I'm waiting with bated breath for the 2017 BAFTA TV Nominations to be announced on Tuesday. After such a stellar year of drama, who will walk away with the golden masks? Here are a few of my top picks.
Leading Actress
The nominees I'd like to see ...
Julie Walters - National Treasure
Sophie Okenedo - The Hollow Crown: War of the Roses
Sarah Lancashire - Happy Valley
Claire Foy - The Crown
Who I'd like to win ...
Sarah Lancashire - Although I'm a big admirer of Georgina Campbell who won the 'Best Actress' award in 2015, it feels wrong that Sarah Lancashire hasn't yet been recognised by BAFTA for her portrayal of Sergeant Catherine Cawood in Happy Valley. Writer Sally Wainwright has created a hero for the ages in Catherine, but Lancashire takes care never to make her a superhero. She always manages to make her recognisable somehow, as if she's someone you work with or one of your mum's mates. As a police officer, she's so unfazable, so matter of fact, that its hard to believe Lancashire hasn't been pulling shifts as a copper for the last twenty years. She rarely loses her cool but when she does, as she did with the two PCs who failed to follow up on a sexual assault accusation this series, it's terrifying - partly due to the unrelenting scolding she gave them, but mainly because her disappointment in them was so palpable.When it comes to her family, Catherine's more fallible - there's a well of panic behind her eyes when she realises her grandson or her sister could be in trouble. Her finest moment this series was when she showed up at the funeral of Tommy Lee Royce's mother, and managed to send him into a violent rage just by standing there. Through his kicking and screaming, Lancashire never broke eye contact, then, with a certain glee, she turned and walked out, as if to say "my job here is done". Absolutely hypnotic.
Leading Actor
The nominees I'd like to see ...
Tcheky Karyo - The Missing
Paul Dano - War and Peace
Robbie Coltrane - National Treasure
Benedict Cumberbatch - The Hollow Crown: War of the Roses
Who I'd like to win ...
Paul Dano - There was such sincerity in Paul Dano's portrayal of Count Pierre Bezukhov in the BBC's epic adaptation of War & Peace. After unexpectedly inheriting his late father's fortune and title, the socialites of Russia preyed on Pierre like vultures. At first, his wide-eyed naivety meant that he was easy to take advantage of, but Dano always ensured that there was something more going on beneath the surface - we could see his doubts, his panic, then his despair when he realised it was too late to turn back. As Pierre grew into a man and became more sure of himself, Dano imbued him with a steely resolve, coupled with an urgent, breathless need to make up for his earlier bad judgement. Though we were at times distracted by the glamorous couple at the heart of the story, Pierre's fate became the one we were most concerned with, and after his earlier, heartbreaking exchange with Andrei in which we first realised they shared feelings for Natasha, Pierre's happy ending was well-earned.
Supporting Actor
The nominees I'd like to see ...
Tom Hollander - The Night Manager
Adrian Dunbar - Line of Duty
James Norton - Happy Valley
Who I'd like to win ...
Adrian Dunbar - I've chosen Dunbar, both for his stellar work in The Hollow Crown and for his third turn as the incomparable Superintendent Ted Hastings in Line of Duty. Like Sarah Lancashire in Happy Valley, Dunbar is so on top of his role that it's hard to believe he wasn't trained in the force. He's knowledgeable, deft at handling descension in the ranks and his delivery of the word "fella", can either fill you with warmth or chill you to the core.
Supporting Actress
The nominees I'd like to see ...
Vicky McLure - Line of Duty
Olivia Colman - The Night Manager
Siobhan Finneran - Happy Valley
Who I'd like to win ...
Olivia Colman - Angela Burr, Colman's character in The Night Manager is a proper spy. Not a James Bond Spy, but a civil servant, underfunded, with an important job to do. And boy did she do it convincingly. Colman's got a great knack for instilling no nonsense characters, with charm and likability - it was that charm that allowed her character to build up relationships with people like Pine and American ally Steadman, then utilise them in her mission to bring down Roper. Yes, Angela Burr was the real hero of this series.
Drama Series
The nominees I'd like to see ...
The Missing
War and Peace
Line of Duty
The Crown
Happy Valley
The show I'd like to win ...
This is a close call but on balance, War & Peace.
Easily the best costume drama since Little Dorrit in 2008, War & Peace was a complex, emotional story, told with the scale it deserved. It was ambitious and well executed, practically - by a production team who coordinated the shoot across three different countries and visually, by Tom Harper, a director who had one eye on detail and the other on spectacle. From the costumes to the locations, the overall look was sumptuous but Harper made sure that the emotional moments on which the story turned, always got the time and focus they deserved. Its cast was universally exceptional, from Lily James' endearing take on Natasha to Jim Broadbent's turn as the cold Prince Bolkonsky. The ever-powerful war scenes, told from the perspectives of various characters were often difficult to watch, but always poignant, and the ballroom scene in which Andrei and Natasha danced together is nothing short of iconic. Truly, War & Peace is one of the best dramas ever made.
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