TWELVE GAELIC NOMINATIONS AS CELTIC MEDIA FESTIVAL SHORTLIST PUBLISHED

A total of 12 Gaelic programmes from BBC ALBA and BBC Radio nan Gaidheal have been shortlisted in the 2016 Celtic Media Festival awards.

Over 500 entries were received from throughout the Celtic Nations for this year’s Festival which takes place in Dungarvan, Waterford from 20-22 April.

FilmG, MG ALBA’s Gaelic Short Film competition has also been shortlisted in the Kieran Hegarty Award for Innovation category while BBC Radio nan Gaidheal has once again been shortlisted in the Radio Station of the Year category – a category which the station won at the 2015 festival which was held in Inverness.

The BBC ALBA programmes which have been shortlisted in 2016 are:

Current Affairs:
Eòrpa – MH17 (Produced by BBC Gàidhlig) This programme brought together some of the relatives who lost family in the Malaysian Airlines tragedy in 2014 and relatives of those who lost their lives in the Lockerbie disaster of 1998.

Arts:
Brìgh a’ Chiùil (Produced by Bees Nees Media)
Polish arts company Song of the Goat made a bold experiment when they put on a new show at the Edinburgh Festival, which radically reimagined traditional Gaelic singing. Bees Nees media charted the group’s progress as they researched the idea in Scotland over two years, learning what is to them an unknown language, through rehearsals at their home in Wroclaw, Poland, and culminating in a beautiful performance at St Giles’ cathedral in Edinburgh at the height of the Fringe Festival 2014.

Drama:
Bannan (Produced by Young Films)
BBC ALBA’s flagship Gaelic Drama series produced by Young Films and shot entirely on location on the Isle of Skye

Entertainment:
Seirm (Produced by Bees Nees Media)
Filmed at Celtic Connections in Glasgow this five-part music series features rousing performances from an eclectic range of performers attending the world’s biggest winter music festival.

Factual Single:
Balaich na h-Àirde (Produced by Sorbier Productions)
The story of the four Smith brothers from the Isle of Lewis and their achievements in broadcasting, writing, acting and singing.

Am Balach MacCuidhein (Produced by Solus Productions)
A revealing and charming homage to Alexander McQueen one of the U.K’s most avant-garde fashion designers who’s heart belonged to the Hebrides.

Donald Campbell, MG ALBA Chief Executive said: “We are delighted to see 12 programmes from BBC ALBA and BBC Radio nan Gaidheal on the shortlists for this year’s Celtic Media Festival and we congratulate all those involved in the various productions on their success in reaching this stage. We are also delighted to see FilmG nominated in the Kieran Hegarty award category after another very successful competition this year. We look forward very much to the festival visiting Dungarvan for the first time and to meeting up with our broadcasting colleagues from the other Celtic nations.”

In addition to its nomination in the Radio Station of the Year category BBC Radio nan Gaidheal also has a number of programmes shortlisted across the 23 categories:

• Blàr Loos (Radio Documentary) – which looks at the role of Highlanders in the battle with stories of the fallen, of survivors and some who were honoured
• Feasgar (Radio Magazine Show) – news, music, debate and entertainment presented by Cathy MacDonald
• Beag air Bheag (Radio Magazine Show) – John Urquhart guides Gaelic learners through the intricacies of the language
• Mire ri Moir aig a’ Mhòd (Radio Music Programme) – the biggest cèilidh at the Oban Mod 2015 with music and song and plenty of hilarity
• Cèilidh Rapal aig a’ Chidhe (Radio Music Programme) – live music from a strong collection of young musicians broadcast as part of the BBC Music Festival at the Quay
• Spòrs na Seachdain (Radio Sports) – Presenter John Morrison brings listeners and Island Games special from Jersey.

Marion Mackinnon, BBC Gàidhlig Managing Editor said: “I am delighted for our Eòrpa team and to see so many of Radio nan Gàidheal’s programmes being shortlisted for the Festival awards this year. I am particularly pleased with the variety of programmes that are on the shortlist and especially for those who have worked and contributed to the various programmes. We were proud to have won the Radio Station of the Year award in 2015 and we look forward hopefully to more success this year”.

Iain MacLeod from Bees Nees said: “Bees Nees are delighted that Brìgh a’ Chiùil and Seirm have been nominated in two categories at the Celtic Media Festival. It’s gratifying that our work has been recognised by our peers and credit goes to the hard working teams of creative people who made these programmes happen”.

Stornoway-based independent production company MacTV is also short-listed in the Sport category for its Lynsey Sharp – Get Out Strong, Commit programme which focused on athlete Lyndsey Sharp and her emotional outpouring which was one of the iconic moments from the 2014 Commonwealth Games and which had previously been broadcast on BBC ALBA.

For more information about the Celtic Media Festival visit www.celticmediafestival.co.uk