Comedians Rob Beckett and Romesh Ranganathan were full of jokes at the expense of their fellow TV stars at this year’s TV Baftas.
The hosts made digs at the BBC, the Gary Lineker controversy, and the furore over Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield’s visit to the late Queen’s lying in state as they hosted the starry bash.
Rob and Romesh, who presented the ceremony for the first time, opened the show with a string of ‘edgy’ jokes.
‘As we all know this year, there have been one or two issues with the subject of the BBC and balance,’ Rob began.
‘It’s not easy for comedians to host an award show on the BBC. We need to be funny. We need to be professional and also offer balanced views. This booking is perfect for balance.
‘I see a room filled with some of the hardest working and most talented people in TV all driven by a passion and a love for their craft.’
Romesh added: ‘Whereas I see a roomful of shark-eyed narcissists.’
The pair then chimed in unison: ‘Balance.’
Gesturing to Imelda Staunton, who received a nomination for the best actress prize for her role as the late Queen in The Crown, Rob said: ‘She’s nominated for her performance in The Crown.
‘Apparently, Holly and Phil got to watch that a couple of days before everybody else. A little bit of edge for you, early doors.’
The This Morning hosts were criticised on social media after they saw the late Queen lying in state without taking part in the public queue.
They later insisted they would ‘never jump a queue’ and their visit was for the purposes of reporting on the event.
Although, the daytime duo have made headlines once more over the past week, with rumours swirling of a crisis at ITV as their long-term friendship ‘dwindles.’
Elsewhere at the TV Baftas, Rob later joked: ‘A few months back we were left hoping that The Traitors would be making a swift return to BBC One.
‘Well that’s what some of the papers called the Match Of The Day presenters anyway.
‘Are we edgy? I think we might be edgy.’
Gary was briefly suspended as host of Match Of The Day in March over his criticism of the Government’s asylum policy on Twitter.
After mass outrage, he returned to air following a boycott by top on-air talent at the broadcaster.
Pundits and presenters dropping out of a host of football shows in solidarity with the former pro footballer prompted two days of disruption to TV and radio schedules.
Full list of Bafta TV nominations 2023:
P&O Cruises memorable moment:
- Derry Girls finale
- Heartstopper: Nick and Charlie’s first kiss
- Paddington meets The Queen
- Kate Bush’s Running Up That Hill in Stranger Things
- The Traitors’ final roundtable
- The Real Mo Farah
Comedy Entertainment programme:
- Friday Night Live
- The Graham Norton Show
- Taskmaster
- Would I Lie to You?
Current Affairs:
- Afghanistan: No Country For Women
- Children of the Taliban
- The Crossing
- Mariupol: The People’s Story
Daytime:
- The Chase
- The Repair Shop
- Scam Interceptors
Drama Series:
- Bad Sisters
- The Responder
- Sherwood
- Somewhere Boy
Entertainment Performance:
- Big Zuu (Big Zuu’s Big Eats)
- Claudia Winkleman (The Traitors)
- Lee Mack (The 1% Club)
- Mo Gilligan (The Lateish Show with Mo Gilligan)
- Rosie Jones (Rosie Jones’ Trip Hazard)
- Sue Perkins (Sue Perkins: Perfectly Legal)
Entertainment programme:
- Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway
- Later… with Jools Holland: Jool’s 30th Birthday Bash
- The Masked Singer
- Strictly Come Dancing
Factual Series:
- Jeremy Kyle Show: Death on Daytime
- Libby, Are You Home Yet
- Vatican Girl: The Disapearance of Emanuela Orlandi
- Worlds Collide: The Manchester Bombing
Features:
- Big Zuu’s Big Eats
- Joe Lycett vs Beckham: Got Your Back at Xmas
- The Martin Lewis Money Show Live
- The Misadventures of Romesh Ranganathan
Female Performance in a Comedy programme:
- Daisy May Cooper (Am I Being Unreasonable?)
- Diane Morgan (Cunk on Earth)
- Lucy Beaumont (Meet The Richardsons)
- Natasia Demetriou (Ellie & Natasia)
- Siobhan McSweeney (Derry Girls)
- Taj Atwal (Hullraisers)
International:
- The Bear
- Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story
- Wednesday
- Oussekine
- Pachinko
- The White Lotus
Leading Actor:
- Ben Whishaw (This Is Going To Hurt)
- Chaske Spencer (The English)
- Cillian Murphy (Peaky Blinders)
- Gary Oldman (Slow Horses)
- Martin Freeman (The Responder)
- Taron Egerton (Black Bird)
Leading Actress:
- Billie Piper (I Hate Suzie Too)
- Imelda Staunton (The Crown)
- Kate Winslet (I Am Ruth)
- Maxine Peak (Anne)
- Sarah Lancashire (Julia)
- Vicky McClure (Without Sin)
Live Event:
- Concert for Ukraine
- Platinum Jubilee: Party at the Palace
- The State Funeral of HM Queen Elizabeth II
Male performance in a Comedy programme:
- Daniel Radcliffe (Weird: The Al Yankovic Story)
- Jon Pointing (Big Boys)
- Joseph Gilgun (Brassic)
- Lenny Rush (Am I Being Unreasonable?)
- Matt Berry (What We Do In The Shadows)
- Stephen Merchant (The Outlaws)
Mini-series
- A Spy Among Friends
- Mood
- The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe
- This Is Going To Hurt
News Coverage:
- BBC News at Ten: Russia Invades Ukraine
- Channel 4 News: Live in Kyiv
- Good Morning Britain: Boris Johnson Interview
Reality and Constructed Factual:
- Freddie Flintoff’s Field of Dreams
- RuPaul’s Drag Race UK
- The Traitors
- We Are Black and British
Scripted Comedy:
- Am I Being Unreasonable?
- Big Boys
- Derry Girls
- Ghosts
Short Form programme:
- Always, Asifa
- Biscuitland
- How To Be a Person
- Kingpin Cribs
Single documentary:
- Chernobyl: The Lost Tapes
- Escape from Kabul Airport
- Our Falklands War: A Frontline Story
- The Real Mo Farah
Single drama:
- I Am Ruth
- The House
- Life and Death in the Warehouse
Soap and Continuing Drama:
- Casualty
- EastEnders
- Emmerdale
Specialist Factual:
- AIDS: The Unheard Tapes
- The Green Planer
- How To Survive A Dictator with Munya Chawawa
- Russia: 1985-1999: Traumazone
Sport:
- Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games
- UEFA Women’s Euro 2022
- Wimbledon 2022
Supporting Actor:
- Adeel Akhtar (Sherwood)
- Jack Lowden (Slow Horses)
- Josh Finan (The Responder)
- Salim Daw (The Crown)
- Samuel Bottomley (Somewhere Boy)
- Will Sharpe (The White Lotus)
Supporting Actress:
- Adelayo Adedayo (The Responder)
- Anne-Marie Duff (Bad Sisters)
- Fiona Shaw (Andor)
- Jasmine Jobson (Top Boy)
- Lesley Manville (Sherwood)
- Saffron Hocking (Top Boy)
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