Meera Syal picks up Women in Film & TV Award
(December 2002)

Meera Syal picked up the Deluxe London Award for creative originality at the Women in Film & TV Awards 2002. Ms Syal is currently enjoying box office success with Anita & Me, the adaptation of her best selling novel for which she has also written the screenplay. Women in Film and Television (WFTV), the respected industry body, also revealed nine other winners of its coveted annual awards in a ceremony at London's Hilton Hotel.

The Women in Film and Television Awards was set up in 1993 to protect and enhance the status, interests and diversity of women working at all levels in the broadcast media. The annual Awards ceremony, sponsored by Carlton Television, celebrates the talents of women working in the film and television industry with winners chosen by a panel of judges from the world of media. Over 700 members and industry professionals gathered to see the awards handed out by an eclectic list of presenters including Germaine Greer, Kirsty Young, Academy Award winner - Julian Fellowes, Samantha Bond, Helen McCrory and Naomi Harris.

The event was hosted for the fourth year running by the comedian, scriptwriter and novelist, Jenny Eclair. Presenters and guests included Greta Scacchi and James Wilby, David Harewood, Fay Ripley, Andrew Lincoln, Michelle Collins, Sue Perkins and Zoe Lucker, the star of Footballers' Wives who presented the Sony Contribution to the Medium Award to the show's producer, Eileen Gallagher, managing director of Shed Productions.

The Carlton Television Award went to Claudia Rosencrantz, controller of entertainment ITV, responsible for numerous hit shows including I'm A Celebrity - Get Me Out Of Here. Tara Palmer Tomkinson was on hand to present the award.

The main award of the ceremony, the Channel 4 Lifetime Achievement Award was accepted by Angela Allen, who was recognised for over 40 years outstanding work in script supervision and continuity. Her amazing filmography includes credits on no less than 14 of John Huston's films including The African Queen, Moby Dick and The Man Who Would Be King. WFTV revealed specially recorded tributes to Ms Allen from the two other celebrated directors that she has worked with, Roman Polanski and Franco Zeffirelli.

FULL LIST OF WINNERS OF THE CARLTON WFTV AWARDS 2002

The Olswang Business Award - Jane Barclay & Sharon Harel : founders of Capitol films, one of Europe's most formidable international film production, financing and sales companies.

The Panavision Craft Award - Maria Djurkovic : production designer on film titles such as Billy Eliot, Sliding Doors and The Sylvia Path project (currently in production).

The Sony Pictures Television International Contribution to the Medium Award - Eileen Gallagher : managing director of Shed Productions responsible for a string of TV hits including Bad Girls and Footballers' Wives.

The Deluxe London Creative Originality Award - Meera Syal : acclaimed writer, actress, comic and playwright, who has recently adapted her best-selling book Anita and Me into a new film.

Film Finances Inc Project Management Award - Kim Spackman : head of programme management, Thames Television. Productions include This is Your Life, Wish You Were Here, Pop Idol and Heroes of Comedy.

RB Scotland News & Factual Award - Dorothy Byrne : commissioning editor, News, Current Affairs and Business, Channel 4

Film Council Script Award - Ruth Prawer Jhabvala : novelist and Merchant Ivory collaborator and screenwriter. Credits include The Householder, Shakespeare Wallah and The Europeans.

The Thames/Talkback New Talent Award - Zaiba Malik : a highly respected young journalist who has worked on Unreported Britain (Channel 4) and Panorama (BBC).

The Carlton Television Award - Claudia Rosencrantz : Controller of Entertainment ITV - The first woman to hold this post. Developed and launched numerous hit shows including: Popstars, Pop Idol and I'm A Celebrity - Get Me Out of Here.

The Channel 4 Lifetime Award - Angela Allen : Recognised for over 40 years outstanding work in script supervision and continuity on feature films including: John Huston's The African Queen, Moulin Rouge and The Misfits, Carol Reed's The Third Man, Franco Zeffirelli's Tea with Mussolini, John Frakenheimer's Ronin, Ken Russell's Women In Love and Roman Polanski's Macbeth. Angela continues to be much in demand and most recently worked on the soon to be released Callas Forever, Zeffirelli's depiction of the last month of the opera diva's life.

Click here to visit the Women in Film & Television website.
Click here to visit the Carlton TV website.

ABOUT MEERA SYAL?

Meera Syal was born and brought up in Wolverhampton. She studied English and Drama at Manchester University, where she wrote a play 'One of Us', which won the National Student Drama Award. After University, she worked as an actress at the Royal Court Theatre and was soon commissioned by the BBC to write a three-part series, 'My Sister Wife', a story looking at both a traditional and modern idea of marriage.

Her screenplay, 'Bhaji on the Beach', aroused both praise and criticism from Asian community leaders. Meera co-writes and stars in the BBC2 hit comedy series 'Goodness Gracious Me'. Her first novel, the best-selling 'Anita and Me', won a Betty Trask Award and was shortlisted for the Guardian Fiction Prize. She was awarded an MBE in 1998.

Click here to read a review of her book 'Anita & Me'.
Click here to read a review of her book 'Life Isn't All Ha Ha Hee Hee'
Click here to read a preview of the film 'Anita & Me'.
Click here to read about 'Bombay Dreams' the musical for which she wrote the script.
Click here to read about Meera Syal's AWA Award 2001.
Click here to read about Meera Syal's ASIA Award 2001.

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