Downton Abbey goes head to head with Mad Men for best drama Emmy award
BRITISH First World War drama Downton Abbey is set to do battle with cult series Mad Men after both made it on to the shortlist for the top prize at the prestigious 2012 Emmy awards.
The ITV show is nominated for the Outstanding Drama prize alongside Mad Men the show about ambitious US advertising executives. Homeland, Game of Thrones, Breaking Bad and Boardwalk Empire are also in the running.
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Hide AdHugh Bonneville and Michelle Dockery – who have leading roles in Downton, set in the fictional Yorkshire country home of the Earl and Countess of Grantham, are up for Best Actor and Best Actress in a drama. Bonneville will have to see off the challenge of fellow Briton Damian Lewis, who starred in Homeland as a US marine returning from years of al-Qaeda imprisonment.
Joanne Froggatt, who plays a humble housemaid in Downton Abbey, will go up against co-star Dame Maggie Smith, the dowager countess, in the Best Supporting Actress category.
Downton Abbey, written by Julian Fellowes, won best mini-series in 2011 and is up for 16 nominations, but it faces fierce competition from Mad Men, which up for its fifth Best Drama award. It has 17 nominations.
Also nominated were several BBC shows.
Ben Stephenson, the corporation’s controller of drama commissioning, said: “It’s a testament to the quality and breadth of BBC drama that six different titles – Sherlock, Luther, Page Eight, Great Expectations, Song of Lunch and The Hour – have received 26 prestigious Emmy nominations between them this year.”
Sherlock’s Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman are nominated for Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor in a mini-series or movie respectively.
Cumberbatch is nominated in a strong field that also includes Woody Harrelson, Kevin Costner and Bill Paxton.
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Hide AdAlso nominated are fellow Britons Clive Owen and Idris Elba for their roles in Hemingway and Gellhorn and Luther respectively.
Cumberbatch and Freeman were recognised for their parts in Sherlock: A Scandal in Belgravia. The episode, based on Arthur Conan Doyle’s story, A Scandal in Bohemia, featured racy nude scenes with Lara Pulver’s whip-wielding dominatrix character and was the most watched show on the BBC’s iPlayer last year.
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Hide AdThe episode, which attracted about 100 complaints for its pre-watershed nudity, was also recognised in categories for art direction and costumes.
Scottish writer Armando Iannucci’s new US show, Veep, is nominated for Outstanding Comedy Series but faces competition from Curb Your Enthusiasm and The Big Bang Theory, while its star Julia Louis-Dreyfus is nominated for Best Actress in a comedy series.
British actress Emma Thompson is nominated for her performance in The Song of Lunch, but faces competition in the category for Best Actress in a mini-series or movie from Hollywood stars Julianne Moore and Nicole Kidman.
The Primetime Emmy awards ceremony takes place on 23 September..
The full list of nominations:
BEST DRAMA SERIES
“Boardwalk Empire”
“Breaking Bad”
“Downton Abbey”
“Game of Thrones”
“Homeland”
“Mad Men”
ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Steve Buscemi, “Boardwalk Empire”
Bryan Cranston, “Breaking Bad”
Michael C. Hall, “Dexter”
Hugh Bonneville, “Downton Abbey”
Damian Lewis, “Homeland”
Jon Hamm, “Mad Men”
ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
Glenn Close, “Damages”
Michelle Dockery, “Downton Abbey”
Julianna Margulies, “The Good Wife”
Kathy Bates, “Harry’s Law”
Claire Danes, “Homeland”
Elisabeth Moss, “Mad Men”
SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Aaron Paul, “Breaking Bad”
Giancarlo Esposito, “Breaking Bad”
Brendan Coyle, “Downton Abbey”
Jim Carter, “Downton Abbey”
Peter Dinklage, “Game Of Thrones”
Jared Harris, “Mad Men”
SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
Anna Gunn, “Breaking Bad”
Maggie Smith, “Downton Abbey”
Joanne Froggatt, “Downton Abbey”
Archie Panjabi, “The Good Wife”
Christine Baranski, “The Good Wife”
Christina Hendricks, “Mad Men”
BEST COMEDY SERIES
“The Big Bang Theory”
“Curb Your Enthusiasm”
“Girls”
“Modern Family”
“30 Rock”
“Veep”
ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Jim Parsons, “The Big Bang Theory”
Larry David, “Curb Your Enthusiasm”
Don Cheadle, “House Of Lies”
Louis C.K., “Louie”
Alec Baldwin, “30 Rock”
Jon Cryer, “Two And A Half Men”
ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
Lena Dunham, “Girls”
Melissa McCarthy, “Mike & Molly”
Zooey Deschanel, “New Girl”
Edie Falco, “Nurse Jackie”
Amy Poehler, “Parks And Recreation”
Tina Fey, “30 Rock”
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, “Veep”
SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Ed O’Neill, “Modern Family”
Jesse Tyler Ferguson, “Modern Family”
Ty Burrell, “Modern Family”
Eric Stonestreet, “Modern Family”
Max Greenfield, “New Girl”
Bill Hader, “Saturday Night Live”
SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
Mayim Bialik, “The Big Bang Theory”
Kathryn Joosten, “Desperate Housewives”
Julie Bowen, “Modern Family”
Sofia Vergara, “Modern Family”
Merritt Weverm, “Nurse Jackie”
Kristen Wiig, “Saturday Night Live”
BEST MINISERIES OR TV MOVIE
“American Horror Story”
“Game Change”
“Hatfields & McCoys”
“Hemingway & Gellhorn”
“Luther”
“Sherlock: A Scandal In Belgravia”
ACTOR IN A MINISERIES OR MOVIE
Woody Harrelson, “Game Change”
Kevin Costner, “Hatfields & McCoys”
Bill Paxton, “Hatfields & McCoys”
Clive Owen, “Hemingway & Gellhorn”
Idris Elba, “Luther”
Benedict Cumberbatch, “Sherlock: A Scandal In Belgravia”
ACTRESS IN A MINISERIES OR MOVIE
Connie Britton, “American Horror Story”
Julianne Moore, “Game Change”
Nicole Kidman, “Hemingway & Gellhorn”
Ashley Judd, “Missing”
Emma Thompson, “The Song Of Lunch”
BEST REALITY TV PROGRAM
“Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution”
“Antiques Roadshow”
“Who Do You Think You Are?”
“Undercover Boss”
“MythBusters”
“Shark Tank”
BEST REALITY COMPETITION PROGRAM
“The Amazing Race”
“Dancing With The Stars”
“Project Runway”
“So You Think You Can Dance”
“Top Chef”
“The Voice”