Greg James and Dotty win big at radio's Arias awards

Greg JamesPA Wire

Greg James has won the Radio Academy award for best new show - after 18 months of entertaining listeners on BBC Radio 1's Breakfast show.

He lost out on the award for best music breakfast show to his BBC Radio 1Xtra counterpart, Dotty.

James, 34, who hosted the Arias awards in London, congratulated her on Twitter, calling her the "absolute best".

The pair co-presented BBC One's music show Sounds Like Friday Night.

Around 4.81m listeners tuned in to James' Breakfast Show in the last three months of 2019, according to the latest figures.

The programme moved from five to four days a week when he took over from fellow Radio 1 presenter Nick Grimshaw in August 2018.

Dotty, 31 - a former rapper also known as Amplify Dot or A. Dot, but whose real name is Ashley Charles - has presented 1Xtra's Breakfast Show since 2016.

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Dotty, right, pictured with BBC Radio 1 presenter Clara Amfo

BBC Radio 2 was named station of the year, while BBC Radio 5 Live's Emma Barnett received the award for best speech presenter.

Barnett thanked her listeners on Twitter, adding that she was "thrilled".

Toby Foster, who presents BBC Radio Sheffield's Breakfast, picked up the award for best speech breakfast show.

PA Wire

Emma Barnett holds her award

The award for "moment of the year" was given to Iain Lee of Talk Radio, who helped rescue a man who called his show claiming to have taken a drug overdose in December 2018.

In his acceptance speech, Lee urged people to "be kinder".

"I've been suicidal. I've plotted to kill myself a couple of times and I didn't do it - partly because of the Samaritans, partly because of my mates," he said.

Lee, who appeared on ITV's I'm A Celebrity in 2017, went on to criticise a tendency to "create fear and division" in radio.

"We don't need to do that," he said. "We have a bigger responsibility to help people."

BBC programmes and presenters won 17 out of 23 awards.

Other non-BBC winners included Bauer Media's local station Forth 1 and podcast Passenger List.

Arias 2020: Full list of winners

  • Best new presenter: BBC Radio 1's The Reality Tea

  • Best new show: Radio 1 Breakfast Show with Greg James

  • Best news coverage: Myles Bonnar, A-Game Expose

  • Best speech breakfast show: Toby Foster at Breakfast, BBC Radio Sheffield

  • Best speech presenter: Emma Barnett, BBC Radio 5 Live

  • Best sports show: Super G: How Geraint Won the Yellow Jersey, BBC Radio Wales

  • Best coverage of an event: Mental Health Awareness Week, Absolute Radio

  • Funniest show: Elis James and John Robins, BBC Radio 5 Live

  • Best music breakfast show: The 1xtra Breakfast Show with Dotty, BBC Radio 1Xtra

  • Best music presenter: Mistajam, BBC Radio 1Xtra

  • Best specialist music show: This Classical Life, BBC Radio 3

  • Best factual single programme: Kane Walker: Life and Death on the Streets

  • Best factual series: Ladder to Nowhere, BBC Radio 4

  • Local station of the year: BBC Hereford & Worcester

  • National station or network: BBC Radio 2

  • Moment of the Year: Overdosing man calls Iain Lee, talkRADIO

  • Best independent podcast: Passenger List, Radiotopia

  • Best fictional storytelling: Forest 404, BBC Radio 4

  • Best station sound: Radio 1 Station Sound, BBC Popular Music Station Sound

  • Best commercial promotion: Samaritans, talkSport

  • Best marketing campaign: Radio 1 Breakfast #MakeThisGreg

  • Best community programming: National Prison Radio, Prison Radio Association

  • Best local radio show: Boogie in the Morning, Forth 1

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