The Pride of Britain Awards 2026 air on ITV1 and ITVX tonight, Thursday, October 22, from 8pm until 10.05pm. Carol Vorderman returns as host for the 27th year running alongside co-host Ashley Banjo.
13:06, 22 Oct 2026Updated 13:07, 22 Oct 2026
Stars sparkle of the Pride on Britain red carpet
The Daily Mirror Pride of Britain Awards, in partnerhsip with P&O Cruises, returns to screens tonight to celebrate the nation’s most extraordinary, selfless unsung heroes.
While the glittering ceremony took place took place at London’s Grosvenor House earlier this week, viewers across the country will finally get the chance to experience every emotional standing ovation, surprise, and tear-jerking triumph from their living rooms this evening.
Established by late Mirror editor Peter Willis, the awards have become a cherished fixture in the national calendar, honouring everyday people who show astonishing bravery, tireless dedication, and boundless compassion. Key honours handed out tonight include the This Morning Local Hero Award, the Emergency Services Award, Child and Teenager of Courage, and the P&O Cruises Inspiration Award.
How to watch The Pride of Britain Awards on TV
The Pride of Britain Awards 2026 air tonight – Thursday, October 22 on ITV1 and ITVX from 8pm until 10.05pm.
This year’s ceremony from London’s Grosvenor House Hotel sees a star-studded line up including Jack Grealish, Davina McCall, PM Andy Burnham, and Alan Carr celebrating the nation’s unsung heroes.
Hosted by Carol Vorderman and Ashley Banjo, expect plenty of emotion and surprises along with inspirational stories of bravery, achievement and selflessness. Plus, stepping off their 25th Anniversary Tour for a special performance are boyband Blue.
Who is hosting The Pride of Britain Awards?
Telly legend Carol Vorderman, 65, has returned to front the ceremony for her 27th consecutive year, once again joined by co-host Ashley Banjo.
“Pride of Britain is needed now more than ever,” she told the Mirror. “We’re incredibly divided as a nation. And there are plenty of reasons to be miserable: the cost of living crisis, global uncertainty. But through it all, one thing unites us – and that is hope. And the goodness of people.”
An ‘overpowering sewage smell’ was reported on board, along with flies seen around uncovered food. Passengers have been complaining about various stomach issues
08:33, 21 Oct 2026Updated 08:34, 21 Oct 2026
Passengers on the P&O Azura fell ill(Image: SWNS)
A group of 12 passengers who fell seriously ill onboard a P&O ship are taking legal action after their dream Mediterranean cruise turned into a “nightmare” holiday from hell. The British passengers were struck down with gastric illness and flu-like symptoms while travelling around the Greek islands on the P&O Azura.
The holidaymakers, who paid up to £3,000 each, claim they encountered an “overpowering sewage smell” on board and raised concerns about hygiene in buffet restaurants where flies could reportedly be seen around uncovered food. Many were confined to their cabins during the eight-night voyage between May 28 and June 4 this year, while others were left hospitalised upon returning to the UK and some say they are still feeling the effects now.
The group, who had been celebrating a 60th birthday, have now instructed international injury lawyers to investigate their illnesses. Julie Stones, 53, from Bolton, was among those who says the cruise left her battling a catalogue of health problems.
She first became ill on June 2 with a sore throat and diarrhoea before her condition spiralled. She suffered vomiting, severe stomach pain, fever, headaches, dizziness, exhaustion, a persistent cough, and pain in her back and legs.
After returning home, she attended A&E, was diagnosed with a chest infection and later required further GP and hospital treatment. Julie, who has several underlying health conditions and uses a powered wheelchair, said she spent weeks largely confined to bed and relied on help from her husband and daughter.
Julie said: “This holiday was supposed to be a special celebration with friends and something I’d been looking forward to for months. Instead, it turned into a complete nightmare. It felt as though one thing after another kept going wrong and, as the holiday went on, I just got worse and worse.
“One thing that really stood out was the overpowering sewage smell near the Manhattan Bar. It was so noticeable that other passengers were commenting on it. I also had concerns about hygiene in the buffet areas. I remember seeing food left uncovered with flies around it and people entering the restaurant without sanitising their hands.
