News - Sky Arts Awards Nominees


The South Bank Sky Arts Awards 2022 nominees have been announced. Susan Omand picked her winners ...


Press Release

The South Bank Sky Arts Awards – the first and only awards ceremony to celebrate every genre of the arts, including Dance, Theatre, Pop, TV Drama, Film, Classical Music, Literature, Opera, Comedy and Visual Art – returns on Sunday 10th July. The ceremony, presented by Melvyn Bragg, will take place at The Savoy Hotel and will air on Wednesday 13th July at 10pm on Sky Arts, the UK’s only free-to-air TV channel dedicated to arts, music and culture.

The South Bank Sky Arts Awards 2022 nominees celebrate a host of artists and arts organisations across the full spectrum of the industry. Nominated in the Pop category this year is Little Simz with her fourth studio album Sometimes I Might Be Introvert. Joining her to battle it out for the top spot are Sam Fender and Self Esteem with their hotly anticipated second albums, Seventeen Going Under and Prioritise Pleasure. The TV Drama category celebrates some incredible TV moments of the past year, with Russell T Davies’ critically-acclaimed series, It’s A Sin, Time starring Sean Bean and Stephen Graham and This Is Going To Hurt, based on Adam Kay’s bestselling memoir, all receiving a nomination.

Channel 4’s We Are Lady Parts - created, written, and directed by Nida Manzoor - is nominated in the Comedy category alongside two BBC shows: Rose Matafeo’s Starstruck and Sophie Willan’s Alma’s Not Normal. Nominations for Theatre include the Young Vic and Headlong co-production Best of Enemies, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club - starring Eddie Redmayne and Jessie Buckley - and The Walk, the incredible project that saw 3.5m puppet Little Amal travel through over 70 cities across the world.

Boiling Point, After Love and Passing occupy the Film category, all having previously received a nomination for Outstanding British Film of the Year at the 2022 BAFTA awards. Theatre of Sound’s Bluebeard’s Castle, Birmingham Opera Company’s Wagner’s RhineGold and Opera North’s Rigoletto also go head-to-head for the Opera award.

Literature category nominations this year include Monica Ali’s Love Marriage, Sarah Hall’s Burntcoat and Caleb Azumah Nelson’s debut novel Open Water. Rounding out the Visual Arts category - sponsored by Lexus - are Rachel Whiteread with Internal Objects at Gagosian, Michael Armitage with Paradise Edict at the Royal Academy and Hurvin Anderson with Reverb, at Thomas Dane Gallery.

Following an incredible year for dance, The Dante Project – Wayne McGregor (The Royal Ballet), Then Or Now (Ballet Black) and Starstruck (Scottish Ballet) form the Dance category. Classical Music nominations include

Huw Watkins’ Symphony No. 2 by the Hallé, Dani Howard: Trombone Concerto by Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and Mark-Anthony Turnage’s Up For Grabs by BBC Symphony Orchestra & Barbican.

The Times Breakthrough Award shines a spotlight on up-and-coming talent in the British Arts; also announced this morning were Gabrielle Creevy (TV Drama), Liz Kingsman (Comedy), Catriona Ward (Literature), Nardus Williams (Opera), Dani Howard (Classical), Rachel Jones (Visual Art), Emily Suzuki (Dance), Samuel Creasey (Theatre), Emilia Jones (Film) and Wet Leg (Pop). Previous winners include playwright Samuel Bailey, actors Jessie Buckley and Tom Hiddleston, and musicians Nubya Garcia and Stormzy.

The Outstanding Achievement Award - an award that acknowledges the remarkable contribution an artist has made throughout their career to date - will be announced at the ceremony. Previous winners of this award include Grayson Perry, Harold Pinter, Tracey Emin, Judi Dench, Eddie Izzard, Helen Mirren and Andrew Lloyd Webber.

The South Bank Sky Arts Awards host, Melvyn Bragg said “The British Arts forge on with enormous vigour and international success - we could make a claim to be the world centre of culture! Back again for our 26th South Bank Sky Arts Awards, a brilliant swathe of artistic talent appears - across every spectrum of the Arts.”

Phil Edgar-Jones, Director of Sky Arts, added, “The Arts are alive and kicking in the UK – we are living in a moment of incredible creative energy and output and the South Bank Sky Arts Awards nominees this year really do reflect the breadth and depth of talent we have in the UK. We wish everyone involved the very best of luck.”


Here's the full list of nominees. Our very own mystic mug, Susan Omand, has picked her winners. You can point and laugh at her after the awards ceremony next weekend as to how many she got wrong - Ed

VISUAL ART (SPONSORED BY LEXUS)

Rachel Whiteread: Internal Objects, Gagosian
Michael Armitage: Paradise Edict, Royal Academy of Arts, London
** WILL WIN (It's literally lush!) ** Hurvin Anderson: Reverb, Thomas Dane Gallery


THEATRE

The Walk: The Walk Productions in association with Handspring Puppet Company and Good Chance Theatre
Best of Enemies: A Young Vic and Headlong co-production
** WILL WIN (Perfect casting in a perfect location) ** Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club


DANCE

The Dante Project – Wayne McGregor: The Royal Ballet
Then Or Now: Ballet Black
** WILL WIN (it's joyous!) ** Starstruck: Scottish Ballet


LITERATURE

Love Marriage: Monica Ali
** WILL WIN (no I haven't read any of them but liked the sound of this one best) ** Burntcoat: Sarah Hall
Open Water: Caleb Azumah Nelson


POP

Little Simz: Sometimes I Might Be Introvert
** WILL WIN (My favourite chart song of last year) ** Sam Fender: Seventeen Going Under
Self Esteem: Prioritise Pleasure


OPERA

Theatre of Sound, Bluebeard's Castle
** WILL WIN (It's Wagner, but not as we know it) ** Birmingham Opera Company, Wagner’s RhineGold
Opera North, Rigoletto


COMEDY

Starstruck, Series 1, BBC One
** WILL WIN (a Muslim female punk band, what's not to like?) ** We Are Lady Parts, Channel 4
Alma’s Not Normal, BBC Two


CLASSICAL MUSIC

** WILL WIN (just gorgeous) ** Huw Watkins Symphony No.2: The Hallé
Dani Howard - Trombone Concerto: Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra
Up for Grabs, Mark-Anthony Turnage: BBC Symphony Orchestra, Barbican


TV DRAMA

** WILL WIN (very powerful) ** It’s A Sin: Red Production Company for Channel 4 and HBO Max in Association with All3Media International
Time: BBC Studios for BBC One
This Is Going To Hurt: Sister / Terrible Productions for BBC One


FILM

After Love
** WILL WIN (technically clever as well as a good story) ** Boiling Point
Passing


THE TIMES BREAKTHROUGH AWARD

Comedy - Liz Kingsman
TV Drama - Gabrielle Creevy
Literature - Catriona Ward
Opera - Nardus Williams
Classical - Dani Howard
Visual Art - Rachel Jones
Dance - Emily Suzuki
Theatre - Samuel Creasey
** WILL WIN (her performance in CODA was breathtaking) ** Film - Emilia Jones
Pop - Wet Leg


OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

To be announced... so obviously they'll win.


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