Stephen Fry announced as host of Mind Media Awards 2012

Posted Wednesday 18 April 2012

We are delighted to announce that Stephen Fry will host this year’s Mind Media Awards, which opens for entries today.  

The event, to be held at The BFI on Monday 19 November 2012, honours the very best media portrayals and reporting of mental health problems across broadcast, print and digital media.

Stephen Fry said:

As Mind’s President I’m thrilled to be hosting this year’s Mind Media Awards. The media, in all its glorious incarnations, has enormous power to influence people’s perceptions of mental health, not least in being able to challenge the stigma that sadly still surrounds it.

The Mind Media Awards is a fantastic opportunity to celebrate those actors, writers, programme makers, journalists and bloggers who are helping to dispel the myths around mental health and reduce discrimination.

The awards, now in their nineteenth year, recognise those who have successfully challenged the misinformation and stereotypes that surround mental health problems, and most importantly produced work that includes the voices of people who have experienced mental health problems.  Last year’s winners included X Factor judge Tulisa for her BBC Three documentary Tulisa: My mum and me, a BBC Radio 5 Live documentary on the suicide of German goalkeeper Robert Enke and long-running drama Casualty.

Programme makers, journalists and producers of digital media are now invited to submit entries in any of the following categories:

• Digital – for an individual or organisation that has used new media channels to raise awareness of mental health issues
• Documentary - for a factual TV or online programme of at least 15 minutes duration.
• Drama – for a single or series drama transmitted on TV or online.
• Features and factual entertainment – for a single item or compilation from a radio or TV programme with multiple inserts/interviews in a magazine, chat show or multiple story format.
• News and current affairs – for a feature, report or bulletin on a news and current affairs programme on TV, radio or online that is no longer than 15 minutes.
• Soaps – for a continuing TV, radio or online drama that is broadcast several times a week
• Speech radio - for a factual, drama or docu-drama radio programme of at least 15 minutes duration.
• Journalist of the year - for a print, broadcast or online journalist for their outstanding contribution to raising awareness of mental health issues.
• Student journalist of the year - for a print, broadcast or online student journalist for content in a student publication or a piece of journalism completed as part of a university course that shows excellence in explaining mental health problems, tackling discrimination and taking a fresh perspective. 

To be eligible for the Mind Media Awards, programmes or articles must have been transmitted or published in the UK, or have been available online between 8 June 2011 and 7 June 2012 inclusive.  

The deadline for entries is Friday 13 July 2012.

For more information about the categories, criteria and how to enter please visit www.mind.org.uk/media_awards. You can also join the conversation on Twitter with @MindCharity using the tag #mindawards.

<  Return to news