“Even after returning home, the symptoms didn’t go away. I’ve needed hospital treatment, GP appointments, and medication, but I’m still not back to normal. More than two months later, I’m still dealing with fatigue and headaches. I just want to understand what happened.”
Linda Chapman, from Bury, who was celebrating her 60th, also became seriously ill after developing symptoms on the final evening of the cruise. The mum and grandmother suffered chills, vomiting, breathlessness, wheezing, a sore throat, and a persistent cough.
Her condition worsened so badly after landing back in Manchester that she contacted NHS 111 and was taken to A&E, where she was prescribed antibiotics. Linda, who works as a housekeeper on an NHS stroke ward, was forced to take two weeks off work.
Linda said: “I remember being on the plane. The flight was only a few hours, but it felt like forever. People kept asking if I was okay and I must have looked as awful as I felt. I just kept telling myself that I’d be home soon and could finally go to bed.
“What I didn’t realise was that I’d end up spending weeks like that. In my view, hygiene onboard wasn’t up to scratch and the food often didn’t seem fresh at all, despite the cruise being very expensive. What did surprise me was just how ill I became. I was struggling to breathe and, combined with the stomach problems, I just couldn’t work out what was wrong with me. It was a very frightening and disorientating experience.”
Sharon Robinson, 51, from Wigan, was the first member of the group to fall ill. She initially believed she had a chest infection but later suffered stomach pain, nausea, diarrhoea, headaches, fever-like symptoms, and extreme fatigue.
Despite feeling unwell, Sharon tried to continue with the group’s planned celebrations but says she spent the rest of the cruise exhausted. Sharon said: “I’m unbelievably disappointed.
“Even though I felt awful, I kept trying to take part in as much as I could because I’d been looking forward to this cruise for a year. I was the first in our group to become ill, but after the first few days it felt as though everyone was dropping like flies.
“One thing that’s burned into my memory is the strong sewage smell onboard. It still makes me feel sick when I think about it. So many people in our group became unwell that it’s difficult not to have concerns about what caused it. I still feel very sad about the whole experience and I’m still suffering because of it.”
Jatinder Paul, the lawyer at Irwin Mitchell representing the passengers, said: “Cruise holidays should provide passengers with an opportunity to relax and enjoy their time away. However, they also involve large numbers of passengers sharing restaurants, bars and other facilities in confined space so robust hygiene measures are vital in helping to prevent illnesses from spreading.
“What’s particularly concerning for our clients is that so many from the same party became unwell, with several still having their lives affected by symptoms. Our clients understandably have questions about their illnesses and whether more should have been done to protect them.
“Nothing will make up for what they’ve been through, but we’re determined to provide them with the answers they deserve.”
Pride of Britain host Carol Vorderman says her recent health crisis has given her a new perspective, forcing her to focus on what truly matters.
Carol says: “As you get older, health becomes one of your top priorities.”(Image: Adam Gerrard / Daily Mirror)
After a year-long health crisis, and as she marks 44 years on television, Carol Vorderman wants to “deep cleanse” her life and focus on what matters. The 65-year-old Pride of Britain presenter and former Countdown star was completely floored for most of last year, with a sudden debilitating case of rheumatoid arthritis.
She couldn’t walk without crying in pain and found the experience depressing and a shock to the system. Carol says: “As you get older, health becomes one of your top priorities. And time – who you spend that time with, and what you spend that time on. Time becomes your currency, so you don’t want to waste it.
“Every single person I know of my age group, we’re all trying to get rid of stuff. You spend all your life accumulating, but you don’t want to waste time curating things you’ve accumulated. It’s a deep cleanse for old age. Being really poorly and on a lot of medication for so much time really has given me a new perspective.
“You become much more conscious of your overall health. Your priority list changes. It was a big shock to the system, and that’s why I have every sympathy for people with chronic pain. I just don’t know how they live with it. It’s just depressing.”
