BAFTA is introducing new rules that will give it the power to strip awards from people if convicted of a crime — but the organization has stopped short of revoking Huw Edwards‘ prizes.
The UK charity has written to members to inform them of a new “forfeiture process” that will be introduced from next year, under which awards can be revoked if a winner is convicted of a serious criminal offense that results in a prison sentence of at least three months.
BAFTA has decided not to apply the rule retrospectively, meaning former BBC News anchor Edwards will keep hold of his seven BAFTA Cymru individual prizes after pleading guilty to accessing child abuse images earlier this year. He received a six-month suspended prison sentence and apologized for the “repugnant” nature of his offenses.
In a letter to members, BAFTA chair Sara Putt said: “Our awards span the last 78 years. Where would we reasonably draw the line? Could we choose to only look back one, five or 50 years? We agreed it would be impossible to do this properly. So we will look forward and apply this criteria to all competitive awards presented from 2025 onwards.
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“No solution is perfect and there may be instances where the outcomes of this review are tested in the future, so we will review these principles and processes along with our other awards rules every year.”
The decision to review or revoke a competitive award would not be automatic. BAFTA will take a case-by-case approach, considering third-party investigations and information reported in the public domain.
Under BAFTA’s existing rules, it has the power to revoke honorary prizes, including Fellowships, Special Awards, and Outstanding Contribution gongs. Putt said this is because “they are gifted by the academy, which means they are not ‘won’ in competition.”
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