British Documentary Awards Reveal 2021 Winners

The 17 winners of the 49th annual British Documentary Awards were revealed during a ceremony hosted by Patrick Kielty.

Once Upon a Time in Iraq, produced by KEO Films for BBC Two, took home two awards. The series won Best History Documentary and Best Documentary Series.

The Best Single Documentary—Domestic award went to David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet, produced by Silverback Films and WWF Production for Netflix. Alexander Nanau Production’s BBC Four documentary Collective: Unravelling a Scandal won Best Single Documentary—International.

The Best Current Affairs Documentary award was given to two documentaries: Welcome to Chechnya: The Gay Purge, from Public Square Films for BBC Four, and Undercover in the Schools that Chain Boys, from BBC News Arabic Documentaries for BBC Arabic.

Marble Films’ BBC Four documentary Locked In: Breaking the Silence and BBC Studios’ Netflix documentary The Surgeon’s Cut both earned the Best Science Documentary award.

Netflix won an additional four awards, including Best Music Documentary for Biggie: I Got a Story to Tell. The streamer also earned Best Sports Documentary for Athlete A, a Netflix original in association with Impact Partners, Artemis Rising Foundation, Meadow Fund, Dobkin Family Foundation, Chicago Media Project, Grant Me the Wisdom Productions and An Actual Films Production. The Netflix original A Love Song for Latasha won Best Documentary Short and My Octopus Teacher, produced in association with Off the Fence and the Sea Change Project, won Best Natural History or Environmental Documentary.

Best Entertaining Documentary went to Piraya Film I AS’s BBC Four documentary The Mole: Infiltrating North Korea.

Sky Arts’ The Painter and the Thief took home the Best Arts Documentary award. The School That Tried to End Racism, from Proper Content for Channel 4, won Best Constructed Documentary Series.

Best Documentary Presenter was awarded to Yinka Bokinni for Damilola: The Boy Next Door, produced by Acme Films for Channel 4, and Dr. Chris and Dr. Xand van Tulleken for Surviving the Virus: My Brother & Me, produced by Little Gem for BBC One.

The Best Student Documentary award went to National Film and Television School graduates for Tease.

Two special awards were also presented during the ceremony. Sundance Film Festival Director Tabitha Jackson was named BBC Grierson Trustees’ Award winner, and production manager Serena Kennedy took the inaugural Talent Manager Grierson Hero of the Year Award.

Lorraine Heggessey, chair of the Grierson Trust said: “It’s been another extraordinary year in documentary filmmaking and our winners reflect the dynamic and sometimes tumultuous times we live in, whether wowing us with films reflecting the cutting edge of medical science, spotlighting repression and political corruption, or delving into the defining issues of our time. It is thrilling to see an industry that is thriving and continuing to make bold, powerful films told through dedication, compassion and expertise.”