Benedict Cumberbatch, Stormzy, Paddington 2 and Inside No. 9 join prestigious list of artists scooping top accolades at The South Bank Sky Arts Awards 2018

The South Bank Sky Arts Awards saw a host of artists from the entire spectrum of the arts celebrated for their achievements this year, with Benedict Cumberbatch the recipient of the coveted Outstanding Achievement Award.

Hosted by Melvyn Bragg, The South Bank Sky Arts Awards continued its legacy as the only awards ceremony in the world to celebrate the complete range of the arts, with categories for TV Drama, Classical Music, Theatre, Comedy, Dance, Film, Visual Art, Pop, Literature and Opera.

Grime artist Stormzy took home the Pop award for Gang Signs & Prayer, his sensationally popular debut album that has taken the music world by storm. The universally treasured Paddington 2 was victorious in the Film category, meanwhile Ma’am Darling, the rip-roaring and witty account of Princess Margaret’s life, saw its author, Craig Brown, scoop the Literature prize.

Other winners on the day included the deliciously dark Inside No. 9 for Comedy, the eloquently poised maliphantworks for Dance and politically pertinent The Jungle for Theatre. The awards also celebrated emerging talent, with The Times Breakthrough Award this year presented to Nubya Garcia, a multitalented saxophonist whose debut recordings and live performances have transcended the jazz scene.

The awards added a personal touch for this year’s winners, as many of the presenters of each category had a connection with the respective recipient. Presenters included Germaine Greer, an early champion of winning artist Rose Wylie; and Classical Music presenter Guy Garvey, who has performed with Sir Mark Elder, conductor of the victorious BBC Philharmonic and the Hallé. With a host of artists performing on the night, including opera singer Danielle de Niese; remarkable country duo The Shires; and hip hop infused saxophonist Soweto Kinch; the awards were a dynamic celebration of British artistic excellence.

Outstanding Achievement Award winner Benedict Cumberbatch commented: “I am quite flabbergasted to be receiving this award especially when looking at past recipients. I am needless to say immensely grateful and humbled. The South Bank Show has always had a place in my heart as being an inspirational exploration of the best of culture so to be recognised in this way by Melvyn and the show is incredibly flattering and I am very humbled to be this year’s recipient. Many many thanks.”

Melvyn Bragg commented: “This is as strong as any list we have ever had. The arts in the UK, a £92billion industry, are second only to the US. Regrettably, government policy in cutting arts teaching out of so many schools fails to take this on board. This year’s awards celebrate what can happen when arts are encouraged from school-age onwards.”

Phil Edgar-Jones, director of Sky Arts commented: “The Arts in the UK is as vibrant and exciting as it’s ever been - at Sky Arts we are privileged to be able to bring the very best practitioners across all genres to the screen, whether they are the established geniuses in the field or just starting out. The South Bank Sky Arts Awards celebrates the very cream of the crop and we are proud to celebrate it with our brilliant band of viewers.”

The South Bank Sky Arts Awards airs on Sky Arts on Wednesday 4 July at 8pm

Full List of Winners

VISUAL ART
Presented by: Germaine Greer

Rose Wylie - Quack Quack, Serpentine Sackler Gallery

COMEDY
Presented by: Mark Gatiss

Inside No. 9 - BBC Two

THEATRE
Presented by: Emily Berrington

The Jungle - A Young Vic and National Theatre co-production with Good Chance Theatre. Commissioned by the National Theatre

FILM
Presented by: Eleanor Tomlinson

Paddington 2

DANCE
Presented by: Sylvie Guillem

maliphantworks - Russell Maliphant Company

CLASSICAL MUSIC
Presented by: Guy Garvey

Schoenberg’s Gurrelieder - BBC Philharmonic and the Hallé

LITERATURE
Presented by: A N Wilson

Ma’am Darling: 99 Glimpses of Princess Margaret - Craig Brown

OPERA
Presented by: Bryn Terfel

Hamlet - Glyndebourne

POP
Presented by: Malorie Blackman

Stormzy - Gang Signs & Prayer

TV DRAMA
Presented by: Nicholas Pinnock

Howards End - Playground / BBC One

THE TIMES BREAKTHROUGH AWARD
Presented by: Chi-Chi Nwanoku

Pop - Nubya Garcia

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Presented by: Tom Hiddleston

Benedict Cumberbatch

For further information or photography from The South Bank Sky Arts Awards, please contact:

Premier PR
Adam Evans and Simon Bell
Adam.Evans@premiercomms.com / Simon.Bell@premiercomms.com
07957 367 867 / 07769 327 936

Notes to editors

About The South Bank Sky Arts Awards

The South Bank Sky Arts Awards are the only awards ceremony in the world to represent the entire spectrum of the British Arts. Previous winners across the various categories include Doctor Foster for TV Drama, Skyfall for Film, and Hilary Mantel’s Bring Up the Bodies for Literature. Previous winners of the Outstanding Achievement Award include Harold Pinter, Judi Dench, J.K. Rowling, Eddie Izzard and last year Andrew Lloyd Webber.

About Sky Arts

Sky Arts is the UK’s only dedicated channel for the arts. It offers something for everyone, whatever their passion, with entertaining programmes showcasing the best of classical and popular music, theatre, opera, dance and the visual arts, as well as original drama and comedy. Sky Arts is broadcast 24 hours a day and has over 1,000 hours available on catch-up TV, including flagship programmes such as Portrait Artist of The Year, Landscape Artist of the Year and The South Bank Show.

The channel is committed to supporting the arts by investing in the best talent, both on and off screen, as well as through exclusive partnerships with major UK and European cultural institutions, including National Theatre Live, Tate and The British Library.

Sky is Europe's leading entertainment company, serving 23 million customers across seven countries - UK, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Italy, Spain and Switzerland. The company had annual reported revenues of £12.9 billion in 2016/17, and is Europe’s leading investor in television content with an annual programming spend of around £7 billion. Sky has over 31,000 employees and is listed as one of The Times Top 50 employers for women, as well as being recognised in the Stonewall list of Top 50 LGBT-inclusive employers. Sky is listed on the London Stock Exchange (SKY).

About Directors Cut Productions

Directors Cut Productions is an independent television production company based in Central London. Set up in 2010 by Melvyn Bragg and Cathy Haslam, who had worked together for 10 years at ITV, the company produces Arts and History Documentaries for UK television broadcasters. Directors Cut Productions produce all South Bank Show branded programmes for Sky Arts as well as producing the South Bank Sky Arts Awards.