Game of Thrones star Michelle Fairley honoured at RTS NI television awards

Game of Thrones star Michelle Fairley has been awarded for her outstanding contribution to the broadcast industry.

he critically acclaimed actress won the coveted Brian Waddell Award at a virtual Royal Television Society Northern Ireland (RTS NI) awards ceremony hosted by Patrick Kielty.

Born in Coleraine, Fairley has enjoyed huge success for her many roles on stage and screen, although she is perhaps best known for her portrayal of Catelyn Stark in HBO’s Game of Thrones.

“I am so incredibly thankful and honoured to be receiving this award for outstanding contribution,” she said.

“I feel very lucky to have been given some fantastic opportunities throughout my career and believe that my “outstanding contribution” really is just that; a contribution to fantastic productions and wonderful creative teams,” she said.

“We would be nothing in this industry without our collaborators and I have been truly blessed to work alongside some of the best. Long may it continue.”

Vikkie Taggart, Chair of RTS NI said: “It is a real pleasure to celebrate the incredible talent of Michelle Fairley who has won the hearts of audiences worldwide in a glittering career spanning more than 30 years with her many accomplished performances.

“Congratulations to all our winners and nominees this year, who represent the best of the exceptional talent in Northern Ireland.”

The Current Affairs Award went to BBC Northern Ireland for Spotlight: Fear and Loathing in Quinn Country, and My Left Nut by Rollen Productions was awarded Best Drama, with Stellify Media’s There’s No Place Like Tyrone picking up the best Entertainment programme.

The Voyage by Jam Media was the winner in the Children’s/Animation category and Soft Border Patrol from The Comedy Unit won the Scripted Comedy Award.

Arena: The Changin’ Times of Ike White by Erica Starling Productions was the winner in the Documentary category with the award for Best News coverage going to UTV Live at Six for its coverage of the coronavirus crisis.

The Original Music Score Award went to DoubleBand Films for Lost Lives by Mark Gordon, Neil Martin, Richard Hill and Charles Graham.

BBC Northern Ireland was the winner in the Specialist Factual category for Peter Taylor: My Journey Through the Troubles with Alleycats’ Pulling with My Parents picking up the Features/Factual Entertainment Award.

Maeve McLoughlin, Chair of RTS NI Awards, said: “This has been a challenging year to say the least, and we no doubt have further difficulties to overcome in the next few months.

“It was my wish along with the whole of the RTS NI Committee to ensure that these awards took place this year regardless of the challenges we faced.

“We felt that the industry as a whole has worked tirelessly to adapt to new regulations and also social measures to ensure the creative industries keep powering on, and we wanted to acknowledge that hard work.”

Belfast Telegraph