BAFTA TV Awards viewers were left furious at Sunday’s ceremony when The Masked Singer beat Saturday Night Takeaway to one of the gongs.
The home crowd were left scratching their heads when the ITV talent show beat Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly’s popular variety show.
They took to Twitter and asked if the world had “gone crazy,” while claiming they’ll “never know” how TMS finally won the prestigious trophy, collected by host Joel Dommett.
Later… With Jools Holland: Jools’ 30th Birthday Bash and Strictly Come Dancing were also nominated in the entertainment category.
One wrote: ‘The masked singer? Has the world gone mad? Utter c**p #BAFTAS,” while another joked, “The Masked Singer? Serious? #BAFTATVAwards.’
Seething: BAFTA TV Awards viewers were left furious at Sunday’s ceremony when The Masked Singer beat Saturday Night Takeaway to one of the gongs
Surprise: The home crowd started scratching their heads when the ITV talent show beat Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly’s popular variety show
A third wrote, “How The Masked Singer won a BAFTA I’ll never know,” with a fourth adding, “The fact that ‘The Masked Singer’ won a #BAFTA… hurts me physically.”
Meer chimed in, “no, is it the way the masked singer won?” it’s the worst that could have won’, as well as ‘Wow, Masked Singer beat Saturday Night Takeaway! #BAFTATVAwards.’
Someone else concluded: ‘Saturday Night Takeaway didn’t win! #BAFTATVAwards.’
Joel said in his speech: ‘I really didn’t expect this, Strictly normally wins everything. Thank you so much to ITV, first of all for believing in this silly show, it’s so silly and so wonderful, it has brightened up so many families and homes.
‘It’s so much fun to make. All crew members love to make it. Thank you to all the celebrities who have been on the show.”
Judge Mo Gilligan said: ‘People were determined to mock it when it first came out, and now it’s won a Bafta. It’s great escapism…people back home don’t want to watch anything depressing. We’re just the faces of it, aren’t we, Joel?’
The Masked Singer, along with The Traitors, were among the early winners of the 2023 British Academy Television Awards with P&O Cruises.
Held at London’s Royal Festival Hall, the star-studded ceremony saw the best and brightest of British TV descend on the capital, with presenters Rob Beckett and Romesh Ranganatha acting as hosts for the evening.
Shock: They took to Twitter and asked if the world had ‘gone crazy’, claiming they ‘will never know’ how TMS finally won the prestigious trophy
One of the big winners turned out to be BBC’s runaway hit The Traitors, which took home the Reality And Constructed Factual award, while presenter Claudia Winkleman won Entertainment Performance.
While Anne-Marie Duff was awarded Supporting Actress for Bad Sisters, the viewers’ chosen BAFTA for The P&O Cruises Memorable Moment Award was presented at the moment Beertje Paddington had tea with The Queen at her Platinum Jubilee concert.
The BBC received the most nominations of any broadcaster with a total of 47 nominations, while Channel 4 received 21 and ITV received 15.
At the start of the show, Siobhan McSweeney won her first BAFTA TV award for Best Female Performance in a Comedy Programme, for playing Sister Michael, the show’s dazzling headmaster of Our Lady Immaculate College on the Channel 4 program Derry Girls.
The comedy about a group of teenagers growing up in Londonderry in the 1990s was a sleepy hit that built up a large and devoted following over three series.
Set during the Troubles, the show was praised for providing a new perspective on the period of the IRA and Loyalist truces through the eyes of a group of young girls.
In the humorous speech, delivered at double speed given the short time she had, she said: “So I’ve been warned not to make a political statement, so when my mum was dying in Cork one of the very last things was which she said to me was I wouldn’t consider retraining to become a teacher.
“If only she could see me, get a Bafta for playing a teacher. You’ve been taken back.’
Host Joel Dommett said in his speech: ‘I really didn’t expect this, Strictly normally wins all’
Grateful: He added: ‘Thank you so much to ITV, first of all for believing in this silly show, it’s so silly and it’s so wonderful, it’s brightened up so many families and homes’
Oh dear! Dec (left) and Ant (right) put on smiles for the cameras
The award for reality and constructed facts was given to the psychological adventure show The Traitors, and host Claudia Winkleman, 51, said she and the team are “overwhelmed by this, thank you very much.”
She also thanked Derry Girls writer Lisa McGee “for not listening to me when I said I could play all the girl parts” and she also thanked Channel 4, adding “you got my dedication.”
McSweeney added: ‘To the people of Derry, thank you for taking me into your heart and living room, despite the ignorance of your so-called leaders in Dublin, Stormont and Westminster.
In the words of my beloved sister Michael, ‘it’s time they wised up’.
She also thanked the BBC and referred to the meeting where the commissioning editors agreed to make the show, saying “We’re going to Scotland, we’re going to use the word murder – is that okay with you?”
Things got even better for Claudia, as later that night she received the Entertainment Performance award for hosting The Traitors.
The presenter, 51, said she didn’t want to get emotional because her mascara was “running” before asking her husband: “Can I have a dog, please?”
She also “thanked” her mom and dad, saying it was “for you” before saying, “You can’t have it…no, but you can touch it.”
