A six-part series documenting the lives of two rough sleepers has won Radio Programme of the Year at the 2019 Broadcasting Press Guild Awards.
In Tara and George, which aired on Radio 4 in August 2018 but is still available online and to download as a podcast, journalist Audrey Gillan carefully teased out the complex pasts and precarious presents of rough sleepers Tara and George with compassion and care.
Gillan talked to Tara and George over the course of almost two years in and around London’s Spitalfields, where they were a mainstay of the community, often to be found on the doorstep of another famous duo, artists Gilbert and George (shown, with Tara and George, above).
Tara McKerr and George Crompton found strength and solidarity together after meeting at a Crisis at Christmas dinner. The pair, both in their late 40s, became inseparable and over the course of six episodes, listeners learned about their troubled childhoods, family breakdowns, mental health and addiction issues, with Gillan also tracking down members of their wider family.
The result was compelling, a rare gem of a radio series looking at love and devotion, as well as the everyday realities of life for two people who found companionship on the margins of society.
Other big winners at the 45th annual BPG Awards, sponsored by Virgin Media, were global TV smash Killing Eve, which picked up the Best Drama Series award and for which Jodie Comer won a deserved Best Actress award for her astonishing performance.
