Harry Hill tops Comedy Award nominees

Full shortlists revealed

Harry Hill’s TV Burp leads the nominations in this year’s British Comedy Awards, as his show comes to the end.

He is nominated for a record seventh year in a row for best comedy entertainment programme, best male television comic and best comedy entertainment personality.

Hill said: ‘I am thrilled that my personality has been deemed entertaining enough to be nominated for a British Comedy Award, particularly in this, the last year of TV Burp, and when I next see it I will be certain to let it know.

‘It would be the icing on the cake if it won - but no pressure.’

Olivia Colman has two chances to win best TV comedy actress, having been shortlisted for her performances in both Rev and Twenty Twelve – the first person to ever have had two nominations in the same category. She’s up against Twenty Twelve colleague Jessica Hynes and Rebecca Front from The Thick Of It.

Would I Lie to You team captains, Lee Mack and David Mitchell, go head-to-head for the best male TV comic against Sean Lock and Harry Hill. Mack said: ‘It’s an honour to be in such a strong category because you’ve got the unfunny speccy fella, the other unfunny speccy fella, the unfunny posh boy or me, so I don’t know who’s going to win.’

In best female TV comic, Nina Conti gets a surprise nomination for her BBC Four one-off Make Me Happy: A Monkey's Search for Enlightenment, agains more experienced names Jo Brand, Sarah Millican and Sue Perkins.

Millican also gets a chance to keep her crown as Queen of Comedy, as she is nominated in the public-vote category again. She is up against Alan Carr, David Mitchell, Graham Norton, Jack Whitehall and Lee Mack.

Millican said: ‘I’m bloody thrilled to be nominated. After winning the Queen of Comedy title last year, I’ve been wearing my crown with pride and hope to keep my hands on it for 2013. Those supermarkets won't open themselves you know.’

The full list of nominees is

Best New Comedy Programme
Alan Partridge: Welcome to Places in My Life
Cardinal Burns
Hunderby
Moone Boy

Best Comedy Entertainment Programme
Alan Carr Chatty Man
Celebrity Juice
Harry Hill's TV Burp
The Graham Norton Show

Best Sketch Show
Cardinal Burns
Facejacker
Horrible Histories
Very Important People

Best Sitcom
Hunderby
Rev
The Thick of It
Twenty Twelve

Best Comedy Entertainment Personality
Charlie Brooke: Charlie Brooker's 2011 Wipe
Graham Norton: The Graham Norton Show
Harry Hill: Harry Hill's TV Burp
Stephen Fry: QI

Best TV Comedy Actor
Hugh Bonneville: Twenty Twelve
Peter Capaldi: The Thick of It
Steve Coogan: Alan Partridge: Welcome to the Places of My Life
Tom Hollander: Rev

Best TV Comedy Actress
Jessica Hynes: Twenty Twelve
Olivia Colman: Rev
Olivia Colman: Twenty Twelve
Rebecca Front: The Thick of It

Best Comedy Breakthrough Artist
David Rawle: Moone Boy
Morgana Robinson: Very Important People
Nina Conti: Make Me Happy: A Monkey's Search for Enlightenment
Seb Cardinal & Dustin Demri-Burns: Cardinal Burns

Best Male Television Comic
David Mitchell: Would I Lie to You
Harry Hill: Harry Hill's TV Burp
Lee Mack: Would I Lie to You
Sean Lock: 8 Out of 10 Cats

Best Female Television Comic
Jo Brand: Have I Got News For You
Nina Conti: Make Me Happy: A Monkey's Search for Enlightenment
Sarah Millican: The Sarah Millican Television Programme
Sue Perkins: Have I Got News For You

King Or Queen of comedy (public vote)
Alan Carr
David Mitchell
Graham Norton
Jack Whitehall
Lee Mack
Sarah Millican