FINALISTS FOR THE 10TH ANNUAL ASTRA AWARDS ANNOUNCED

The Australian Subscription Television and Radio Association (ASTRA) has announced the finalists for the

10th Annual ASTRA Awards today, with 95 entries selected across 21 categories including the five

Subscribers' Choice award categories selected by consumer vote. The finalists reflect the diversity of talent in

Subscription TV, both on and off screen, with a combination of familiar names and newcomers.

Popular showcase mini-series Tim Winton's cloudstreet, joins TV1's Killing Time and W Channel's Spirited as

a finalist for Most Outstanding Drama. cloudstreet cast members Essie Davis and Kerry Fox and Spirited star

Claudia Karvan plus Killing Time's Diana Glenn are included in the Most Outstanding Performance By An

Actor - Female category; cloudstreet's Geoff Morrell and Hugh Johnstone-Burt, Killing Time star David

Wenham and Steve Le Marquand from Movie Extra's Small Time Gangster are finalists in the Most

Outstanding Performance by an Actor - Male category. Johnstone-Burt is also a finalist in the Best New Talent

category where he joins cloudstreet cast mate Lara Robinson, and Nat Geo Wild's Ben Britton.

The Most Outstanding Lifestyle Program category features new shows including LifeStyle FOOD's Planet

Cake and The LifeStyle Channel's Donna Hay - Fast, Fresh Simple. The Most Outstanding Light

Entertainment Program includes new productions such as The Comedy Channel's Balls of Steel Australia and

FOX8's ROVE LA while host Rove McManus joins hosts including Andrew Winter of The LifeStyle Channel's

Selling Houses Australia Extreme and Sarah Murdoch, of FOX8's Australia's Next Top Model, in the category

of Most Outstanding Performance by a Presenter. Rove is also a finalist in the Favourite Personality - Male

category, joining Channel [V]'s Danny Clayton and Australia's Next Top Model's Alex Perry among others.

Recognising the increasing popularity of drama programs with subscription TV audiences the category of

Favourite Program - International Drama has this year been introduced in addition to Favourite Program -

International. Finalists in the new category are some of the most talked about programs of recent years,

including showcase's Game of Thrones, Boardwalk Empire and True Blood, UKTV's Torchwood: Miracle Day,

13th Street's Haven and FOX8's Falling Skies. Finalists for Favourite Program - International include LifeStyle

YOU's Big Fat Gypsy Weddings, Discovery Channel's Man Vs. Wild, Deadliest Catch and Gold Rush: Alaska,

The LifeStyle Channel's Grand Designs, long-running British soap UKTV's EastEnders and the world's most

widely watched event of last year, UKTV's The British Royal Wedding 2011.

A reflection of subscription TV's commitment to providing in depth news and current affairs programming, the

Most Outstanding News Program or Coverage category includes some of Australia's most defining moments

in 2011. Finalists include The Weather Channel's Tropical Cyclone Yasi Coverage and SKY NEWS'

broadcasts Qantas Grounded and Gillard V Rudd. In the category of Most Outstanding Performance by a

Broadcast Journalist, SKY NEWS presenters David Speers and Kieran Gilbert, both winners in years past, join

presenter and 2011 winner, Ashleigh Gillon.

Voting for the Subscribers' Choice categories will run from May 1st to 31st with audiences encouraged to vote

for their favourite programs and personalities online at astraawards.com, via SMS, at Channel 333 on

FOXTEL or AUSTAR, and for the first time this year, through the ASTRA Awards Facebook page.

The 10th Annual ASTRA Awards will be held at Sydney Theatre at Walsh Bay on Thursday 21st June.

ASTRA Awards 2012 Sponsors:

