Podcast and audio production companies were among the winners as the Audio Academy ARIAS returned to London’s Roundhouse last night.
The annual awards, hosted by Rylan Clark, celebrated work across radio, podcasts and audio production, with independent companies collecting prizes in categories spanning music, drama, factual and social impact.
Hits Radio won the UK Radio Station or Radio Network of the Year award, while BBC Radio Merseyside collected the John Myers Local Radio Station of the Year title.
Independent production company successes included TBI Media winning Best Music Entertainment for Romesh Ranganathan on BBC Radio 2, while Reduced Listening took Best Social Impact for Criminally Queer for BBC Sounds Audio Lab.
Pomona Audio won Best Music for 21st Century Folk on BBC Radio 2, and Pozzitive received the Best Drama or Fiction award for Four Gammons and a Unicorn on BBC Radio 4.
Other winners included How To Fail with Elizabeth Day, which won Best Commercial Partnership for Dove and Sony Music Podcasts. BBC Sounds collected Audio Brand of the Year.
Radio 1 Breakfast with Greg James won Best Music Breakfast Show, while Bloomberg’s “Listen love, you’re trying ever so hard” received the public voted Radio Times Moment of the Year award following Mishal Husain’s interview with Nigel Farage.
The ceremony also featured performances from Femi Koleoso and Marisha Wallace.
A standing ovation greeted Trevor Nelson as he received the Judges’ Special Recognition Award for 2026, presented by Craig David.
Trevor said: “You’ve stitched me right up! I cannot tell you how much this means. That young me who started at KISS in the 80’s just wouldn’t believe any of this. I’m very humbled and grateful.”
Created by The Audio Academy, the ARIAS continue the legacy of the Sony Radio Awards, which began in 1983.
All Winners:
BEST NEW PRESENTER
Supported by Spotify
GOLD WINNER
Beth Ditto
BBC Audio for BBC Radio 6 Music and BBC Sounds
SILVER
Georgie Styles
Smoke Trail and Whistledown Productions for BBC Radio and BBC Sounds Audio Lab
BRONZE
Hugh Sheehan
BBC Sounds Audio Lab
BEST MUSIC BREAKFAST SHOW
Supported by TM Studios
GOLD WINNER
Radio 1 Breakfast with Greg James
BBC Audio for BBC Radio 1
SILVER
The Bald Builders Breakfast
Fix Radio
BRONZE
Boogie in the Morning
Forth 1
BEST SPEECH BREAKFAST SHOW
Supported by Radioplayer
GOLD WINNER
Joe Sims’ ‘Proper Bristol Breakfast’
BBC Radio Bristol
SILVER
Good Morning Ulster
BBC Radio Ulster
BRONZE
Sophie Law
BBC Radio Oxford
BEST MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT
Supported by PPL & PRS for Music
GOLD WINNER
Romesh Ranganathan
TBI Media for BBC Radio 2
SILVER
Tyler West
KISS
BRONZE
Justin Dealey
BBC Three Counties Radio
BEST SPEECH ENTERTAINMENT
Supported by TYX Studios
GOLD WINNER
Fame Under Fire
BBC Sounds
SILVER
Dig It with Jo Whiley and Zoe Ball
Persephonica
BRONZE
British Scandal
Audible and Samizdat Audio
BEST MUSIC
Supported by High Left Music
GOLD WINNER
21st Century Folk
Pomona Audio for BBC Radio 2
SILVER
Radio 1’s New Music Show with Jack Saunders
BBC Audio for BBC Radio 1
BRONZE
So Hear Me Out
Reduced Listening for Southbank Centre
BEST COMEDY
Supported by Comedy UK
GOLD WINNER
It’s a Fair Cop
BBC Studios Audio for BBC Radio 4
SILVER
The Skewer
Unusual for BBC Radio 4
BRONZE
Shagged, Married, Annoyed
Avalon
BEST FACTUAL SINGLE EPISODE
Supported by Dolby
GOLD WINNER
Locked Up
BBC Radio 4
SILVER
Lost in Lullabies
Sound and Bones, BBC Radio 4
BRONZE
Pete Wicks’ Man Made – Prime Minister Keir Starmer
Bauer Media Audio UK
BEST FACTUAL SERIES
Supported by Audio UK
GOLD WINNER
My Stalker Moved in Next Door
Hits Radio
SILVER
Pipeline: Left to Die
Daily Mail
BRONZE
The House at Number 48
BBC Radio 4
BEST DRAMA OR FICTION
Supported by Audible
GOLD WINNER
Four Gammons and a Unicorn
Pozzitive for BBC Radio 4
SILVER
Behind the Scenes at the Museum
BBC Studios Audio for BBC Radio 4
BRONZE
Shirley’s Party
Hooley Productions for BBC Radio 4
BEST NEWS
Supported by IRN
GOLD WINNER
Hits and Headlines
Hits Radio
SILVER
The Mishal Husain Show
Bloomberg
BRONZE
Hurricane Melissa: Jamaica’s Recovery
BBC Radio 1XTRA Newsbeat
BEST SPORTS
Supported by Transmission Roundhouse
GOLD WINNER
The Ryder Cup
BBC Radio 5 Live
SILVER
Total Sport Merseyside
BBC Radio Merseyside
BRONZE
Not by the Playbook
BBC World Service
BEST EVENT COVERAGE
Supported by Aiir
GOLD WINNER
Train Tracks
Tandem Productions for BBC Radio 3
SILVER
The Shipping Forecast Day
BBC Radio 4
BRONZE
Live Aid Relived
Greatest Hits Radio
BEST SONIC BRANDING
Supported by Beats Bakery
GOLD WINNER
Superscoreboard
Clyde 1
SILVER
BBC Radio 2
BRONZE
BBC Asian Network
BEST COMMERCIAL PARTNERSHIP
Supported by Rayo
GOLD WINNER
How To Fail
Dove and Sony Music Podcasts
SILVER
Comedians Chatting Cancer
Cancer Research UK and Acast
BRONZE
Wickes and Bauer Media Audio UK
BEST SOCIAL IMPACT
Supported by BBC Sounds
GOLD WINNER
Criminally Queer
Reduced Listening for BBC Sounds Audio Lab
SILVER
Pipeline: Left to Die
Daily Mail
BRONZE
Stop a Stroke
BBC Radio Manchester
BEST TECHNICAL INNOVATION
Supported by Xperi
GOLD WINNER
The 2005 Ashes: Settling the Score
BBC Radio 5 Live
SILVER
The Wargame
Sky News and Tortoise
BRONZE
Train Tracks
Tandem Productions for BBC Radio 3
JOHN MYERS LOCAL RADIO STATION OF THE YEAR
Supported by RCS
GOLD WINNER
BBC Radio Merseyside
SILVER
Forth 1
BRONZE
Clyde 1
AUDIO BRAND OF THE YEAR
Supported by Carver PR
GOLD WINNER
BBC Sounds
SILVER
Rayo
BRONZE
Audio Always Originals
UK RADIO STATION OR RADIO NETWORK OF THE YEAR
Supported by Arqiva
GOLD WINNER
Hits Radio
SILVER
BBC Radio 2
BRONZE
Fix Radio
RADIO TIMES MOMENT OF THE YEAR
Supported by Radio Times
GOLD WINNER
“Listen love, you’re trying ever so hard”
Bloomberg
SILVER
Scotland V Denmark World Cup Qualifier
BBC Radio Scotland
BRONZE
Chelsey Ward shares her lived experience of racist abuse in Yorkshire
BBC Radio Sheffield
2026 JUDGES’ SPECIAL RECOGNITION AWARD
Trevor Nelson
