‘I’m delighted to do a show people watch as a family’: Katherine Parkinson nods to bringing households together during BAFTA speech

Katherine Parkinson fought off tough competition to win best actress in a comedy for her role as Rachel in Here We Go, at the 2026 BAFTA TV awards.

She was joined in her category by Diane Morgan (Mandy), Jennifer Saunders (Amandaland), Lucy Punch (Amandaland), Philippa Dunne (Amandaland) and Rosie Jones (Pushers).

It appears that Katherine herself hadn't expected to win, as she took to the stage to collect her award with no speech prepared.

Latest Videos From

However, thinking on her feet, she did point out that along with the brilliant Last One Laughing, a win for Here We Go signalled the return of a genre of TV shows that seemed to disappear for a while - ones that can be watched as a family.

As a child, I can remember the TV schedules being packed with shows aimed at families sitting down to watch together, and in today's more fragmented way of living, have sometimes struggled to recapture the magic of those days with my own children.

However, we do love Here We Go, my children went nuts for Last One Laughing, and we'll never miss an episode of The Traitors - a show celebrating two BAFTA wins - for as long as it continues to run.

"I'm delighted to do a show for the BBC," Katherine said in her acceptance speech, adding, "and I'm delighted to do a show that people sit down and watch as a family. It feels increasingly important to be part of something like that."

Thanking her co-stars, Katherine had lovely words for the "mighty" Alison Steadman, who plays her mother-in-law in Here We Go.

"She was my hero growing up and now I get to eat custard with her at lunch times when I'm filming with her," the actress says.

When Prime Video's Last One Laughing won the award for best entertainment, the series was also up against strong contenders in the form of The Graham Norton Show, Michael Mcintyre's Big Show, and Would I Lie To You.

During the show's acceptance speech, Judi Love stepped in to speak out on the re-emergence of family TV.

"When we talk about TV, one of the things we think that we've lost, is that this is a show you can sit down with all generations of your family and enjoy it."

She continues, "That is what TV in the UK is about."

Watching Last One Laughing, my children were introduced to Bob Mortimer, somebody they weren't aware of until we watched it together.

Now somebody who has just been introduced to a new generation of young fans, Bob took home the BAFTA for entertainment performance.

Congratulations to the BAFTA 2026 winners, and thank goodness family TV is making a comeback and getting the recognition it deserves.

Here We Go is available on BBC iPlayer and Last One Laughing can be found on Prime Video.