Alan Carr breaks down in tears as he receives Special Recognition award at the NTAs
Alan Carr was left fighting back tears at the National Television Awards after being surprised with the Special Recognition award for his 20-year television career.
The comedian had no idea the tribute was for him until Paloma Faith appeared on stage as part of an elaborate performance with Amanda Holden. Faith was carried onto the stage inside a coffin, a playful reference to their time together on The Celebrity Traitors.
The unexpected reveal quickly became one of the most talked-about moments of the ceremony, with viewers describing the performance as one of the campest NTA moments they had ever seen.
Amanda Holden and Paloma Faith deliver an unforgettable surprise
Holden and Faith performed I Know Him So Well from the musical Chess as the tribute unfolded.
Faith’s dramatic entrance in a coffin was a nod to her fate on The Celebrity Traitors, where Carr was revealed as a Traitor after their time on the BBC reality competition.
The moment was clearly designed to keep Carr guessing, and it worked.
Speaking after the surprise was revealed, Carr joked that he should have realised something unusual was happening when organisers seated him in the front row.
“This is how thick I am, it was only when Paloma came out that I realised it’s me,” he said.
He then added: “I should have realised when they put me in the front row, I’m usually in the back with the people from Naked Attraction.”
The tribute also featured fellow Celebrity Traitors stars Charlotte Church, Kate Garraway and David Olusoga, while video messages from other television figures helped celebrate Carr’s career.
Viewers on X were quick to praise the spectacle.
One described Carr’s surprise as “the CAMPEST THING I have ever seen”, while another called Faith’s appearance from the coffin “iconic”. A third viewer declared the performance the greatest NTA moment ever.
A career spanning two decades
Carr received the Special Recognition honour in recognition of his 20 years in television.
The award marked a particularly emotional moment for the presenter and comedian, who has built a career across chat shows, entertainment programmes, comedy and reality television.
His recent appearance on The Celebrity Traitors had given him another major television moment, with Carr ultimately revealed as one of the show’s Traitors. The celebrity spin-off went on to win the NTA for Reality Competition on the same night.
Stephen Fry, one of Carr’s fellow Traitors contestants, also paid tribute to him in a video message, while the ceremony brought together several of Carr’s friends and colleagues to mark the occasion.
The evening’s celebration of Carr came at a ceremony packed with major television names and performances at London’s O2 Arena, with Joel Dommett returning to host the NTAs for the sixth time.
Sir David Attenborough beats Ant and Dec
One of the night’s biggest results saw Sir David Attenborough win the TV Presenter award in his 100th year.
His victory meant Ant and Dec missed out on the prize for a second consecutive year. The Geordie duo had previously dominated the category for 23 years before Gary Lineker ended their run at last year’s ceremony.
Attenborough was unable to collect the award in person, so his producer Mark Brownlow accepted it on his behalf. His acceptance speech focused on the dangers of climate change and the responsibility to protect the natural world.
This Morning, Strictly and The Celebrity Traitors among the winners
This Morning reclaimed the Daytime award, with Cat Deeley and Ben Shephard representing the programme alongside Friday presenters Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary.
Strictly Come Dancing was named Best Talent Show, while The Celebrity Traitors won Reality Competition.
The BBC series had dominated the Reality Competition nominations, with its regular civilian version of The Traitors also in contention.
Charlotte Church took the microphone while accepting the Reality Competition award and praised Carr, Nick Mohammed and David Olusoga for the emotional moments they shared during the show’s finale.
Lee Mack’s The 1% Club won the Quiz Show category, while Michael McIntyre’s Big Show received the Bruce Forsyth Entertainment Award.
Clarkson’s Farm takes Reality Docuseries award
Jeremy Clarkson’s Clarkson’s Farm won the Reality Docuseries award.
The victory came after Clarkson revealed earlier in the year that he had prostate cancer and was subsequently in remission.
Speaking after the ceremony, the 66-year-old played down the emotional side of his health battle and said the main frustration had been missing part of the harvest.
He said he had “a heart thing” and “a bit of cancer”, but that he had not been away from the farm for long.
“I wasn’t emotional; it was annoying,” Clarkson said, explaining that he had missed two weeks and had been frustrated at missing much of the harvest period.
The Prime Video series beat At Home With The Furys, Fletchers’ Family Farm, Mortimer & Whitehouse: Gone Fishing and Stacey & Joe to take the prize.
Mrs Brown’s Boys wins Best Comedy
There was also a major win for Mrs Brown’s Boys, which took home Best Comedy.
The cast celebrated the victory as another success for Brendan O’Carroll’s long-running sitcom. The win came after O’Carroll was forced to cancel this year’s festive specials following a broken jaw.
Gogglebox, meanwhile, won the Factual Entertainment award, beating Stacey Solomon’s Sort Your Life Out among the nominees.
National Television Awards 2026 winners: Ant and Dec miss out on Best Presenter AGAIN as Sir David Attenborough triumphs in his 100th year while This Morning, Strictly and Clarkson’s Farm scoop gongs
The legendary broadcaster, whose producer Mark Brownlow accept the award on his behalf with his speech focused on the dangers of climate change
Vicky McClure makes NTA history
This year’s ceremony was historic before the winners were even announced, with the Drama Performance category featuring an all-female shortlist for the first time.
Vicky McClure ultimately took the award for her role as explosives officer Lana Washington in Trigger Point.
She beat Sheridan Smith for I Fought The Law, Ella Bruccoleri for The Other Bennet Sister, Judy Parfitt for Call the Midwife and Ruth Jones for Run Away.
Sheridan Smith’s I Fought The Law did, however, win New Drama after a strong showing.
The BBC’s Our Girls: The Southport Families received the Authored Documentary award, while Call the Midwife was named Best Returning Drama.
Emmerdale won Best Serial Drama, with Jeff Hordley taking the Serial Drama Performance prize for his portrayal of Cain Dingle.
A memorable night for Alan Carr
While the NTAs produced a long list of major winners, Carr’s surprise tribute provided one of the night’s most personal moments.
What began with Amanda Holden singing and Paloma Faith emerging from a coffin eventually ended with Carr visibly emotional as he accepted an award celebrating two decades on television.
And true to form, even in one of the most heartfelt moments of his career, Carr found room for a joke about being seated in the wrong part of the room.
The tribute gave the comedian a memorable way to mark 20 years on television, surrounded by friends and colleagues who had helped make the surprise possible.
