Out-of-Town Creatives Gain Ch4 Awards

Channel 4 has judged Manchester, Brighton and Liverpool as creative cities, with Birmingham specially awarded, by handing out their annual Creative City Awards to production companies based there.

Manchester's Steve Boulton Productions, Mersey TV and Brighton's Ricochet South have all won Channel 4's Creative City Awards. Channel 4 each year rewards regional producers of their most creative shows or projects.

Steve Boulton Productions won for their critically acclaimed documentary Being Pamela. The reality series Supernanny proved a winner for Brighton's Ricochet South and Liverpool's Mersey TV were awarded for long-running soap Hollyoaks. Maverick TV in Birmingham gained a special award for its consistent performance in public service and entertainment programming.

Alun Michael, minister of state for industry and the regions, said: "These awards demonstrate that London is receiving significant competition from other cities in the UK when it comes to imagination and creativity."

The judging was conducted by a panel of senior C4 representatives across various departments.