Longlists announced for Grierson British Doc Awards 2026

The Grierson Trust unveiled July 20 the longlists for the Grierson British Documentary Awards 2026, which “form the centrepiece of the Trust’s year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of John Grierson first coining the term ‘documentary’ when discussing filmmaking, and take place on 10th November at the Roundhouse, London,” organisers stress.

The centenary is also shared with Sir David Attenborough, who celebrated his 100th year in May. “To honour his outstanding contribution to broadcasting and to natural history documentaries in particular, the Trust has decided that this year’s Best Science and Natural History Documentary award will be presented as the Sir David Attenborough Award for Best Science and Natural History Documentary,” organisers add.

The longlist spans 15 programme categories, reflecting the best documentary singles and series launched across broadcast channels, streamers and online, as well as theatrical releases, alongside the Best Documentary Presenter award.

The BBC again tops this year’s awards longlist with 32 entries across its channels and on iPlayer, followed by Channel 4 with 19, Netflix with 17, Sky Documentaries with seven, National Geographic with six, Apple TV+, ITV and The Guardian with three each, Disney+ with two, and HBO Max, Prime Video, Channel 5, and Discovery with one each.

London and Glasgow-based Rogan Productions is the production company with the highest number of entries on the longlist, with documentaries in five categories: The Secret of Me in the Broadcast International Best Single Documentary – International and Sir David Attenborough Best Science and Natural History Documentary, Grenfell: Uncovered in the Best History Documentary and ENVY Best Single Documentary – Domestic, and Boombox: Beats and Betrayal, for the Best Crime and Justice Documentary Series categories.

Sylvia Bednarz, Managing Director of the Grierson Trust comments: “As the documentary sector continues to face a challenging landscape, it is hugely encouraging to see the originality and calibre of this year’s Grierson Awards longlist. With an exceptional 511 entries, the breadth and quality of submissions this year has been remarkable, showcasing the extraordinary creativity of documentary makers across the industry. We’re particularly pleased that more than 40% of the longlisted titles are directed by women, underlining the importance of supporting and trusting female directors to tell stories with authority and vision.”

Tom McDonald, Chair of the Grierson Trust, adds: “This longlist shows that, despite the challenges facing the industry across the globe, documentary storytelling is vibrant and vital. Many of the longlisted films and series reflect some of the most pressing stories and issues of our time from the impact of AI and technology on our lives; to stories of incarceration, of war, of civil unrest as well as films which reflect the joys of life and love in these most complex of times. Congratulations to all of the nominees.”

ENVY BEST SINGLE DOCUMENTARY – DOMESTIC

• Grenfell: Uncovered. Netflix, Rogan Productions – Netflix
• L.S. Lowry: The Unheard Tapes, Wall to Wall Media – BBC
• Lucy Letby: Beyond Reasonable Doubt? DM Productions – ITV
• Molly vs THE MACHINES, Snowstorm Productions, Storyboard Studios, Marc Silver Ltd – Channel 4
• One Day in Southport, Amos Pictures – Channel 4
• Poison Water, KEO Films, Button Down – BBC
• The Dunblane Tapes, Candour Productions – Channel 4
• The Shadow Scholars, Whiteteeth, Lammas Park – Channel 4

BROADCAST INTERNATIONAL BEST SINGLE DOCUMENTARY – INTERNATIONAL

• 2000 Meters To Andriivka, Frontline, AP – Sky Documentaries
• Come See Me in the Good Light, Tripod Media, Amplify Pictures in association with Treat Media, Something Fierce Productions – Apple TV
• Comparsa, Paper Moth Media, Rocket Surgery – Sheffield DocFest
• Mr Nobody Against Putin, Made in Copenhagen, PINK CZ – BBC
• Songs from the Hole, Netflix, Cocomotion Pictures, Question Culture in association with Impact Partners and Artemis Rising Foundation – Netflix
• Storyville – Portrait of a Confused Father, UpNorth Film, Little Big Story, Film Västernorrland – BBC
• The Perfect Neighbor, Netflix, Message Pictures, SO’B Productions, Park Pictures – Netflix
• The Secret of Me, Rogan Scotland, Film 4, Channel 4, Screen Scotland, Dogwoof – Channel 4

TELEVISUAL BEST CURRENT AFFAIRS DOCUMENTARY

• Blackmailed: The Sextortion Killers, BBC Current Affairs, The Open University – BBC
• Breaking Ranks: Inside Israel’s War, ITV, Zandland – ITVX
• Gaza: Doctors Under Attack, Basement Films – Channel 4
• State of War: Fighting the Narcos, Duskwater Films, ITV – ITV
• Storyville – The Darkest Web, BBC World Service – BBC
• Surviving Syria’s Prisons, BBC Current Affairs, Frontline – BBC
• The Devil is Busy, HBO Documentary Films, Soledad O’Brien Production, Message Pictures – HBO Max
• The Zero Line: Inside Russia’s War, BBC Current Affairs – BBC

