Campaigners hoping to reverse the BBC's decision to close two of its radio stations were given a boost tonight after BBC 6 Music and its sister station the Asian Network won a hat-trick of prizes at the industry's top awards ceremony.
6 Music, which along with the Asian Network will be closed at the end of next year under controversial plans put forward by BBC director general Mark Thompson, won two awards for three of its most high-profile presenters.
Adam Buxton and Joe Cornish – currently on sabbatical from the station's Saturday morning slot – won the best comedy prize, beating shows including BBC Radio 4's Down the Line and the News Quiz, while former Pulp singer Jarvis Cocker won the "rising star" award voted for by listeners.
Asian Network weekday afternoon presenter Nihal was another winner, in the best speech programme category.
The victories, at the Sony Radio Academy Awards at the Grosvenor House Hotel in central London, will be a boost for protestors hoping to persuade the BBC that the stations should be saved. The proposals are currently the subject of a public consultation being overseen by the BBC Trust and due to end at the end of this month.
BBC director general Mark Thompson said the stations were not popular enough to justify their combined budget of about £21m. But both stations are expected to show a big increase in their audiences when the latest official listening figures are published on Thursday.
The campaign to save 6 Music has been particularly vociferous, attracting celebrity support from the likes of David Bowie and Emily Eavis, as well as BBC presenters including Richard Bacon. A Facebook group campaigning to save 6 Music has amassed nearly 180,000 members.
Other big-name winners at the Sony awards included Sir David Attenborough, named speech broadcaster of the year, and Bono, for BBC Radio 4's Elvis By Bono, in which the U2 frontman read a self-penned poem about Elvis Presley set to archive clips and music.
BBC Radio 5 Live was named UK station of the year, beating fellow nominees Absolute Radio and TalkSport. Radio 4 won a total of six awards including breakfast show of the year for the Today programme, and interview of the year for Jenni Murray's interview with Sharon Shoesmith, the former head of Haringey social services who was dismissed over the Baby P case.
BBC Radio 1 DJ Zane Lowe was a double winner for the second time in four years, winning best specialist music programme and music broadcaster of the year. But there was no joy for Radio 1 breakfast DJ Chris Moyles, beaten into second place in the music radio personality prize by his Radio 1 colleague, Scott Mills.
There was only one top prize for BBC Radio 2 – which has been told by the BBC Trust to do more to appeal to older listeners – for Dermot O'Leary's Saturday afternoon show. Digital radio station of the year went to Planet Rock, the commercial radio station winning the award for the second time.
Commercial radio won 12 awards, including the best entertainment programme for Johnny Vaughan and Lisa Snowdon's breakfast show on London's 95.8 Capital FM, two awards for national music station Absolute Radio, and two for stations in the Real Radio network, owned by GMG Radio, part of Guardian Media Group, which publishes the Guardian.
The best drama prize was won by BBC Radio 3's People Snogging in Public Places. The Hackney Podcast won best internet programme, with the Guardian's Media Talk podcast picking up the bronze award in this category.
The BBC World Service won two awards, including best news and current affairs programme for Newshour and Lyse Doucet, who won news journalist of the year. The night's special award went to armed forces broadcaster, BFBS Radio, while long-standing BBC radio DJ Trevor Nelson received the top prize of the night, the gold award.
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