British Podcast Awards Winners 2026
The biggest night in podcasting returned for a milestone tenth year as the British Podcast Awards 2026 took over Indigo at The O2 in Greenwich, London. Hosted by comedian, actor and podcaster Jake Bhardwaj, the star-studded ceremony celebrated winners across 31 categories, with a bustling crowd of podcasters, celebrities and industry figures.
The industry’s top prize, Podcast of the Year, was awarded to Prison Radio Association’s Hold or Fold, which also took home Best Factual Podcast. The candid podcast delves into the stories of lives pushed to the brink by gambling.
Elsewhere, Bill Nighy was crowned Best Host for his irresistibly endearing series ill-advised, while Jamie Laing and Sophie Habboo triumphed in Best Entertainment Podcast, continuing their reign as one of Britain’s most-loved podcasting couples.
After two nominations in 2025, Pete Wick’s Man Made (Bauer Media) celebrated a double victory with Best Health & Wellbeing Podcast and Best Interview Podcast, recognised for it’s honest conversations about unpacking modern masculinity with huge guests including Kier Starmer, Russell T Davies and Jameela Jamil.
Fan-favourite Hard Launch with Dan & Phil claimed the fan-voted Listeners’ Choice Award, powered by Spotify, while Get Birding – hosted by actor Sean Bean – took home two trophies for Best Lifestyle Podcast and Best Vdeo Innovation.
The coveted Spotlight Award was given to Dish from Waitrose with Nick Grimshaw & Angela Hartnett which has become one of the UK’s leading podcasts, reaching a total of over one billion combined downloads, views, and listens since it’s launch in 2022.
Other Gold winners included The Intelligence (The Economist), Coining It with Lewis Goodall (Free Turn), and The Birth Keepers (The Guardian).
Presenters on the night included
Peter Crouch, Pete Wicks, Sophie Habboo, Clara Amfo & Munroe Bergdorf, Chris Stark, Anita Rani, Bimini, Mishal Husain, The Thomas Brothers, Deborah Frances-White & Dan Schrieber, Chloe Burrows, Marianna Spring, Eleanor Neale, Chris Sweeney, Zak Addae-Kodua & Jules Rowan, Coco Khan and Mia Thornton.
Full list of winners
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Editor’s note: we’ve chosen example podcasts for best host, rising star, and network/publisher awards.
The above list of podcasts is available as an OPML file for your podcast player
About British Podcast Awards
Now in its 9th year, the British Podcast Awards champions the people both in front of and behind the microphone, giving creators the recognition they deserve. They aim to shine a light on the very best the sector has to offer across a wide range of topics and formats. Whether you’re part of a major studio or a solo podcaster going it alone, the British Podcast Awards is your chance to showcase your skills. Our panel of independent expert judges will be looking for the best and brightest the podcast industry has to offer, recognising those standout shows that elevate the medium and help create an industry that we can all be proud of. We’re looking forward to receiving your entries and celebrating the passion and diversity of podcasting with you.
This is a press release which we link to from Podnews, our daily newsletter about podcasting and on-demand. We may make small edits for editorial reasons.