'I hadn't really thought about that!' Jamie Demetriou surprised by win at 62nd annual Rose d’Or Awards

28 November 2023

Jamie Demetriou and Sarah Lancashire were among the winners at the 62nd annual Rose d’Or Awards in London on Monday night (27.11.23).

Jamie Demetriou at the Rose d'Or Awards

The 36-year-old comedian-and-writer was recognised in the Comedy Entertainment category for his Netflix special 'A Whole Lifetime with Jamie Demetriou'.

Speaking ahead of his victory, Jamie confessed that he hadn't actually prepared a winner's speech.

Discussing his nomination with assembled media, he said: "I hadn't really thought about that!

"Who fancies their chances? 'Taskmaster' will probably get it, and I love 'Taskmaster'."

However, the right words came to Jamie when he stepped on stage to receive his statuette along with the producers who worked on the special, which included 'The Inbetweeners' star Simon Bird, and he also took time out to pay tribute to host David Baddiel.

In his acceptance speech, Jamie said: "Thanks very much. What a lovely looking award this is. It needs to be said, David’s opening monologue is honestly one of the funniest things I’ve ever heard. Congratulations fellow nominees. This was a lovely night. Thank you so much. It’s really exciting."

Sarah, 59, received the prestigious Performance of the Year prize for her role as Sgt Catherine Cawood in BBC One crime drama 'Happy Valley'.

The special accolade is given to a personality who has made an outstanding performance in a programme or series in the past year and previous winners include Sir David Attenborough, Brian Cox, Ricky Gervais, Joanna Lumley, John Cleese and the late Angela Lansbury among others.

On accepting her award, Sarah said: "This is thrilling, [I want to] thank those who are responsible for bringing this amazing series to screen.”

The Rose d'Or Awards ceremony celebrates international excellence in entertainment programming. It began in 1961 when it was created by Swiss Television in the lakeside city of Montreux and it has been a flagship event for the European Broadcasting Union and the international TV industry ever since.

The 2023 ceremony saw 700 entries from across the world, with over 100 broadcast executives and leading producers from the television industry voting on the winners across 13 competitive categories.

Chair of the Rose d’Or, Mark Rowland, said: “The Rose d’Or Awards 2023 saw a wider range of subjects and treatments than ever before, with over 700 entries from 30 countries. It was a tough challenge for the judges - it came down to an incredibly strong group of finalists and to these worthy winners. For anyone who hasn’t watched these shows yet, you have a treat in store."

Other winners on the night included Ayo Edebiri who received the Emerging Talent award for her stand out role as Sydney in restaurant drama 'The Bear'.

In a remotely recorded acceptance speech, Ayo said: “Thank you so much to Rose d’Or and EBU for this amazing award, it’s such an honour. I’m in astounding company, and to see any sort of acknowledgement for my work is beyond my wildest dreams. It’s a real privilege.”

Acclaimed French film and TV director and writer and producer Josée Dayan was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement award.

On receiving the accolade, Dayan said: "I am very happy to be here with you. It’s a great honour for me, thank you."

The 2023 Rose d’Or winners:

Soap or Telenovela:

Another Love 

Tims+B Productions / Global Agency / FOX TV / Turkey

Children and Youth:

Dome 16 

Tordenfilm / Global Screen / NRK / Norway

Multiplatform :

Capture: who's looking after the children? 

Financial Times / UK

Comedy Entertainment:

A Whole Lifetime with Jamie Demetriou 

BBC Studios Productions Comedy Guilty Party Pictures / Netflix / UK

Emerging Talent:

Ayo Edebiri, The Bear 

FX Productions / Hulu / USA

Documentary:

The Man Who Played With Fire 

Raw TV / Sky / Sky Documentaries / UK

News and Current Affairs:

Children of the Taliban 

Moondogs / Dogwoof / Channel 4 / Germany

Audio:

The Shamima Begum Story 

BBC News Long Form Audio / BBC Sounds and BBC 5 Live / UK

Arts

Nothing Compares:

Tara Films Ard Mhacha Productions in association with Field of Vision, Screen Ireland, BFI Doc Society Fund, ie:entertainment and Northern Ireland Screen / Sky / Sky Documentaries / UK

Performance of the Year:

Sarah Lancashire, Happy Valley 

Lookout Point in co-production with AMC for BBC / BBC Studios / BBC / AMC / UK

Factual Entertainment and Reality:

Justice in Jail 

Woestijnvis / Primitives / Play Media / Belgium

Studio Entertainment:

The 1% Club 

Magnum Media / BBC Worldwide / ITV1 / UK

Competition Reality:

Destination X 

Geronimo / Be-Entertainment / DPG Media / VTM / Belgium