A BBC podcast hosted by pop star Sam Smith has won two gongs at the British Podcast Awards 2023.
A Positive Life: HIV From Terrence Higgins To Today explores stories of HIV in the UK over the last 40 years and won the podcast of the year gong and the gold award for the best factual podcast.
The award was presented to the production team by Martyn Butler and Richard Angell, co-founder and chief executive respectively of The Terrence Higgins Trust.
Elsewhere, My Therapist Ghosted Me, which is hosted by Irish media personality and model Vogue Williams and comedian Joanne McNally, won the podcast champion gong.
The News Agents, which is co-hosted by journalists Emily Maitlis, Jon Sopel and Lewis Goodall won the gold award for best daily podcast while My Dad Wrote A Porno, about three friends who read erotica written by one of their fathers, won the hall of fame award.
A number of celebrities presented at the awards ceremony including reality stars Jamie Laing and Sophie Habboo from the NewlyWeds podcast and TV presenter Miquita Oliver who co-hosts the podcast Stirring It Up With Andi And Miquita Oliver.
In the listeners’ choice category, the true crime podcast RedHanded came out on top, while Partygate: The Inside Story for ITV News, about the scandal which ensued following reports there were Downing Street parties during the pandemic lockdowns, won the spotlight award.
Persevering: Grief As Told By Young People, Let’s Talk About Loss came home with the best specialist podcast and the gold award for best new podcast was won by 28ish Days Later, which looks at the menstrual cycle with journalist India Rakusen.
Elsewhere, the rising star gong was awarded to Chante Joseph at The Guardian, who hosts the Pop Culture podcast where she digs into current pop culture stories popular on the internet.
The gold award for the best news and current affairs podcast was won by The Guardian for Today In Focus and the gold award for the best entertainment podcast was won by the Elis James And John Robins Podcast for BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Sounds.
News publication Tortoise was recognised for its podcast series Pig Iron when it won the gold award for best documentary podcast and the gold award for best history podcast was given to Sounds Of Black Britain by The Black Curriculum.
Other categories included best kids’ podcast, best parenting podcast, best sex and relationships podcast, best sports podcast, best true crime podcast and best Welsh language podcast.
There were also awards given out for subjects including climate, business, fiction and wellbeing.
The awards were held at Outernet London hosted by comedians Zoe Lyons and Stephen Bailey.