The nominees for the 2025 ARIAS have been revealed by The Radio Academy at a party hosted at News UK by talkSPORT’s Natalie Sawyer and Jim White.
There were also appearances from last year’s host Romesh Ranganathan, plus previous winners Scott Mills and National Prison Radio’s Lady Unchained, who also helped to announce the 169 nominees.
There are 21 awards to be won, including the new category ‘Audio Brand of the Year’ which includes Goalhanger Podcasts, Tortoise Media, Apple Music Radio, BBC Sounds, Rayo and Yoto as nominees.
The ceremony takes place on Wednesday 14 May at brand-new venue, Leicester Square’s ODEON Luxe.
Aradhna Tayal Leach, Managing Director of The Radio Academy says: “I’m thrilled to announce the nominees for The Radio Academy ARIAS 2025.
“Each nominee showcases the exceptional storytelling, innovative teams, and diverse work that the UK proudly offers, impacting deep within local communities and making waves globally.
“The ARIAS is always one of the year’s highlights, and I’m excited to join my peers in celebrating the very best of UK audio and radio.”
Tickets for the ARIAS are on sale at radioacademy.org from Wednesday 9th April.
Full List of Nominees
Best Commercial Partnership Award
Dead River – Audio Always for Pogust Goodhead
Empowering Young Lives – KISS and KFC
Fun Kids Teacher of the Year with Collection Pot – Fun Kids
Hold or Fold with GambleAware – Prison Radio Association
The Mid.Point: Sweaty Betty Special – Spiritland Productions
Scottish Island Adventures – The Big Light
Best Event Coverage Award
BBC Proms 2024 – BBC Radio 3
Coldplay go Orange for Luton – BBC Three Counties Radio
Coverage of the Paralympics – RNIB Connect Radio
Forest are Magic – Forest Focus
Isle of Man TT Races: The TT Podcast – Audio Always
Magic Celebrates Diwali – Magic Radio
Radio 1’s Pedal Power for Red Nose Day – BBC Radio 1
Superscoreboard at EURO 2024 – Clyde 1
Sycamore Gap: One Year On – National Trust
Best Drama or Fiction Award
Sponsored by Audible
1984 – Audible
Central Intelligence – Goldhawk Productions for BBC Radio 4
Life & Time – BBC Radio 4
The Mysterious Affair at Styles: A Poirot Mystery – Audible
One Hundred and Fifty Days – BBC Audio Scotland for BBC Radio 4
Ruthie Henshall Sees Dead People – Magic Radio
The Skies Are Watching – Goldhawk Productions for BBC Radio 4
UNSINKABLE – Datura Studios and North Atlantic Ridge in association with B7 Media and AudioMarvels
Zeroes – BBC Studios Audio for Audible
Best Comedy Award (Show or Presenter)
Christmas Dinner with Kurupt FM – Prison Radio Association
Green Wing: Resuscitated – Audible
Help I Sexted My Boss – Audio Always
IM1: 60 Years and Counting, Sadly… – Manx Radio
Mark Steel’s in Town – BBC Radio 4
The Menagerie – Radio M29
The Skewer – Unusual Productions for BBC Radio 4
Time of The Week – DLT Entertainment for BBC Radio 4
Where There’s A Will, There’s A Wake – Sony Music Entertainment
Best Factual Series Award
Band Aid at 40 – Gimme Sugar Productions for Virgin Radio
Country Lines – Falling Tree Productions for BBC Radio 4
Grenfell: Building a Disaster – BBC Radio 4
Intrigue: To Catch a Scorpion – BBC Radio 4
Ken Bruce on Drums – Jazz FM
Kill List – Novel and Wondery
The Pitcairn Trial – Audio Always
The Trapped – ITN / ITV News
The Story of No. 1: Lauryn Hill’s the Miseducation of Lauryn Hill – 100 Best Albums Radio, Apple Music
Best Factual Single Episode Award
Between the Ears: Henry Mancini – BBC Radio 3
Black Box – The Guardian
The Daily T: The Grenfell inquiry that ‘delayed justice’ – The Telegraph
Deep Hidden Meaning: will.i.am – Apple Music Radio
Degraded by Deepfakes: File on 4 Investigates – BBC Radio 4
Esther Ghey & Jaxon Feeley: Reclaiming influence – Virgin Radio Pridecast
NATO75: An Alliance Rescue – BFBS
Our Whole Life is a Secret – BBC Radio 4
The Weekend Intelligence: A Portrait of the Proud Boys – The Economist
Best Music Award (Show or Presenter)
Annie Nightingale: A Life in Music – We Are Grape for BBC Radio 1
Radio 1’s Dance Party with Danny Howard – BBC Radio 1
Classical Connections Radio with Alexis Ffrench – Apple Music Radio
The Dance Music Archive with Andi Durrant – This is Distorted for KISSTORY
The Eras Podcast, hosted by Abbie McCarthy – Good Karma
Free Flow – Prison Radio Association
Folk on Foot – Matthew Bannister
Indie Forever – We are Grape for BBC Radio 6 Music
Phil Taggart’s ChillDaBeats – Slack Panda Productions
Best Music Breakfast Radio Show
The Bald Builders Breakfast – Fix Radio
Boogie in the Morning – Forth 1
Bowie@Breakfast – Clyde 1
Breakfast – BBC Radio 3
Breakfast with Greg James – BBC Radio 1
Breakfast with Nadia Jae – BBC Radio 1Xtra
Best Music Entertainment Award (Show or Presenter)
Sponsored by PPL & PRS for Music