Carol is due to present The Daily Mirror Pride of Britain Awards, in partnership with P&O Cruises, for the 27th year – a show she has recently co-hosted with Diversity star Ashley Banjo.
The event, shown on ITV and ITVX, celebrates the nation’s unsung heroes and includes awards for Child of Courage, Outstanding Bravery, Lifetime and Young Fundraiser.
Carol says: “The first Pride of Britain was 1999, so it only occurred to me this week that I was on Countdown for 26 years, but now Pride of Britain is my long runner. On November 2, I celebrate 44 years on TV. I’m not having a party, but I am getting a BAFTA Cymru for Outstanding Achievement. In other words, still being alive!
“The reason I keep doing Pride of Britain is because it’s the best job. It’s very glam. There are lots of very glam shows, but it’s very real. I do get emotional about the show about a week before. I remember the people who have won awards and have either passed away through old age or particularly the youngsters who died. They came on because they had cancer and raised money, or whatever their story might have been, and they’re no longer with us.
“Then you also remember the people who were doing these great things 15 years ago are still doing them. I always come back to how many great people there are. The show makes you want to be better and it’s made me more of a fighter.”
Carol recalls how she had to fight when her health nosedived. She says: “I had travel vaccines for a trip to Thailand and within three days I had chronic rheumatoid arthritis. I can’t prove that they caused it. My hands doubled in size. I couldn’t walk. I literally couldn’t move anything without crying in pain.
“I was on steroids probably for about eight months, and now I’m on other medication for the rest of my life. That’s hard because I’ve always prided myself on being healthy. It was as much as I could do to look out of the window and think, ‘I hope one day I’ll be able to walk without pain again.’
“The big thing for a lot of older people is community. You’ve got to feel a part of something. I know that my mum living with us and being around the kids, living in a busy house, gave her a purpose.
“If she’d just been living by herself somewhere, she wouldn’t have lasted. And smartphones don’t help. I love keeping up to date with what people are doing on Instagram, but it’s not the same as getting people together.”
Carol also reveals that laughter is extremely important to her wellbeing. “People who laugh are very special,” she says. “I love laughing. I love laughing at myself. Most of my friends just completely take the p*** out of me all the time.
“As you get older, you realise that even people who make you laugh and want to share, there’s a kindness in it. So for me, there are people who are heroes, because they make you feel better, they make you laugh, rather than taking offence, and I think there’s something quite heroic in that. There’s something about laughter that just breaks down the barriers.”
Carol has also long been a passionate, unfiltered voice of public frustration, turning to political advocacy to expose what she calls “political corruption”. She says: “Good people also need support so that they can do even more good things. Some people have been through so much pain and grief, some of it caused by certain politicians.
“Those things make me very angry, and I suppose now I’m at an age where I no longer need to build a career. A lot of girls say to me, ‘I believe in everything that you do, Carol, but I wish I could say the things you do. I just don’t feel strong enough.’ I say, ‘Yeah, but you’re not in a position to. I am in a position to say it, so I feel that responsibility.’”
Despite the emotional weight of Pride of Britain, Carol says there is always lightness on the show. She recalls: “The one that I always remember was in 2012 when we had lots of people on the stage, because we were celebrating the London Olympics. To present the award was Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, as they were then.
“Then in my ear, the show’s boss said, ‘You’ve got to make Charles do the Mobot. Do it.’ So I talked about the wonderful Mo Farah and said, ‘Obviously sir, you will have seen this, shall we all do the Mobot?’ I collared him into it, he couldn’t stand there and say no. So he did it, what a good sport. The next day officials at Clarence House brought up that they hadn’t approved the Mobot ‘incident’ and asked who was responsible.”
For Carol, Pride of Britain is a chance to take a moment and appreciate good people. She says: “Pride of Britain gives us all an opportunity to take a breath for a couple of hours and witness these very real people who are doing very real things because they are brave, they’re determined. It’s a whole balance of life.”
*The Pride of Britain Awards will take place on 19th October, before airing on ITV and ITVX from 22nd October. Find out more about the Pride of Britain Awards 2026 HERE
