The nominations for The South Bank Sky Arts Awards 2018 have been announced.

Stand-up comedian Sophie Willan has been recognised for her comedy performances in the breakthrough category. She is the comedy nominee, appearing in the list alongside Nubya Garcia (Pop), Alex Lawther (TV Drama), Dickson Mbi (Dance), Monica Dolan (Theatre), Oliver Zeffman (Classical Music), Rachel Redmond (Opera), Imogen Hermes Gowar (Literature), Francis Lee (Film) and Heather Agyepong (Visual Art).

Willan, who was nominated for the Edinburgh Comedy Award last year for her show Branded, recently was revealed as the recipient of the BBC's Caroline Aherne Bursary.

In the comedy category, Channel 4's Catastrophe, BBC Two's Inside No. 9 and BBC Three's This Country have been nominated.

Meanwhile Paddington 2 is up against Lady Macbeth and Dunkirk in Film.

Now in its 22nd year, the annual awards ceremony will take place at The Savoy Hotel in London on Sunday 1st July 2018, with highlights shown later on Sky Arts.

Host Melvyn Bragg has issued a rallying call for the country to recognise the impact of culture. He says: "The Creative Industries generate £92 billion a year, and yet the funding cuts in the arts in schools are very worrying. A recent study of 1,200 secondary schools found that 90% had cut back on arts teachers, facilities and equipment. Since 2010, there has been a 28% drop in pupils taking arts GCSEs, with a corresponding drop in the number of arts teachers being trained. This means that the future of everything we stand for and everything we're good at is being threatened. But what we also stand for are events like these awards, which show how rich and diverse the arts in this country are."