Stars Danny Dyer and Jessica Gunning have been named Best Actor and Best Actress at the 2025 Broadcasting Press Guild (BPG) Awards, celebrating their standout performances over the past year

Rivals star Danny Dyer and Baby Reindeer’s Jessica Gunning win big at BPG Awards

He’s won soap awards aplenty but Danny Dyer has scooped his first serious acting award since leaving EastEnders – for his role as loveable Freddie Jones in the TV adaptation of Jilly Cooper’s much-loved bonkbuster Rivals. Disney+ viewers were captivated by the slow-burn affair between the electronics millionaire and Lizzie Vereker, played by Katherine Parkinson, which ended with a 1980s-style al fresco love scene, just as happened in the original books.

Danny was given the honour by the Broadcasting Press Guild and he beat an incredibly strong field including Wolf Hall’s Mark Rylance to take home the Best Actor trophy. The BPG described his turn as Freddie in the “delightfully frisky” black comedy series as a “career-best performance”. He was joined in the honours by his Rivals co-star Bella McClean, who took the Breakthrough Award for her standout performance as Agatha ‘Taggie’ O’Hara.

But despite doing the double, Rivals was beaten in the best drama category by Mr Bates vs The Post Office, which also took the prize in the best writer category for Gwyneth Hughes, with the poignant and impactful drama continuing to earn recognition for its powerful storytelling and real-world impact.

Best comedy went to Gavin & Stacey: The Finale, which gave viewers a satisfyingly heartfelt Christmas conclusion to one of the UK’s favourite comedies of all time. Creators and stars James Corden and Ruth Jones were present to accept the award for the ratings juggernaut, which has now been watched by more than 21 million viewers.

Danny Dyer has won Best Actor at the BPG Awards(Image: Dave Benett/Getty Images)

The BPG jury, made up of journalists who write about broadcasting, showed they were a faithful bunch as the best entertainment prize went to The Traitors for the second year running. Fan favourite Diane Carson was in attendance, joined by some of the cast of this year’s third series including Alexander Dragonetti.

Best Single Drama went to Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl which saw the iconic animated duo facing off against the vengeful Feathers McGraw.

Best Actress went to Jessica Gunning for her chilling portrayal of obsessed stalker Martha Scott in Netflix’s Baby Reindeer. Best Documentary Series went to the BBC’s Freddie Flintoff: Field of Dreams on Tour which followed Flintoff’s return to Preston to take his team of unlikely lads on a cricket tour of India.

Meanwhile, Best Documentary Single/Miniseries was awarded to Boybands Forever for its revealing journey exploring the traumatic truth about life in the biggest boybands of the 1990s. The awards ceremony, held at The Everyman in London’s Broadgate, brought together industry leaders, BPG members, and key figures from the UK entertainment sector.

Jessica played Martha in Baby Reindeer(Image: AP)

A special award for excellence in British drama was awarded by the BPG Jury to the team behind Wolf Hall: The Mirror & The Light for the “captivating” BBC drama series.

BPG Chair Manori Ravindran said: “As a journalist, I know firsthand how much passion and expertise go into covering this industry, which is why the BPG Awards are so special.

Coveted by the industry, these awards stand apart because they are chosen independently by the critics, correspondents, and writers who live and breathe TV and audio. This year’s winners represent the very best of British storytelling—bold dramas, captivating documentaries, and groundbreaking entertainment that reflect the richness of our industry.”