It's A Sin's Olly Alexander up for prestigious acting award

Olly, a former Hereford Sixth Form College and Hereford College of Arts student, played a leading role in the series, which told the story of a group of young friend living in London through the HIV/Aids crisis in the 1980s.

He is also known as a chart-topping singer, performing under the name Years & Years.

Olly Alexander in the popular Channel 4 series It's A Sin. Picture: Channel 4/PA Wire

It’s A Sin and We Are Lady Parts are among the hit programmes nominated for Royal Television Society (RTS) awards.

The BBC leads the pack with 30 nominations across 24 categories, with its main network BBC One competing for the channel of the year gong against ITV and Sky Arts.

The awards ceremony, which will be hosted by comedian Nish Kumar, is returning as an in-person event for the first time since 2019 and will take place on March 29 in central London.

The Channel 4 series It’s A Sin, written and created by Queer As Folk and Doctor Who screenwriter Russell T Davies, tracked a group of gay men and their friends as they navigated the UK’s HIV/Aids crisis throughout the 80s and early 90s.

It's A Sin writer Russell T Davies

The show has six nominations, including a nod for Davies in the drama writer category.

Years and Years singer Olly Alexander and Callum Scott Howells, who starred in It’s A Sin as Ritchie Tozer and Colin Morris-Jones, are both nominated for the male actor award alongside Tahar Rahim from crime drama The Serpent.

Olly, who went to St John's Primary School in Coleford and Monmouth Comprehensive School before the Hereford colleges, has previously said the experience of portraying Ritchie Tozier in the show had alerted him to the "privilege" of the better testing and healthcare now available.

The Channel 4 series, which focuses on three 18-year-olds who move in together in 1981, was also praised for its candid view of the impact of the disease on the young men's lives over the course of a decade.

Keeley Hawes, who plays Ritchie’s mother, is competing for the female actor prize against Sharlene Whyte from crime drama Stephen, and Gabrielle Creevy for her role in the comedy In My Skin.

The Channel 4 comedy We Are Lady Parts, which follows a Muslim female punk band named Lady Parts as they try to find success, has received four nominations.

Anjana Vasan, who played a PhD student and the band’s lead guitar player in the show, is up for both the breakthrough award and the female comedy performance gong.

We Are Lady Parts has also been recognised in the scripted comedy and comedy writer categories for the show’s creator Nida Manzoor.

Winner of the 2021 breakthrough award Mae Martin has been nominated for the comedy writer award with Joe Hampson for their series Feel Good, which Martin also stars in alongside Charlotte Ritchie.

The writers behind Motherland – Holly Walsh, Helen Serafinowicz and Barunka O’Shaughnessy – are also up for the gong.

The Graham Norton Show, The Lateish Show With Mo Gilligan and The Last Leg are all nominated in the comedy entertainment category.

Graham Norton has also been nominated for an award

Coronation Street, Casualty and Hollyoaks will compete for the soap and continuing drama award.

Chair of the awards Kenton Allen said: “Despite the unprecedented challenges the last two years have presented every single one of us, the sheer talent and amazing professionalism from UK creatives both in front of and behind the camera has truly shone through.

“This year’s nominees are incredible examples of the phenomenal skills and world-class talent working in UK television. A huge congratulations to all those nominated.

“We’re really looking forward to gathering, in real life, to celebrate our wonderful industry at the RTS Programme Awards for the first time since those halcyon days of 2019.”