Happy Valley and Sarah Lancashire triumph at the BAFTAs

The police drama starring Sarah Lancashire, set and shot in Calderdale also triumphed over The Durrells and War & Peace. Lancashire was also named best leading actress.

Sarah Lancashire also scooped the leading actress prize over The Crown’s star Claire Foy.

Earlier this month it was confirmed that the gritty BBC police drama Happy Valley is unlikely to return until the end of next year, executive producer Nicola Shindler has revealed.

It has been reported that Shindler, whose company Red Productions makes the drama, said Happy Valley writer Sally Wainwright is working on another project for BBC1 at the moment and there are creative reasons for waiting on a third series.

She also revealed Sarah Lancashire was keen to reprise her role as no-nonsense Sergeant Catherine Cawood.

Speaking at a Broadcasting Press Guild lunch, she said: “We are working on a new idea for Sally for BBC1 which will be next year so the earliest Happy Valley would be would be towards the end of 2018 I would suspect.

“She won’t write the [Happy Valley] scripts for some time but Sally’s determined to do it, Sarah’s determined to do it.”

Shindler said that it’s likely the next series would be set some years on from the last to give time for Catherine’s grandson Ryan, conceived by a rape perpetrated by the chief villain Royce, played by James Norton, to grow up.

Comedian Michael McIntyre, inset, claimed the Bafta for entertainment performance for his programme Michael McIntyre’s Big Show, while Hillsborough won the single documentary prize.

The father of schoolboy Damilola Taylor begged young people to stop the string of killings in London as he collected the Bafta for single drama for Damilola, Our Loved Boy.

Meanwhile The People V OJ Simpson, a drama about the trial and acquittal of the former American football star for the murder of his wife Nicole and her friend Ron Goldman, won the international prize.