Judges naturally selected his evolution show

Robert Newman’s Entirely Accurate Encyclopaedia Of Evolution was named ‘best comedy with an audience’ at the BBC Audio Drama Awards last night.

And Secret Kebabs by Christine Entwisle – a Radio 4 show about a relationship counsellor and a kebab shop owner, starring Pippa Haywood and Asim Chaudhry – was named best scripted comedy. The writer tweeted afterwards: ‘So grateful to my team and to every single lovely bugger that came up to me afterwards.’

Awards were handed out at BBC Broadcasting House last night, at a ceremony hosted by Lenny Henry.

Bob Shennan, the BBC’s director of radio, said the awards ‘illustrate the range and uniqueness of audio drama in its ability to tell stories like no other medium, transporting listeners to the world of imagination. It’s evident the genre attracts high calibre talent.’

Also nominated in the audience comedy category were Mae Martin’s Guide To 21st Century Sexuality and Mark Steel’s In Town; while the other scripted comedy nominees were Guilt Trip, the family comedy-drama created by Felicity Montagu with her daughter Olivia Nixon and Katherine Jakeways, and The Strange Vanishing of Julian Quark by Tom Wainwright, in which Toby Jones played a Prime Minister who loses body parts as he broke election pledges.

In other awards handed out yesterday, Rahul Kohli was named ‘top of the bill’ at the NATY new act awards. Lip-synch act Roland Saunders came second and Phil Lucas and Sindhu Vee were tied for third. Read our review here.

And Julia Louis-Dreyfus won another award for Veep, scooping best actress in a comedy at the Screen Actor Guild ceremony in Los Angeles.

William H. Macy won the male category for Shameless, and the cast of Orange Is The New Black won the ensemble category.

Published: 30 Jan 2017