Life's Too Short up for Rose d'Or award

Life's Too Short was presented as a faux-documentary in the vein of The Office and Extras

Ricky Gervais comedy Life's Too Short is up against Channel 4's Friday Night Dinner for the best sitcom prize at this year's Rose d'Or TV awards.

Channel 4's Black Mirror, The Million Pound Drop Live and The Great British Bake Off are among other UK contenders.

British shows account for 16 of the 36 shows shortlisted this year.

The winners of the awards, which took a break last year, will be announced on 10 May at the end of the Rose d'Or TV festival in Lucerne, Switzerland.

Life's Too Short, starring Warwick Davis, and Friday Night Dinner go up against Israel's Tall and Greenbaum in the sitcom category.

The Million Pound Drop Live, presented by Davina McCall, vies with ITV1's The Cube and Israel's Still Standing for the best game show prize.

Charlie Brooker's Black Mirror satire The National Anthem competes with Belgium's What If? and Israel's The Saddest Sketch Show in the World for the comedy award.

In the children's category, the BBC's Horrible Histories series and The Gruffalo's Child are nominated alongside Dutch show How To Survive...?

The Great British Bake Off has been nominated in the lifestyle category

Page Eight - starring Bill Nighy, Rachel Weisz and Sir Michael Gambon - will compete in the best TV movie category, while BBC Three series Don't Tell the Bride is up for best factual entertainment show.

Martina Cole's The Runaway, which was broadcast on Sky One, is up for best series, along with Pan Am and ITV1's The Jury.

In the lifestyle category, ITV1's May the Best House Win and the BBC's Great British Bake Off go head to head.

The programmes were whittled down from more than 400 entries by a panel of 50 ahead of the Rose d'Or festival, which begins on 6 May.

"I'm thrilled to see 36 outstanding programmes in the running for a Golden Rose," said festival director Markus Helbling.

In 2010 - the last time the awards took place - Channel 4 show The Inbetweeners was named best comedy series.