Olympic opening ceremony show in running for TV Bafta

Fireworks mark the opening of the London Olympic Games 2012. Credit: Press Association

The Olympic Opening Ceremony will go head-to-head with Strictly Come Dancing and The Great British Bake Off at the TV Baftas.

All three shows have been nominated for the Radio Times Audience Award, which will be presented at the Baftas ceremony in May.

The programmes will also compete against hit BBC1 period drama Call The Midwife, based on the memoirs of Jennifer Worth, US Sky Atlantic fantasy series Game Of Thrones and Channel 4 thriller Homeland, starring British actor Damian Lewis and Claire Danes.

Read: Olympic Games launch with rousing Opening Ceremony

Slumdog Millionaire and Trainspotting director Danny Boyle created the spectacular opening ceremony for London 2012, referencing everything from the NHS and the industrial revolution to the British countryside.The four-hour show, which featured the Queen meeting James Bond, attracted nearly 27 million viewers at its peak on BBC1.

Louis Smith and Ola Jordan were the winning couple in this year's Strictly Come Dancing. Credit: Press Association.

The tenth series of BBC1 hit Strictly, which saw Olympic gymnast Louis Smith lift the Glitterball Trophy, featured new judge Darcey Bussell replacing Alesha Dixon.The Great British Bake Off, starring Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood, has been an unlikely hit on BBC2, sparking a craze in baking.Viewers can vote for the winner before the award is announced at a BBC1 ceremony hosted by Graham Norton.

Great British Bake Off judge Paul Hollywood. Credit: Press Association.

The gong, awarded from a shortlist compiled by entertainment and media journalists, will be presented at the Arqiva British Academy Television Awards, held at the Royal Festival Hall in London, on May 12. The shortlisted programmes are:

  • Call The Midwife (BBC1)

  • Game Of Thrones (Sky Atlantic)

  • The Great British Bake Off (BBC2)

  • Homeland (Channel 4)

  • Olympic Opening Ceremony (BBC1)

  • Strictly Come Dancing (BBC1)