Mr Bates vs The Post Office to compete for National Television Award

Mr Bates vs The Post Office will hope to add a National Television Award to its list of achievements on Wednesday after the ITV drama drew renewed attention to the subpostmasters who were wrongly prosecuted during the Horizon IT scandal.

More than 700 subpostmasters were prosecuted by the Post Office and given criminal convictions between 1999 and 2015, as Fujitsu’s faulty Horizon IT system made it appear as though money was missing at their branches.

The four-part miniseries, which shone a light on the issue, will compete for the new drama prize as the annual awards ceremony returns to The O2 in London on Wednesday evening.

However, it will face tough competition from Netflix hit Baby Reindeer, romantic drama One Day and thrillers Fool Me Once and Red Eye.

Actor Toby Jones is also nominated in the drama performance category for his role as former subpostmaster Sir Alan Bates, one of more than 550 claimants who have brought legal action against the Post Office.

It was announced last week that the ITV drama had been awarded the NTA Impact Award for creating a “huge cultural shift”.

Actress Jessica Gunning will go up against Jones for the gong as she has been recognised for her role as Martha Scott in dark comedy thriller Baby Reindeer, in which her character stalks comedian Donny Dunn after he offers her a free cup of tea in the pub where he works.

The drama, inspired by the real-life experiences of the show’s creator – comedian Richard Gadd, hit the headlines after Fiona Harvey, who came forward claiming to be the inspiration behind Martha, took legal action against Netflix, alleging the story is inaccurate.

Gadd previously asked viewers not to speculate over the people who inspired the series.

Fool Me Once star Michelle Keegan is also among those shortlisted for the prize for her role as Maya Stern, and Brenda Blethyn for her starring role in Vera, and Vicky McClure’s role as Lana Washington in crime thriller Trigger Point.

Elsewhere, Strictly Come Dancing will be vying for a win in the talent show category, which could serve as an uplift for the BBC dance competition as it continues to battle a storm of controversy over the alleged treatment of contestants ahead of its return to screens this weekend.

It has been shortlisted alongside MasterChef, Britain’s Got Talent, The Great British Bake Off and The Voice UK.

Meanwhile, Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly will seek to extend their winning streak in the TV presenter category to a historic 23rd year, but face competition from This Morning’s Alison Hammond, Strictly Come Dancing and The Traitors star Claudia Winkleman, The Chase and Gladiators host Bradley Walsh, and TV star Stacey Solomon.

Ant & Dec’s Limitless Win is also up for best quiz game show, while I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! and Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway are nominated for the Bruce Forsyth entertainment award.

This Morning will also be hoping to regain the best daytime show crown after losing it last year, amid the furore of the Phillip Schofield affair.

The ITV morning programme, which is now fronted by Ben Shephard and Cat Deeley after Schofield and Holly Willoughby both left in 2023, will compete against reigning winners The Repair Shop, The Chase, Loose Women and Deal Or No Deal.

Good Morning Britain star Kate Garraway will be hoping to secure a hat-trick in the best authored documentary category as she has been nominated for the prize again, this time for Kate Garraway: Derek’s Story.

The programme followed the final year of her husband Derek Draper’s life, before he died in January aged 56, after a lengthy battle with the long-term effects of Covid.

It follows on from two other programmes about his battle with Covid and her struggles navigating the care system, which both picked up NTA gongs in the category in 2021 and 2022.

Former England captain David Beckham and pop star Robbie Williams are also shortlisted for their Netflix docuseries, and actress Rose Ayling-Ellis for her documentary which explores attitudes to the deaf community, and comedian Rhod Gilbert, for his show, in which explores his cancer treatment.

The returning drama prize will also be hotly contested as Vera and Trigger Point are nominated against Netflix hit Bridgerton, royal drama The Crown, and medical drama Call The Midwife.

In the serial drama category, classic soaps Coronation Street, EastEnders, Emmerdale, Hollyoaks and Casualty will battle it out, while in the reality competition Celebrity Big Brother, Love Island, Race Across The World, The Apprentice and The Traitors are nominated.

Comedian Joel Dommett will return to host the star-studded ceremony, which will be broadcast live on Wednesday from 8pm on ITV1 and ITVX.