British Academy Television Award for Best Actor


This is a list of the British Academy Television Awards for Best Actor. The Actor category was split into Leading Actor and Supporting Actor starting in 2010.

1950s

1970 Edward Woodward in Callan
1971 Keith Michell in The Six Wives of Henry VIII
1972 John Le Mesurier in Traitor
1973 Anthony Hopkins in War and Peace
1974 Frank Finlay in The Adventures of Don Quixote; Candide; The Death of Adolf Hitler
1975 Peter Barkworth in Crown Matrimonial
1976 John Hurt in The Naked Civil Servant
1977 Derek Jacobi in I, Claudius
1978 Peter Barkworth in Professional Foul
  • James Bolam in When the Boat Comes In
  • Derek Jacobi in Philby, Burgess and Maclean
  • Robert Powell in Jesus of Nazareth
1979 Edward Fox in Edward and Mrs Simpson
1980 Alec Guinness in Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
  • Robert Hardy in Speed King & All Creatures Great and Small
  • Leo McKern in Rumpole of the Bailey
  • Timothy West in Churchill and the Generals; Henry VIII; Crime and Punishment; Timothy West as Beecham
1981 Denholm Elliott in Gentle Folk; In Hiding; Blade on the Feather; The Stinker
1982 Anthony Andrews in Brideshead Revisited
1983 Alec Guinness in Smiley's People
1984 Alan Bates in An Englishman Abroad
1985 Tim Pigott-Smith in The Jewel In The Crown
1986 Bob Peck in Edge of Darkness
1987 Michael Gambon in The Singing Detective
1988 David Jason in Porterhouse Blue
1989 Ray McAnally in A Very British Coup'
1990 John Thaw as Endeavour Morse in Inspector Morse
  • Joss Ackland as Alan Holly in First and Last
  • John Gielgud as Haverford Downs in Summer's Lease
  • Alfred Molina as Lionel Ellerman in The Accountant
1991 Ian Richardson as Francis Urquhart in House of Cards
1992 Robert Lindsay as Michael Murray in G.B.H.
  • Tom Bell as Bill Otley in Prime Suspect
  • Michael Palin as Jim Nelson in G.B.H
  • John Thaw as Endeavour Morse in Inspector Morse
1993 John Thaw as Endeavour Morse in Inspector Morse
1994 Robbie Coltrane as Dr. Edward "Fitz" Fitzgerald in Cracker
1995 Robbie Coltrane as Dr. Edward "Fitz" Fitzgerald in Cracker
1996 Robbie Coltrane as Dr. Edward "Fitz" Fitzgerald in Cracker
  • Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy in Pride and Prejudice
  • Robert Lindsay as Jamie Diadoni in Jake's Progress
  • Ian Richardson as Francis Urquhart in The Final Cut
  • Benjamin Whitrow as Mr. Bennet in Pride and Prejudice
1997 Nigel Hawthorne as Edgar Pascoe in The Fragile Heart
1998 Simon Russell Beale as Kenneth Widmerpool in A Dance to the Music of Time
1999 Tom Courtenay as Roy Southgate in A Rather English Marriage
2000 Michael Gambon as Squire Hamley in Wives and Daughters
  • Aiden Gillen as Stuart Alan Jones in Queer as Folk
  • Pete Postlethwaite as Deric Longden in Lost for Words
  • Timothy Spall as Oswald Bates in Shooting the Past
2001 Michael Gambon as John Harrison in Longitude
2002 Michael Gambon as Raymond Symon in Perfect Strangers
  • Alan Bates as Matthew Alconleigh in Love in a Cold Climate
  • Timothy Spall as Tommy Rag in Vacuuming Completely Nude in Paradise
  • David Suchet as Augustus Melmotte in The Way We Live Now
2003 Albert Finney as Winston Churchill in The Gathering Storm
2004 Bill Nighy as Cameron Lloyd in State of Play
2005 Rhys Ifans as Peter Cook in Not Only But Always
2006 Mark Rylance as Dr. David Kelly in The Government Inspector
2007 Jim Broadbent as Frank Pakenham in Longford
2008 Andrew Garfield as Jack Burridge / Eric Wilson in Boy A
2009 Stephen Dillane as Anthony Hurndall in The Shooting of Thomas Hurndall
In 2010, BAFTA split the category into Leading Actor and Supporting Actor. This is the list of BAFTA TV Awards for Leading Actor.

2020s

Actors with multiple wins and nominations

Multiple wins

The following people have been awarded the British Academy Television Award for Actor multiple times:
4 wins
3 wins
2 wins
The following people have been nominated for the British Academy Television Award for Actor multiple times:
6 nominations
5 nominations
4 nominations
3 nominations
2 nominations