BLEEDING FINGERS BEST ARTS AND MUSIC DOCUMENTARY

• Black Is Beautiful: The Kwame Brathwaite Story, Misfits Entertainment – BFI London Film Festival
• Frederick Forsyth: In My Own Words, Orchard Studios – BBC
• It’s Never Over, Jeff Buckley, Disarming Films, Topic Studios, Freemantle – Theatrical release
• Live Aid at 40: When Rock ‘n’ Roll Took on the World – Episode 1, Brook Lapping – BBC
• Mozart’s Sister,Media Stockade – Sky Arts
• My Mom Jayne, HBO Documentary Films, Mighty Entertainment – Sky Documentaries
• Songs from the Hole, Netflix, Cocomotion Pictures, Question Culture in association with Impact Partners and Artemis Rising Foundation – Netflix
• Turner: The Secret Sketchbooks, Passion Pictures – BBC

BEST SPORTS DOCUMENTARY

• Champions of the Golden Valley, Olympic Channel, XTR Studios, SturgeFlm, Tideshift, Optimist, Taleem – olympics.com
• Football’s Financial Shame: The Story of the V11, Noah Media Group – BBC
• King Of Lies: Football’s Trillion Dollar Con, Dash Pictures, Sky, Matthew Lorenzo Productions, Intermission Film – Sky Documentaries
• Poised, Two Yanks and a Brit, Black Lion Group, Espresso Media International, Mind – Raindance Film Festival
• Queen of Chess, Moxie Films – Netflix
• Sir Chris Hoy: Cancer, Courage and Me, BBC Sport – BBC
• The Corinthians: We Were the Champions, Films Not Words – BBC
• Tom Daley: 1.6 Seconds, Western Edge Pictures, Warner Bros. Discovery – Discovery+

BEST HISTORY DOCUMENTARY

• Apollo 1, Stopwatch Productions, Haviland Digital, 7T1 Films – Channel 4
• Children of the Blitz, Minnow Films – BBC
• Flight 149: Hostage of War, Drum Studios – Sky Documentaries
• Grenfell: Uncovered, Rogan Productions, Netflix – Netflix
• Hostage – Episode 3, Story Films, Basement Films – BBC
• Queen of Chess, Moxie Films – Netflix
• Sally, Story Syndicate, Muck Media – National Geographic
• The Dunblane Tapes, Candour Productions – Channel 4

SIR DAVID ATTENBOROUGH BEST SCIENCE AND NATURAL HISTORY DOCUMENTARY

• Cecil: The Lion and the Dentist, Arrow Pictures – Channel 4
• Confessions of a Brain Surgeon, Curious Films – BBC
• Surgeons: At the Edge of Life – Sacrifice to Survive, Dragonfly Film and Television – BBC
• The Last Rhinos: A New Hope, Sixty-Six Media – National Geographic
• The Secret of Me, Rogan Scotland, Film4, Channel 4, Screen Scotland, Dogwoof – Channel 4
• Turtle Walker, Tiger Baby, Ceres, Emaho Films, HHMI Tangled Bank Studios – Raindance Film Festival
• UNDERLAND, Sandbox Films, Planet Octopus Studios, Spring Films, Protoza Pictures – Theatrical release
• Wild London, Passion Planet, WNET, NHK – BBC

BEST CRIME AND JUSTICE DOCUMENTARY

• Aileen: Queen of the Serial Killers, BBC Studios, NBC News Studios, Netflix – Netflix
• Life After, Multitude Films – BFI London Film Festival
• Lover, Liar, Predator, DSP Films – BBC
• Naming the Dead – The Body in the Sand, Wall to Wall Media – National Geographic
• Storyville – The Darkest Web, BBC World Service – BBC
• The Alabama Solution, HBO Documentary Films, Hit The Ground Running – Sky Documentaries
• The Investigation of Lucy Letby, Netflix, ITN Productions – Netflix
• The Mother of All Cons – Turning Detective, BBC Studios Documentary Unit – BBC

MOST ENTERTAINING DOCUMENTARY

• EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert, Sony Music Vision, Authentic Studios, Bazmark – Theatrical release
• Miriam Margolyes Made Me Me, Rex – BBC
• Murder in Monaco, Netflix, Ventureland – Netflix
• Rob and Rylan’s Passage to India – Rajastan, Rex – BBC
• Take That – Part 1, Fulwell Entertainment, Netflix – Netflix
• The Dyers’ Caravan Park – That’s Entertainment, Expectation – Sky 1
• Welcome to Wrexham – Do a Wrexham, FX Productions, More Better Productions, Maximum Effort, 3 Arts Entertainment, Boardwalk Pictures – Disney+
• Wrestling With Trump, Bango Studios, Munz Made It – Channel 4

