BBC 6Music up for seven Sony Awards

The seemingly doomed radio station BBC 6Music has picked up an encouragingly high number of nominations for this year's Sony Awards, the radio industry's most prestigious annual prize-giving ceremony.

6Music and its DJs have amassed a total of seven nominations including Music Programme, Music Radio Personality of the Year, Music Broadcaster of the Year, Best Comedy, Specialist Contributor and Station Imaging. But which shows and personalities are up for what you ask?

Well, Lauren Laverne is nominated for Personality of the Year and Best Music Programme, Adam and Joe for Best Comedy, Huey Morgan and Steve Lamacq for Broadcaster of the Year and the station as a whole for Best Imaging, whatever that is. I guess it's another way of wording 'Best Image'.

Elsewhere in the nominations the BBC Asian Network - which is due to close along with 6Music - will contest two categories in Best Speech Programme and Best News Special. In the public-voted Rising Star awards, the revered Jarvis Cocker competes against Waqas Saeed from the Asian Network.

LBC DJ Nick Ferrari - who used to appear quite regularly on Richard and Judy and once played himself in an episode of Ricky Gervais's Extras - has been nominated for a record FIVE Sony Radio awards, including Breakfast Show Of The Year, News Journalist Of The Year, and Speech Radio Personality Of The Year. Absolute Radio, formerly Virgin Radio, will be in the running for a whole ELEVEN awards. Astounding.

Tim Blackmore, chairman of the Sony Radio Academy Awards, told BBC News:

"The nominated entries represent the very best of UK radio, and happily there is a very great deal about which we can be very proud indeed."

The winners will be announced at a swanky ceremony on May 10.