Outstanding achievement award for Melvyn Bragg

11 April 2012
The Weekender

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Melvyn Bragg was presented with an Outstanding Achievement award today as he prepared to sign off from his long-running ITV programme The South Bank Show.

The show has been axed by ITV after more than 30 years, with the final programme going out later this year.

Lord Bragg, 70, received the award from Sir David Attenborough, with messages of congratulation from the Prince of Wales, Clive James, Victoria Wood, and novelists Beryl Bainbridge and PD James.

Lord Melvyn Bragg (left) after he receive the award for Outstanding Achievement from Sir David Attenborough at the South Bank Show Awards

Today's guest list included Ronnie Wood, Mika, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Michael McIntyre and Tracey Emin.

In other awards, Britain's Got Talent winners Diversity lost out to the Royal Birmingham Ballet in the Dance category.

Florence and the Machine took the Pop prize, presented by Jarvis Cocker, for debut album Lungs.

Rachel Weisz and the Donmar Warehouse production of A Streetcar Named Desire, which she starred in, won the Theatre gong, presented by The Wire actor Dominic West.

Anish Kapoor took home the Visual Arts prize, beating Turner Prize winner Richard Long, for Kapoor's blockbuster retrospective at the Royal Academy, which featured a cannon shooting 20 tons of molten wax.

Former children's TV presenter Andrea Arnold won the Film award for Fish Tank, the Oscar winner's second film.

The Thick Of It, the BBC2 political comedy, scooped the Comedy prize, which was presented by Billy Connolly.

Red Riding (Channel 4) won the TV Drama gong and The Quickening Maze by Adam Foulds took the Literature award.

The production of Peter Grimes at the ENO won best Opera production, continuing the winning streak of the opera house.

The final South Bank Show Awards were held at the Dorchester in central London and will be broadcast on ITV1 at 10.15pm on Sunday.

The winners:

Comedy - The Thick Of It (BBC2)

Dance - E mcsquared, David Bintley - Birmingham Royal Ballet

TV Drama - Red Riding (C4)

Pop - Florence And The Machine - Lungs

Visual Arts - Anish Kapoor, Royal Academy

Film - Film Tank, Andrea Arnold

Literature - The Quickening Maze, Adam Foulds

Opera - Peter Grimes, ENO

Theatre - A Streetcar Named Desire, Donmar Warehouse

Arts Council England's Diversity Award - Julie McNamara, playwright and performing artist

Classical Music - Nielsen; Inextinguishable

The Times Breakthrough Award - David Blandy, for Visual Art

Outstanding Achievement Award - Melvyn Bragg

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