Irish Stars Dominate UK National Television Awards

It's a good time to be Irish at the National Television Awards

The Irish have taken over the categories at the National Television Awards in the UK.

Cillian Murphy, Jamie Dornan, Aidan Turner and Graham Norton are among the cream of the crop with their nominations.

Dornan is nominated for his role as serial killer Paul Spector in drama series The Fall. The Belfast native is up against his fellow Northern Irish actor James Nesbitt for his portrayal of Adam in the classic Cold Feet.

Aidan Turner has done well for himself in this year's nominations with nods for his acting in And Then There Were None and Poldark. He's joined by Cork actor Cillian Murphy for his role as Thomas Shelby in Peaky Blinders.

In the Best Drama category, The Fall, Cold Feet and Game of Thrones which is partially filmed in Belfast will all battle for the title.

Poldark, Peaky Blinders and Ripper Street which is filmed in Dublin are all nominated for Best Period Drama.

Cork's own Graham Norton is nominated in two categories for Best Presenter and Best Entertainment Programme for his successful BBC chat show.

Brendan O'Carroll's Mrs. Brown's Boys is nominated for Best Comedy following on from his IFTA win last week.

Mayo man Louis Walsh is nominated along with his X Factor colleagues in the Best TV Judge category.

The shortlist will be announced in January and the awards ceremony will take place in London on January 25th hosted by Dermot O'Leary, whose parents are Irish, just to top it all off!