says Jamie. ‘It’s called Jamie’s Great Britain and I’m trying to get people patriotic about stuff, but it’s a Britain you wouldn’t expect or have seen before. It’s about food and travel, but it’s also about immigration and people, and the different pockets of people who make up Britain, and what is Britain? What is it now? And what has it been for the last 500 years? I think it’s got quite an uplifting feel.’
‘I’ve always got my mouth open since School Dinners. At the moment, I’m doing a whole load of stuff with the UN because there’s the global meeting on diet and obesity and diet-related disease. That happens this 19th and 20th. I’m trying to do as much stirring on that as possible.
‘All the stuff that I’ve done historically I’m still running, so I’m still running the School Dinners campaign on a daily basis, and all the other bits and pieces, like farming issues. So it’s a funny thing, if you get into it, it’s a real ball and chain, but I’m happy to take it.’
Ant & Dec – Best Talent Show for Britain’s Got Talent
‘This is lovely,’ says Dec, ‘but it’s a surprise as well. I thought we had more of a chance of winning for I’m A Celebrity…’
‘I was half out of my seat at that point,’ says Ant. ‘But then I thought, do you know what? I’m a massive fan of The Apprentice, so fair enough. They’re the deserved winners.’
But where do the boys keep their awards? ‘We’re going to have to share this with the judges of Britain’s Got Talent,’ says Ant. But Dec chips in by saying, ‘Oh, they’re not getting a sniff of this. Holden, MacIntyre, they’re not getting a sniff of this. Cowell might demand it, though. If he demands it, he can have it. He signs the cheques. But if we keep it quiet, we’ll keep it for ourselves.’
Steven Moffat – Best Family Drama for Doctor Who
How does Doctor Who’s executive producer Steven Moffat respond to thoughts that the sci-fi show is becoming too confusing? ‘Critics think the audience are stupid,’ he says, ‘but the 10 million who watch Doctor Who know they aren’t stupid. That’s why Doctor Who’s viewing figures are going up, and newspaper circulation figures are going down.
‘We’ve just started filming the Christmas Day special. I’ve just seen my first day of rushes with Matt Smith. And he’s looking loopier than ever, if you can imagine that.’
Steven’s been a fan of Doctor Who since childhood, so does he start thinking about it as soon as he wakes up each day? ‘Yes,’ he says. ‘It’s tragic! I started a new Doctor Who script yesterday – I don’t know how many I’ve written – but I swear I was just dancing around the room with excitement. In fact, I think I might be more of a fan now, after two years of running it, than ever before. Isn’t that ridiculous?’
So, what’s the secret of a great Doctor Who episode? ‘You just do everything. Entertain by every means possible. A good Doctor Who is frightening, and moving. It’s everything at once.’
William Roache – Best Soap Storyline for Coronation Street’s tram crash
Does William Roache, who plays Ken Barlow in Coronation Street, still wake up in cold sweats when he thinks about the live episode for the soap’s 50th anniversary? ‘A live show is always worrying, yes,’ he admits. ‘I hope we don’t do another. But the whole week was amazing.’
David Tennant – Best Actor for Single Father
David is going to start filming an episode of Love Life soon, a new BBC1 series by acclaimed director Dominic Savage (Dive and Freefall). ‘It’s improvised, which is a terrifying prospect, I’ve never done that before,’ he says. ‘I’m playing a civil servant who has a bit of a blast from his past, and that’s all I can tell you. I was very keen to have a go, but I’m excited and scared in equal measure.’
David Collins