NETFLIX BEST DOCUMENTARY SERIES

• Attack on London: Hunting the 7/7 Bombers, Netflix, The Garden Productions – Netflix
• Boom Box: Beats and Betrayal, Rogan Productions – HBO Max
• Hostage, Story Films, Basement Films – BBC
• Murder 24/7, Expectation TV – BBC
• Sean Combs: The Reckoning, House of Nonfiction, G-Unit Film and Television, Texas Crew Productions – Netflix
• See No Evil, Passion Pictures – Channel 4
• Should I Marry a Murderer? Candle True Stories – Netflix
• The Mother of All Cons, BBC Studios Documentary Unit – BBC

CHANNEL 4 BEST CONSTRUCTED AND FORMATTED DOCUMENTARY SERIES

• Blue Therapy, Osun Group – Netflix
• Freddie Flintoff’s Field of Dreams: Ultimate Test, South Shore Productions, The Open University – BBC
• Handcuffed: Last Pair Standing, 72 Films – Channel 4
• Knife Edge: Chasing Michelin Stars, Studio Ramsay Global – Apple TV
• Sort Your Life Out, Optomen Television – BBC
• Squid Game: The Challenge, Studio Lambert, The Garden – Netflix
• The Jury: Murder Trial, ScreenDog Productions – Channel 4
• Virgin Island, Double Act – Channel 4

SKY DOCUMENTARIES BEST CINEMA DOCUMENTARY

• 2000 Meters to Andriivka, Frontline, AP – Sky Documentaries
• Come See Me in the Good Light, Tripod Media, Amplify Pictures, Treat Media, Something Fierce Productions – Apple TV
• Holloway, Power Play Productions, Beehive Films, Murmuration Productions, OL64 – Theatrical release
• Molly vs THE MACHINES, Snowstorm Productions, Storyboard Studios, Marc Silver – Channel 4
• Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk, Rêves d’Eau Productions, Région des Pays-de-la-Loire – Prime Video
• The Shepherd and the Bear, Salthill Films, WILLA, Mile End Films, Pinky Promise – Theatrical release
• The Tale of Silyan, Concordia Studio, The Corner Shop and Ciconia Film – National Geographic
• Trade Secret, Untitled Film Works – Theatrical release

BEST STUDENT DOCUMENTARY

• Blue Valley, National Film and Television School
• Chasing Coexistence, UWE Bristol
• Colourise, UWE Bristol
• Corps à Coeur, National Film and Television School
• Her Love Rules, London College of Communication (University of the Arts London)
• In the Name of Mother, National Film and Television School
• No Kidding, UWE Bristol
• Sherbert Dads, National Film and Television School

ANALOGUE BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT

• Authors of the Estate, Freedom & Balance – Theatrical release
• Between Moon Tides, Aronnax Pictures, The Redford Center, Mountainfilm, IF/Then Nature Connection Pitch – theguardian.com
• Children No More: Were and are Gone, Medalia Productions, SALTY Features, Full Story Films – Sky Documentaries
• Community Theatre, Rohan Berry Crickmar – Edinburgh International Film Festival
• Murewa, Fee Fie Foe – Bolton Film Festival
• The Good Farmer and the Failed Son, Chaser, WMD Entertainment – Netflix Still Watching YouTube channel
• The Oath, The Guardian Documentaries – theguardian.com
• Too Disgusting To Be Confused, DeerWolf Productions – Netflix Still Watching YouTube Channel

BEST DIGITAL DOCUMENTARY

• Auschwitz: The Evolution of Terror, History Hit – History Hit YouTube channel
• Barcud, ITV Cymru Wales – Hansh YouTube channel
• Give Me Shelter, The Guardian Documentaries – theguardian.com
• Hunting My Sextortion Scammer: UNTOLD, Full Fat Television – Channel 4 Documentaries YouTube channel
• Inside Gooning: The Manosphere’s Most Extreme Subculture, Zandland – Zandland YouTube channel
• Phone Snatchers Exposed, Bushido Films – Channel 4 Documentaries YouTube channel
• Shot Like Enemies: Inside Nepal’s Gen Z Uprising, BBC World Service – BBC World Service YouTube channel
• Superskilled with Eva zu Beck – I Trained with Kenya’s ELITE Runners, Yellow Border Production Services – National Geographic YouTube channel

BEST DOCUMENTARY PRESENTER

• Amol Rajan for Amol Rajan Goes to the Ganges, Wildstar Films – BBC
• Chris Hemsworth for Chris Hemsworth: A Road Trip to Remember, Nutopia, Wild State, Protozoa – National Geographic
• Christine Flack for Caroline Flack: Search for the Truth, Curious Films – Disney+
• Francis Bourgeois for Mission to Space with Francis Bourgeois, Shine TV – Channel 4
• Hamza Yassin for Hamza’s Hidden Wild Isles, Silverback Films, The Open University – BBC
• Hannah Fry for AI Confidential with Hannah Fry, Curious Films, The Open University – BBC
• Louis Theroux for Louis Theroux: Inside the Manosphere, Mindhouse, Netflix – Netflix
• Samuel West and Adrian Edmondson for Sam & Ade Go Birding, Frank Films – Channel 5