SPOTLIGHT – Fear and Loathing in Quinn Country, a television programme centred on the barbaric abduction of Mannok (formally Quinn Industrial Holdings - QIH) director Kevin Lunney in September, 2019, has won a prestigious award at the sixth annual Royal Television Society, Northern Ireland (RTS NI) Programme Awards.

The BBC Spotlight programme focused on Mr. Lunney – a senior executive in the cross-Border company, QIH – who was brutally abducted and tortured by a gang.

The programme was the first time that Mr. Lunney had spoken publicly of the horrific ordeal that took place along the Border last year. He spoke to BBC reporter Jim Fitzpatrick, detailing what he was subjected to, and what it is like to live under the threat of death.

Spotlight – Fear and Loathing in Quinn Country was announced as the winner of the Current Affairs category at the RTS NI Programme Awards on November 12, at a virtual awards ceremony hosted by Patrick Kielty.

The programme had been up against UTV: Up Close – The Poverty Spiral, and UTV: Up Close –Tied to Terror.

Other winners announced at the virtual ceremony included critically-acclaimed actress Michelle Fairley, who was awarded the coveted Brian Waddell Award for her outstanding contribution to the broadcast industry.

Vikkie Taggart, Chair of RTS NI, said: “It is a real pleasure to celebrate the incredible talent of Michelle, who has won the hearts of audiences worldwide in a glittering career spanning more than 30 years with her many accomplished performances.

“Congratulations to all our winners and nominees this year, who represent the best of the exceptional talent in Northern Ireland.”

My Left Nut, by Rollen Productions, was awarded Best Drama, with Stellify Media’s, There’s No Place Like Tyrone, picking up the Best Entertainment Programme award.

The Voyage, by Jam Media, was the winner in the Children’s/Animation category, and Soft Border Patrol from The Comedy Unit won the Scripted Comedy award.

Arena: The Changin’ Times of Ike White, by Erica Starling Productions, was the winner in the Documentary category, with the award for Best News Coverage going to UTV Live at Six for its coverage of the coronavirus crisis.

The Original Music Score award went to DoubleBand Films, for Lost Lives, by Mark Gordon, Neil Martin, Richard Hill and Charles Graham.

BBC Northern Ireland was the winner in the Specialist Factual category for Peter Taylor: My Journey Through The Troubles, with Alleycats’ Pulling With My Parents picking up the Features/Factual Entertainment award.

Maeve McLoughlin, Chair of RTS NI Awards said: “This has been a challenging year, to say the least, and we no doubt have further difficulties to overcome in the next few months.

“It was my wish, along with the whole of the RTS NI Committee, to ensure that these awards took place this year, regardless of the challenges we faced.

“We felt that the industry as a whole has worked tirelessly to adapt to new regulations and also social measures to ensure the creative industries keep powering on, and we wanted to acknowledge that hard work and dedication.”

The RTS NI Programme Awards 2020 were delivered in partnership with BBC Northern Ireland, Northern Ireland Screen and Channel 4, along with headline sponsor, Ka-Boom.