Blue Panther awards honour Kerner and two BR productions
Wednesday 21st October 2026 on 13:01 in
Bavaria
The Blue Panther awards will be presented in Munich on Wednesday evening, with journalist Johannes B. Kerner receiving the Minister-President’s honorary award and two productions linked to Bavarian Broadcasting among the winners, BR reports.
The ceremony, held during the Munich Media Days, starts at 7 p.m. at BMW Welt. It will be streamed live on the BR channel in the ARD Mediathek, while BR television will show it on a delay from 10.45 p.m.
Bavarian Minister-President Markus Söder praised Kerner’s versatility across quiz shows, talk shows and sports coverage, saying he brings charm, wit and journalistic depth.
Two awards for BR productions
Producers Michael Souvignier and Till Derenbach will receive the award for best documentary drama for Nürnberg 45 – Im Angesicht des Bösen, an ARD production led by NDR and BR. The jury praised its blend of archive footage, dramatised scenes and documentary storytelling, saying new formats are needed to preserve eyewitness memories for younger generations.
Franz Hinterbrandner and Max Reichel will be honoured for production and camera work on In höchster Not – Bergretter im Einsatz, which won in the best factual entertainment format category. The jury said the series sets new standards for emergency-services programmes and makes the mountain landscape a character in its own right. Commissioned by BR, the series has two seasons available in the ARD Mediathek and has been a major audience success since its launch in April 2025.
Other winners
The awards cover information and journalism, fiction, entertainment, culture and education, and social media. Entries could include traditional television productions, streaming programmes and social media formats.
Other winners include Nathan Goldblat for investigative work on How to kill a puppy and get richt – Die Hunde-Mafia; Andreas Bareiss for best series, Unfamiliar; and Arndt Stüwe for the screenplay for Hundertdreizehn. Annette Frier and Sonja Schönemann will receive an award for special creative achievement for Frier und Fünfzig – Am Ende meiner Tage. Philipp Dettmer and the Kurzgesagt team will be recognised for a pioneering digital knowledge format, while Andrea Lange won best entertainment format for The Summit – Der steile Weg zur Million.