Barry Island Discs: Gavin & Stacey’s Big Songs Send Off – BBC Radio Wales
The Cavern Podcast – The Cavern Club
Earlier… with Jools Holland – BBC Radio 3
Gemma Atkinson & Mike Toolan – Hits Radio
Haroon Rashid – BBC Asian Network
Hometime with Bush and Richie – Absolute Radio
Ruthie Henshall Sees Dead People – Magic Radio
Scott Mills – BBC Radio 2
The Simon Mayo Drivetime Show – Greatest Hits Radio
Best New Presenter
Sponsored by News Broadcasting
Beth Wallace – Forth 1
Bronwen Lewis – BBC Radio Wales
Chance Litchfield – Fix Radio
Emma Nagouse – Muses: An Ampersand Podcast
Helen Pidd – The Guardian
May Robson – BBC Sounds Audio Lab
Niall Breslin – The Madman’s Hotel, Audible
Phoebe McIndoe – Falling Tree Productions for BBC Radio 4
Scout Tzofiya Bolton – Prison Radio Association
Best News or Current Affairs Award
Sponsored by Markettiers
90 Seconds to Midnight – Daily Mail
The 2024 ‘Genny Lex’ – KISS
Attempted Assassination of Donald Trump – Times Radio
The Boys Are Not Alright – Audio Always for BBC Radio 4
Electoral Dysfunction – Sky News
Intrigue: To Catch a Scorpion – BBC Radio 4
Pod Save The UK – Reduced Listening and Crooked Media
Sitrep – BFBS
Southport – BBC Radio Merseyside
Best Sonic Branding Award
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 3 Unwind
Clyde 1 Superscoreboard
Fix Radio
Greatest Hits Radio 60s
Best Speech Breakfast Radio Show Award
Sponsored by Radio News Hub
5 Live Breakfast – BBC Radio 5 Live
The Graham Liver Breakfast Show – BBC Radio Lancashire
The Kevin Duala Breakfast Show – BBC Radio Merseyside
talkSPORT Breakfast – talkSPORT
Times Radio Breakfast – Times Radio
Today – BBC Radio 4
Best Speech Entertainment Award (Show or Presenter)
Sponsored by Carver PR
Believe In People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma – ReNew
British Scandal – Wondery & Samizdat Audio
Elis James and John Robins – Audio Always for BBC Radio 5 Live
Help I sexted My Boss – Audio Always
Jon Holmes Says The C-Word – Unusual Productions for BBC Radio 4
Josie Long – Falling Tree Productions for BBC Radio 4
The Louis Theroux Podcast – Mindhouse Productions
Matt Chorley – BBC Radio 5 Live
Overnights With Martin Kelner – talkSPORT
Best Sports Award (Show or Presenter)
The Big Scottish Football Show – Forth 1
From Extinction to Promotion – BBC Radio Derby Sport
Gameday – talkSPORT
Guardian Football Weekly – The Guardian
Men in Blazers: Early Kick Off – Men in Blazers and Footwork Media for Wondery
P1 with Matt & Tommy – Stak
Premier League Sunday – BBC Radio 5 Live
Test Match Special – BBC Radio 5 Live
White & Jordan – talkSPORT
The Creative or Technical Innovation Award
Sponsored by AIM / Xperi
6 Music’s Way with Words – Audio Always for BBC Radio 6 Music
The Ballad of Scout and the Alcohol Tag – Prison Radio Association
Fun Kids Space Station – Fun Kids
Fun Kids Time Machine – Fun Kids
The Gossip Gays: Who Killed Danny Beard? – Audio Always
Help I Sexted My Boss, in cinemas – Audio Always
Lowlines – Social Broadcasts and Scenery Studios
OUTCAST UK with Graeme Smith – 7th Planet for Virgin Radio Pride
Sleep Tracks – Peanut & Crumb for BBC Radio 3 Unwind
The Social Impact Award
Sponsored by BBC Sounds
Assume Nothing – Femicide: Eight Steps to Stop a Murder – BBC Radio Ulster
Black History Month: Raising The Next Generation – Hits Radio
Clare’s Law: A Decade of Saving Lives – Hits Radio
The Culture Colonel – BFBS
Intrigue: To Catch a Scorpion – BBC Radio 4
Life After Prison – Prison Radio Association
The Madman’s Hotel – Audible
The Quiet Place – BBC Radio 5 Live
The Quilt – Aunt Nell
Local Radio Station of the Year
Sponsored by RCS
BBC Radio Cornwall
BBC Radio Ulster
BBC Radio Derby
Forth 1
Clyde 1
Portsmouth’s Express FM
UK Audio Brand of the Year
Apple Music Radio
BBC Sounds
Goalhanger Podcasts
Rayo – Bauer Media Audio UK
Tortoise Media
Yoto
UK Radio Station or Radio Network of the Year
Sponsored by Arqiva
BBC Asian Network
BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 5 Live
Fun Kids
Greatest Hits Radio
talkSPORT
Radio Times Moment of the Year
Johnnie Walker’s Final Show on Sounds of the 70’s – Listen for BBC Radio 2
Radio 4’s PM Laura Trott Interview – BBC Radio 4
Sunday Love Songs Remembering Steve Wright – BBC Radio 2
‘I want my mum to die’ – Stuart George on BBC Radio Stoke
Coldplay go Orange for Luton – BBC 3 Counties Radio
BBC Radio 4’s Today: Mishal Husain and James Cleverly – BBC News
A listener unexpectedly calls Cristo Foufas’ final show to thank him for saving his life – TALK
Marjorie Taylor Greene blames media for Trump assassination attempt – Times Radio
Dan Noble speaks out about the far-right riots across the UK – Absolute Radio
Frank off the Radio – The Frank Skinner Project, Avalon
