NTAs 2023: Will Sarah Lancashire earn her third National Television Award with Happy Valley tonight?

Could tonight see Sarah Lancashire earn her third National Television Award since the inception of the ceremony in 1995? Both she and the immensely popular BBC series ‘Happy Valley’ are considered favourites to walk away with awards later this evening at The O2 in London.

The show, which sees Sarah Lancashire playing divorced police sergeant Catherine Cawood, returned to our screens after a seven-year hiatus earlier this year to much fanfare as Cawood is called to investigate the discovery of human remains near a reservoir, where she comes to realise the murder suspects share a history with Royce, who has since been transferred to a cell in Sheffield and is awaiting trial for a string of unseen offences.

It’s a far cry from the role she played that made her a household name - Raquel Watts in ‘Coronation Street’ and her relationship with the lovable, if not slightly leftfield romantic leading man, Curly Watts (played by Kevin Kennedy). It was a role she played from 1991 to 1996, before moving to Kuala Lumpur to accept an aromatherapy job.

However, it has been her recent works alongside ‘Happy Valley’ creator Sally Wainwright that caught the attention of the more astute, non-soap opera television viewer. The pair collaborated together on the celebrated drama ‘Last Tango in Paris’ between 2012 and 2016, with Lancashire playing Caroline Dawson, earning her a BAFTA Television award for her role in  2014 having lost out on the award the previous year.

Will the overwhelming popularity of ‘Happy Valley’ at an awards show based on public voting finally net Sarah Lancashire a third National Television Award this evening?

How many times has Sarah Lancashire won a National Television Award?

Though she has been nominated at the National Television Awards a total of five times, Lancashire has only won two awards at the event; in 2000 in the category “Most Popular Actress” for her role in ‘Seeing Red,’ and then in 2017 for her role as Catherine Cawood in ‘Happy Valley.’

How many awards has ‘Happy Valley’ won at the National Television Awards?

‘Happy Valley’ has never won a National Television Award despite running for three seasons; the closest it came was a nomination in the “Best Drama” category in 2017. It has fared better at the BAFTA TV Awards, admittedly.

Where can I watch ‘Happy Valley’?

All three seasons of ‘Happy Valley’ are available to watch now through BBC iPlayer. Readers in the United States can check out the series through a subscription to AMC+.

When are the National Television Awards and where can I watch them?

The National Television Awards 2023 will be screened live and exclusively on ITV One and ITVX from 7:30pm on Tuesday September 5 2023. The show can also be watched on demand through ITVX.