CHANNEL OF THE YEAR

The LifeStyle Channel

showcase

FOX SPORTS

SKY NEWS

SUBSCRIBERS' CHOICE

Favourite Program - Australian

Foo Fighters: Wasting Light On The Harbour Channel [V] & MAX

Wife Swap Australia LifeStyle YOU

Selling Houses Australia Extreme The LifeStyle Channel

Spirited Season 2 W Channel

Australia's Next Top Model Series 7 FOX8

Project Runway Australia Series 3 Arena

Kalgoorlie Cops Crime & Investigation Network

On The Couch FOX SPORTS

Favourite Program - International

Grand Designs Series 9 The LifeStyle Channel

Deadliest Catch Discovery Channel

Big Fat Gypsy Weddings LifeStyle YOU

The British Royal Wedding 2011 UKTV

Gold Rush: Alaska Discovery Channel

EastEnders UKTV

Man Vs. Wild Discovery Channel

American Idol Series 11 FOX8

Favourite Program - International Drama

Game of Thrones Season 1 showcase

Haven 13th Street

Boardwalk Empire Season 1 showcase

Torchwood: Miracle Day UKTV

Breaking Bad Season 4 showcase

Falling Skies FOX8

True Blood Season 4 showcase

Favourite Personality - Female

Jane Gazzo Channel [V]

Charlotte Dawson FOX8

Donna Hay The LifeStyle Channel

Sarah Murdoch FOX8

Megan Gale Arena

Lee Furlong FOX8

ASTRA Awards 2012 Sponsors:

Favourite Personality - Male

Danny Clayton Channel [V]

Andrew Winter The LifeStyle Channel

Jason Dunstall FOX SPORTS

Andrew 'ET' Ettingshausen Discovery Channel

Rove McManus FOX8

Billy Russell Channel [V]

Alex Perry FOX8

Phil Kearns FOX SPORTS

PROGRAMMING & PRODUCTION

Most Outstanding Children's Program or Event

The Amazing World of Gumball Cartoon Network

Move It Mob Style® NITV

Camp Orange: Wrong Town Nickelodeon

Most Outstanding Music Program or Coverage

Foo Fighters: Wasting Light On The Harbour Channel [V] & MAX

Smoke & Mirrors STUDIO

The Riff Channel [V]

Most Outstanding Sports Program or Coverage

Rugby World Cup 2011 FOX SPORTS

Aussies Abroad: 2011 World Ironman Championship ESPN

KFC T20 Big Bash League FOX SPORTS

The Code - Life With The Waratahs FOX SPORTS

Most Outstanding Documentary

Forecast for Disaster: La Nina Strikes The Weather Channel

Tony Robinson Explores Australia The History Channel

Australia's Great Flood National Geographic Channel

Kalgoorlie Cops Crime & Investigation Network

The Bombing of Darwin: An Awkward Truth The History Channel

Most Outstanding News Program or Coverage

Qantas Grounded SKY NEWS

Tropical Cyclone Yasi Coverage The Weather Channel

Gillard V Rudd SKY NEWS

ASTRA Awards 2012 Sponsors:

Most Outstanding Reality Program

Cricket Superstar FOX8

Project Runway Australia Series 3 Arena

Australia's Next Top Model Series 7 FOX8

Kalgoorlie Cops Crime & Investigation Network

Most Outstanding Lifestyle Program

Selling Houses Australia Extreme The LifeStyle Channel

B430 Season 3 Channel [V]

Donna Hay - Fast, Fresh, Simple The LifeStyle Channel

Planet Cake LifeStyle FOOD

Most Outstanding Light Entertainment Program

The Riff Channel [V]

Balls of Steel Australia The Comedy Channel

ROVE LA FOX8

Most Outstanding Drama

Spirited Season 2 W Channel

Killing Time TV1

Tim Winton's cloudstreet showcase

Most Outstanding Use of Innovation in Programming

FOX FIELD FOX SPORTS

WTF! Channel [V]

SLiDE FOX8

THIRD EYE FOX SPORTS

TALENT

Most Outstanding Performance by an Actor - Male

David Wenham TV1

Hugo Johnstone-Burt showcase

Steve Le Marquand Movie Extra

Geoff Morrell showcase

Most Outstanding Performance by an Actor - Female

Essie Davis showcase

Diana Glenn TV1

Kerry Fox showcase

Claudia Karvan W Channel

ASTRA Awards 2012 Sponsors:

Most Outstanding Performance by a Presenter

Sarah Murdoch FOX8

Andrew Winter The LifeStyle Channel

Rove McManus FOX8

Luke & Wyatt Nickelodeon

Most Outstanding Performance by a Broadcast Journalist

Ashleigh Gillon SKY NEWS

Kieran Gilbert SKY NEWS

Josh Holt The Weather Channel

David Speers SKY NEWS

Best New Talent

Lara Robinson showcase

Ben Britton Nat Geo Wild

Hugo Johnstone-Burt showcase