Article
October 4, 2010
Nominations announced for Specsavers Crime Thriller Awards.
LONDON, Monday 4th October 2010: The third inaugural Specsavers Crime Thriller Awards return to the small screen on Tuesday 12th October on ITV3, with a thrilling line up of nominees plucked from the worlds of crime literature and entertainment. Big name stars from across film and TV drama go head to head when the ‘Daggers’ are dished out in an evening guaranteed to hold nominees and viewers in suspense.
Celebrating the books, the blockbusters and the TV dramas that send shivers down the spine and put supreme sleuthing skills to the test, the coveted awards are presented in a glamorous gala ceremony at London’s Grosvenor House.
Competition is fierce across the categories, especially in this year’s TV Dagger, which sees Britain’s best loved detectives vying for pole position – sleuth of the moment Sherlock, which returned to BBC One to critical acclaim this year and propelled newcomer Benedict Cumberbatch to mass popularity, goes up against Ashes to Ashes (Kudos), nominated for a third year running, Luther (BBC) and Wallander (Left Bank Pictures).
Meanwhile, it’s a blockbuster battle in the Film Dagger section, as Sherlock Holmes makes his second appearance of the night – this time the Warner movie adaptation faces rival Inception, Stieg Larsson’s bestseller The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo and Sony’s District Nine. In this unique event that combines all genres of crime and thriller fiction, big name authors also find themselves on the hot lists for one of the milestone events in the literary calendar.
In a star studded affair, high profile faces from international stage and screen vie for best actor, actress and supporting role ‘Daggers’ – amongst the top name nominees are Kenneth Branagh, Glenn Close, Philip Glenister, Laurence Fox and former Dagger winner Hermione Norris. Meanwhile Benedict Cumberbatch, TV’s man of the moment, is hoping to seize The Best Actor TV Dagger, against stiff competition from Branagh, Glenister and Idris Elba.
International Criminal fiction is also celebrated as the International TV Dagger lands Wallander a second nomination, against The Good Wife (CBS) and Damages (Sony Pictures).
The Awards are the culmination of the Specsavers Crime Thriller Season. ITV3 is running a 6 week season of brand new crime and thriller documentaries focusing on twelve of TV’s greatest fictional detectives and showcasing shortlisted books for the Crime Writer’s Association Dagger. Each featured detective is a nominee for ‘The People’s Detective’ Dagger for whom the public get to vote at www.itv.com/drama/crimethrillerawards/ — the winner will be announced at the Specsavers Crime Thriller Awards.
Drawing extensively on archive from ITV’s impressive crime thriller back catalogue, each profile show features two of the nation’s best loved TV detectives, examining their quirks and foibles and re-visiting their most challenging cases. In addition to revealing behind-the-scenes stories and anecdotes, there are newly filmed interviews with the stars of the shows and the creators of the TV’s biggest screen sleuths alongside their famous fans.
The 2010 Awards – the third annual event produced by Cactus TV for ITV3, is sponsored by Specsavers and made in conjunction with the Crime Writers’ Association – will take place on the evening of Friday October 8th in the Ballroom of the Grosvenor House Hotel, Park Lane, London. The Awards will be screened on ITV3 the following week.
The full shortlist in the film and TV categories is:
THE FILM DAGGER
District 9 (Sony Pictures)
Inception (Warner Bros)
Sherlock Holmes (Warner Bros)
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Momentum Pictures)
The TV DAGGER
Ashes to Ashes (Series 3) (Kudos)
Luther (BBC)
Sherlock (BBC)
Wallander (Series 2) (Left Bank Pictures)
THE INTERNATIONAL TV DAGGER
Damages (Season 3) (Sony Pictures)
The Good Wife (Season 1) (CBS)
Wallander (Series 2) (Yellow Bird Films)
THE BEST ACTRESS DAGGER
Glenn Close (Damages)
Hermione Norris (Spooks)
Keeley Hawes (Ashes to Ashes & Identity)
Maxine Peake (Criminal Justice)
Sue Johnston (Waking the Dead)
THE BEST ACTOR DAGGER
Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock)
Idris Elba (Luther)
Kenneth Branagh (Wallander)
Philip Glenister (Ashes to Ashes)
THE BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR DAGGER
Laurence Fox (Lewis)
Matthew Macfadyen (Criminal Justice)
Rupert Graves (Sherlock)
Tom Hiddleston (Wallander)
THE BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS DAGGER
Dervla Kirwan (The Silence)
Gina McKee (The Silence)
Saskia Reeves (Luther)
Sophie Okonedo (Criminal Justice)