Paul O’Grady honoured with posthumous win at National Television Awards

Emotional tributes poured in from fans after Paul O'Grady was honoured for his show For The Love Of Dogs at the prestigious awards ceremony.

Entertainment . Written by Han Tiernan.

The image shows Paul O'Grady, who was honoured at the National Television Awards yesterday, holding a greyhound dog. He is crouched on one knee behind the dog with his arms around the dog's neck and lead. He is wearing a black leather jacket and is looking directly into the camera. The dog in tan coloured with a red lead.
Image: @paulogrady via Instagram

Paul O’Grady once again stole the hearts of audiences at last night’s (Tuesday, September 5) UK National Television Awards, when he was posthumously awarded the prize for Factual Entertainment Programme. 

In a special tribute to the beloved comedian and drag performer who passed away unexpectedly in March of this year aged 67, the jury selected his show For The Love Of Dogs as the winner of the category.

In the documentary show, which first aired in September 2012 and ran for 11 seasons, O’Grady visited Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, for which he was an admired and passionate ambassador. During this time, the campaigner for the LGBTQ+ community and for animal rights re-homed five dogs himself. He even brought royalty to the centre, such as Queen Elizabeth, and Camilla, the queen consort.

In O’Grady’s absence, representatives from Battersea Dogs and Cats Home accepted the award. Giving the acceptance speech, Battersea Veterinary Director Shaun Opperman began, “I would like to thank Paul, of course, and the ITV team… for shining a light on the care that we’re able to provide for the 100 or more dogs and cats that come to Battersea every week.”

He continued, “I know that Paul cared deeply for each and every one of those animals. I think that something about their plight and their vulnerability really struck a chord with Paul. He often referred to Battersea as his second home.”

Opperman was joined on stage by one of the dogs from Battersea, who barked through most of the acceptance speech.

The emotions of the moment overwhelmed many of the audience and television viewers, leaving them in tears. One X (formerly Twitter) user, sharing a gif of a sad looking bulldog pup, wrote, “Why am I crying at Paul O’Grady’s Love of Dogs winning a National TV award…soppy sod!!”

 

Another applauded, “I could cry. Paul O’Grady was a wonderful man, a national treasure adored by so many. This award is a perfect way to honour his memory.”

Echoing the call that O’Grady was a national treasure, another suggested, “Paul O’Grady is true (sic) national treasure we just adore him. We can’t believe he has gone. A battersea (sic) dog accepting his award and barking on stage would have totally made him up. We miss you so much”

 

Paul O’Grady beat off three other shows to win the title at the awards ceremony; Jeremy Clarkson’s Clarkson’s Farm, Stacey Solomon’s Sort Your Life Out, and The Martin Lewis Money Show Live.

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