Brits triumph with five International Emmys

Britain's TV talent enjoyed a triumphant night at the International Emmys, walking off with half the main awards.

In a clean sweep for the BBC, Bob Hoskins and Helena Bonham Carter won the top acting prizes, while Jimmy McGovern's The Street, drama Small Island and a children's animation also came out on top.

There was also a special honorary award for X Factor supremo Simon Cowell - who was recognised for his talent show creations and charity work.

Hoskins took the best actor award for his role in last year's series of The Street, when he played a recovering alcoholic pub owner whose morals lead him to stand up to the local gangster.

The series itself was also named best drama.

Bonham Carter, currently starring in the latest Harry Potter film, carried off the best actress prize for the BBC biopic Enid, about the popular British children's author Enid Blyton.

The corporation's drama Small Island, based on Andrea Levy's novel about the lives of Jamaican immigrants in London during and after the Second World War, was named best TV movie/mini-series.

The other British winner last night was CBBC animation Shaun The Sheep, in the Children and Young People category.

Former Beverly Hills 90210 star Jason Priestley hosted the ceremony in New York, which honours excellence in TV programming outside the US.

Cowell, who left his hit American Idol show earlier this year to launch an American version of X Factor, received the International Emmy Founders Award, which recognises "significant achievements in television that cross cultural boundaries and contribute to our common humanity".

Thirty-nine nominees from 15 countries were contending in the 10 competitive categories for the prizes.

Israel's Traffic Light, about the friendship and romantic relationships of three 30-something childhood friends, was rated the best comedy.

In the telenovela category, Portugal won its first-ever International Emmy for My Love, which follows three women whose lives intertwine after a plane crash.

The non-scripted entertainment award went to the Argentine weekly satirical news review CQC, which finally won its first Emmy after being nominated nine times since 1999.

Two non-fiction shows about struggling underdogs also received Emmys: South Korea's Mom and the Red Bean Cake and Romania's The World According To Ion B.