Oldham stars in line for telly gongs

Oldham TV favourites Philip Schofield, Suranne Jones and Sarah Lancashire are all up for trophies at the National TV Awards.

The nominations announced today put Philip in the running for top presenter and three other awards — though he and other candidates for the best presenter trophy will have to beat Ant and Dec, who have won for the past 13 years!

This 20th year of the awards sees over 30 Manchester stars and shows up for prizes, showcasing the area’s incredible artistic talents.

Sarah Lancashire is one of four Manchester leading ladies in the running for the Drama performance trophy -, in her case for drama series “Happy Valley”. Sarah is nominated alongside fellow Oldham star Suranne Jones and TV partner Lesley Sharp for their star turns in detective series “Scott and Bailey”.

Bolton’s Maxine Peake is nominated for her starring role in “The Village”.

Sarah’s nominations don’t stop there, as “Happy Valley” and “Last Tango in Halifax” both also compete for the best drama award.

This year the awards introduce a “Skills Challenge Show” trophy to recognise massive hit series such as “The Great British Bake Off”.

“Coronation Street” will be hoping to hold on to the Serial Drama gong for yet another year, having kept rival “EastEnders” off the top spot for the past two years.

Voting is now open for the viewer-chosen awards. Fans can vote free online at www.nationaltvawards. com or by calling 0901 888 2015.

Landline calls will cost 26p a minute plus a 15p connection charge (calls can last up to seven minutes); mobile networks will cost considerably more.