About the Grierson Awards
The Grierson Awards, also known at the British Documentary Awards, commemorate the pioneering Scottish documentary filmmaker John Grierson (1898 – 1972), famous for Drifters and Night Mail and the man widely regarded as the father of the documentary.

Established in 1972, the Griersons are the biggest event in the UK documentary calendar. The awards recognise and celebrate documentaries from Britain and abroad that have made a significant contribution to the genre and that demonstrate quality, integrity, creativity, originality and overall excellence.

Grierson 2021: the British Documentary Awards
The 2021 Grierson Awards are now closed for entries. The final nominations for the film categories can be found here and the winners will be announced at the awards ceremony taking place at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank Centre, London on Wednesday, 10 November 2021. Tickets for the ceremony are now on sale.

Storm Best Arts Documentary
African Apocalypse

Rob Lemkin, Femi Nylander, Geoff Arbourne, David Upshal, Matt McConaghy & David Charap
Inside Out Films & Lemkino Pictures – BBC Two

A young British-Nigerian poet travels to West Africa to search for the real-life Mr Kurtz from Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness. His journey reveals a people still traumatised and suffering the legacy of the atrocities inflicted over a century ago by a colonial killer whose spirit lives on.

imagine… Lemn Sissay: The Memory of Me

John O’Rourke, Tanya Hudson, Alan Yentob & Kirsty Breetzke
BBC Studios, The Documentary Unit – BBC One

Following the publication of his new memoir My Name Is Why, Lemn Sissay tells Alan Yentob what it was like to grow up as the only black child in a sleepy market town outside Wigan in the 1970s. His journey has been one of discovery: learning not just that his name was Lemn, but that his parents were Ethiopian, a country he returns to for this film to find out more about his roots.

Keith Haring: Street Art Boy

Ben Anthony, Janet Lee, Alice Rhodes & Paul Van Dyck
BBC Studios, The Documentary Unit – BBC Two

International art sensation Keith Haring blazed a trail through the legendary art scene of 1980s New York and revolutionised the worlds of pop culture and fine art. This fascinating and compelling film — told using previously unheard interviews with Haring, which form the narrative of the documentary — is the definitive story of the artist in his own words.

The Painter and the Thief

Benjamin Ree & Ingvil Giske
Sky Arts

Desperate for answers about the theft of her two paintings, a Czech artist seeks out and befriends the career criminal who stole them. After inviting her thief to sit for a portrait, the two form an improbable relationship and an inextricable bond that will forever link these lonely souls.

Qualifying period
1 June 2020 – 31 May 2021

Entries open
Thursday, 1 April

Entries close
Friday, 28 May

Shortlist announced
Thursday, 22 July

Nominations announced
Monday, 20 September

Awards ceremony
Wednesday, 10 November at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank, London

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