Dame Mary Berry honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the WFTV Awards 2024

The prestigious Women in Film & Television Awards 2024 ceremony, in partnership with Sky, took place at London Hilton Park Lane on Friday 6 December to celebrate the work, success and achievements of women in front of and behind the camera.

The 2024 ceremony saw Jessica Gunning, Ambika Mod, and Oscar-winning costume designer Holly Waddington amongst winners.

Now in its 33rd year, the Women in Film & Television Awards 2024 saw comedian, writer, presenter and actress Katherine Ryan return as host for her third year running, honouring the much-admired and worthy winners across 14 categories including directing, writing, producing, performance, business and contribution to the medium.

Guests at the star-studded event also included Adjoa Andoh, Alex Jones, Anita Dobson, Anita Rani, Edith Bowman, Emily Hampshire, Emily Maitlis, Juliet Stevenson, Katherine Parkinson, Leila Farzad, Maxine Peake, Meera Syal, Michelle de Swarte, Monica Dolan, Nicola Roberts, Ria Hebden, Russell T Davies, Stacey Dooley, Sue Perkins and Zoe Saldana.

Dame Mary Berry, one of the UK’s best loved cookery writers and television personalities, received The EON Productions Lifetime Achievement Award, with Sue Perkins handing her the accolade. Mary is known worldwide for her work as a judge on Best Home Cook and The Great British Bake Off and its American counterpart, The Great American Baking Show for NBC. She also oversaw the judging for The Platinum Pudding for the late Queen’s Platinum Jubilee and The King’s Dish 2023 for King Charles’s Coronation, both on the BBC.

Dame Mary Berry joins a commanding list of previous Women in Film & Television Lifetime Achievement award-winners, including Meera Syal, Sue Barker, Floella Benjamin, Judi Dench, Sheila Hancock, Katherine Hepburn, Glenda Jackson, Helen Mirren, Joanna Lumley, Esther Rantzen, Vanessa Redgrave and Maggie Smith.

TV chef and presenter Andi Oliver also accepted The EIKON Presenter Award, handed to her by Meera Syal for her work on BBC's Great British Menu and Andi Oliver's Fabulous Feasts.

Edith Bowman presented The Argonon Best Performance Award to actor Jessica Gunning for her extraordinary work on screen as Martha in the critically acclaimed Netflix series Baby Reindeer, and Ambika Mod (actor in Netflix's One Day) was presented with the Netflix New Talent Award by Karla Sofia Gascon and Zoe Saldana.

Juliet Riddell, Head of New Formats at the Financial Times, was presented with The ITV Studios Achievement of the Year Award by Anita Rani for her work producing essential films on contemporary issues such as Capture: who's looking after the children?, a drama starring Jodie Whittaker looking at online harm, regulation and responsibility.

Additionally, the UK’s best behind the scenes talent were applauded at the Women in Film & Television Awards 2024, with Kirsty Wark (broadcaster, presenter), Holly Waddington (Oscar-winning costume designer for Poor Things), Victoria Mapplebeck (Motherboard director), Faiza Tovey (Head of Production, ITV Studios), Nicole Taylor (writer, Netflix's One Day), Zeb Achonu (editor, Channel 5's White Nanny Black Child), Daisy Allsop (producer, Sky's Otto Baxter: Not a Fucking Horror Story), Norma Percy (documentary filmmaker and producer) and Frith Tiplady (Managing Director, Moonage Pictures) all winning big on the night in recognition of their craft and how they are all blazing their own paths in the creative media industry.

Speaking at the Women in Film & Television Awards, CEO Katie Bailiff said

“We’re here today to celebrate the unstoppable force that is women in film and television. Our vision as a thriving, creative, inclusive industry where women are supported, empowered and celebrated at every level. We’ve come a long way, but there are still clearly doors that need to be opened and ceilings that need to be smashed as we continue to fight for equal representation both off and on screen. This has been one of the industry’s toughest ever years. With all the creativity, resilience, and brilliance the women in our industry are defined by, we pull it off. Because we always do.”

This year’s ceremony also saw a wealth of talent attending to celebrate the achievements of some of the most prolific women in the film and television industry; guests included Emily Maitlis, Russell T Davies, Monica Dolan, Sue Perkins and Zoe Saldana. Entertainment performances during the awards ceremony came courtesy of the West End cast of Tina - The Tina Turner Musical.

The full list of Women in Film & Television Awards 2024 winners and presenters is as follows:

Daisy Allsop

Producer

The ENVY Producer Award

Presented by Katherine Parkinson

Jessica Gunning

Actress (Baby Reindeer)

The Argonon Best Performance Award

Presented by Edith Bowman

Frith Tiplady

Managing Director, Moonage Pictures

The Mercury Studios Business Award

Presented by Russell T Davies

Holly Waddington

Costume Designer (Poor Things)

The MBS Equipment Co Craft Award

Presented by Juliet Stevenson

Norma Percy

Documentary filmmaker and producer

The BBC News and Factual Award

Presented by Lyse Doucet

Ambika Mod

Actress (One Day)

The Netflix New Talent Award

Presented by Karla Sofia Gascon and Zoe Saldana

Faiza Tovey

Head of Production, ITV Studios

The IMDb Production Management Award

Presented by Monica Dolan

Zeb Achonu

Editor (White Nanny Black Child)

The Molinare Post Production Award

Presented by Anita Rani

Nicole Taylor

Writer (One Day)

The ScreenSkills Writing Award

Presented by Maxine Peake

Victoria Mapplebeck

Director (Motherboard)

The Pixelogic Media Director Award

Presented by Stacey Dooley

Andi Oliver

Presenter

The Eikon Presenter Award

Presented by Meera Syal

Juliet Riddell

Head of New Formats, Financial Times

The ITV Studios Achievement of the Year Award

Presented by Anita Rani

Kirsty Wark

Broadcaster

The Paramount Contribution to the Medium Award

Presented by Emily Maitlis

Dame Mary Berry

Presenter

The EON Productions Lifetime Achievement Award

Presented by Sue Perkins

We will announce further details about the 2025 nominations early next year. Please keep an eye on our website and the weekly WFTV newsletter for announcements. If you have not done so already, you can sign-up to the WFTV weekly newsletter here.