Stars battle it out for TV awards

EastEnders' Jessie Wallace and Shane Richie both won in 2003

Small screen stars including Jessie Wallace, David Jason and Patsy Kensit are competing at the National Television Awards in London on Tuesday.

Sir Trevor McDonald hosts the awards, voted for entirely by viewers, at the Royal Albert Hall.

Soap operas Coronation Street and EastEnders are up against each other in four of the 13 categories.

Friends, Last of the Summer Wine, Little Britain and My Family are fighting it out for the comedy award.

Strong competition

EastEnders actors Shane Richie and Jessie Wallace, who play Alfie and Kat Moon, scooped best actor and actress last year.

This time, Richie is up against fellow EastEnder Nigel Harman (Dennis Rickman), David Jason (Jack Frost), former Coronation Street star Bruno Langley (Todd Grimshaw) and James Nesbitt (Nick Zakian), nominated for his role in Canterbury Tales.

Bruce Forsyth is nominated for Strictly Come Dancing

Coronation's Street's Suranne Jones (Karen McDonald) and Tina O'Brien (Sarah Louise Platt) are nominated for most popular actress, alongside Wallace, Footballers' Wives' Zoe Lucker (Tanya Turner) and Caroline Quentin (Maggie Mee) for Life Begins.

Other nominees include actress Patsy Kensit, competing in the most popular newcomer category for her role as Sadie King in ITV1's Emmerdale.

Kensit, 36, who starred alongside Mel Gibson in Lethal Weapon 2, is up against three other actors, including 12-year-old Sam Aston, Coronation Street's Chesney Brown.

Ant and Dec are up for most popular entertainment presenter and most popular entertainment programme for Saturday Night Takeaway.

Veteran TV host Bruce Forsyth earned his first National TV Awards nomination in the same category for Strictly Come Dancing.

Five secured its first nomination for CSI: Crime Scene Investigation in the most popular drama section.