Honours at the Sonys

Jason Byrne, Robin Ince and Frank Skinner scooped three of radio’s top accolades at the Sony Awards last night.

Byrne’s self-titled Radio 2 show won the gold award for best comedy show, with judges calling it ‘organic comedy with great timing and huge warmth’.

They added that the were ‘won over by the best use of the audience in any entry this year and by its consistent laugh-out-loud moments’.

Silver in the comedy category went to 43-year-old Just A Minute, described as ‘an evergreen show at the top of its form’, with bronze going to Tom Wrigglesworth's Open Return Letter To Richard Branson. Judges said it ‘combined very cleverly structured story-telling with comedy that had a genuine social point’.

Meanwhile, Skinner won the gold award for best entertainment programme, for his weekly show on Absolute Radio.

Judges said: ‘This programme has the whole package: entertaining and engaging. with laugh-out-loud moments. Frank Skinner is a natural host; warm and inclusive, he is fantastic at getting the best from those who appear with him on his show’.

And Robin Ince’s science show The Infinite Monkey Cage – which he co-hosts with Brian Cox – was named best speech programme.

Judges called it ‘a brilliant way of being both innovative and instructive, bringing humour to what some will see as a dull subject. It’s listenable, educational and brings a whole new audience to both the subject and the station.’

Radio 5 Live’s panel show Fighting Talk, hosted by Colin Murray and described by judges as ‘like a modern version of old-fashioned Music Hall with a winning mix of sport and comedy’, won the gold for best sports programme.

And Helen Zaltzman and Olly Mann’s comedy podcast Answer Me This won the internet award, with judges saying: ‘The presenters of this podcast demonstrate a strong rapport that sometimes traditional radio struggles to replicate. The judges found this podcast engaging, warm and funny; with creative imaging and a strong connection to the community of listeners.’

Published: 10 May 2011