Two Open University/BBC co-productions have been honoured at the prestigious Grierson awards, which recognise innovative and exciting documentary films.

Once Upon a Time in Northern Ireland won two awards – Best documentary and Best history documentary and Inside Our Autistic Minds, won Best Science Documentary.

Dr Caroline Ogilvie, Head of Broadcast and Partnerships at The Open University said:

“Our success at the Griersons awards is testament to our academic’s expertise and the commitment of the teams involved in making these programmes. Both series are great examples of how our unique partnership with the BBC can enable us to explore subjects and themes from a range of perspectives to give us better insight and understanding of other people’s lives and experiences.”

A remarkable series

Once Upon a time in Northern Ireland, explores the human side of the conflict, sharing intimate unheard testimonies from those who lived through the troubles.

It was recognised by the judges for being “personal, powerful and raw” and for its “fair and expansive storytelling which resulted in a remarkable series with reach and impact”. They also praised the documentary for its humanity and warmth and commended the filmmakers for creating “a powerful and important historical record.”

Dr Philip O’Sullivan, Senior Lecturer in the School of Social Sciences and Global studies, was the academic consultant on the series.

Beautiful and innovative

Inside Our Autistic Minds, offers a revealing look into the minds of autistic adults. Presented by Chris Packham – who was himself diagnosed with Asperger’s in 2005 – the documentary takes viewers on a journey to better understand what it is like to experience the world as a person with autism.

Judges described the documentary as “beautiful and innovative” and that “it had the potential to change lives.”

The academic consultants on the series were Professor of Education, Kieron Sheehy and Senior Lecturer in Education, Fiona Henry.