Stacey Solomon said she "felt like we won" after arriving at the National Television Awards with three nominations but leaving without a trophy, sharing a video of the night with family and her production teams.
Solomon, 35, was nominated in the Entertainment category for her shows Sort Your Life Out and Stacey & Joe, and was also shortlisted for Best Presenter at Wednesday night's ceremony at London's O2 Arena. Both shows lost out to Clarkson's Farm in the factual entertainment category, while Gary Lineker won Best Presenter, ending Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly's reported 23-year run in the category.
Posting to Instagram on Thursday, Solomon shared a montage of clips from the awards that showed her dancing with husband Joe Swash, playing with her children and laughing with colleagues. In the caption she wrote: "it’s never about the destination. It all about who you spend the journey with. we didn’t win any awards last night but it feels like we won. Not only did I get to be with my whole family last night but I also got to be with our WHOLE Sort Your Life Out team and S&J team. My second family. To the moon and back families @sortyourlifeout @staceyandjoe.tv @optomen @bbciplayer. Thank you to all of you who got us there & voted we are forever grateful." Solomon attended the event with Swash and their five children — Zachary, 17; Leighton, 13; Rex, six; Rose, three; and two-year-old Belle — and the footage showed scenes on the red carpet and backstage during McFly's opening performance.
Earlier on the day of the ceremony, Solomon had told Magic Radio presenters it was "absolutely ludicrous" that both of her programmes were nominated in the same category. She said she was grateful to be shortlisted and noted that the night would be special because it was the first awards event their whole family had been able to attend.
The 30th anniversary NTAs were hosted by Joel Dommett and broadcast on ITV1; winners are chosen by public vote. Alongside Lineker and Clarkson's Farm, notable winners included This Morning for Best Daytime, Strictly Come Dancing for Best Talent Show and EastEnders for Best Serial Drama. The ceremony also recognised Adolescence as Best New Drama and saw Owen Cooper win Best Drama Performance for his role in that series. Michael McIntyre received The Bruce Forsyth Entertainment Award, Gavin & Stacey took Best Comedy, and a special recognition award went to Wallace and Gromit creator Nick Park.
Lineker used his acceptance speech to address his departure from Match of the Day earlier this year after sharing a social media post that attracted controversy; he said the award demonstrated that "perhaps it's OK sometimes to use our platform to speak up on behalf of those who have no voice." The NTAs, established in 1995 to give the public a direct role in recognising television talent, featured a wide range of winners across drama, entertainment and factual categories.
Solomon's losses at the NTAs follow a previous disappointment earlier this year when she described Sort Your Life Out as having been "robbed" of a BAFTA. In her Instagram post after the NTAs she reiterated gratitude to viewers and contributors, emphasizing the evening's family moments and camaraderie with her programme teams despite not taking home a prize.