FIDO Awards 2026 celebrated their 20th anniversary with the awards ceremony for the Doggy ‘Oscars’, the prestigious FIDOS (For Incredible Dogs On Screen) on Sunday 1st March 2026 at the British Film Institute on Stephen Street in London.
British films were wagging their collective tails with joy with wins for Pillon, I Swear , Hamnet and Dragonfly which also won the BFI Best In World Award. All the canine stars from those films were in attendance.
The FiDogManitarian Award, honouring an individual who organises a unique celebration of the bond between canines and the human race, was presented to May Wong, co-founder of Rescue Dogs of London and George & Lulu’s Adventures podcast.
As a special 20th FIDO anniversary award, the Creature Clothes Crown was presented to Dogspiracy, Paul Crompton’s documentary that exposes illegal puppy mills and puppy smuggling in US. There is an added doggy connection since the film has been released by Bulldog Distribution in UK.
Among the star presenters were pop legend Holly Johnson, actress and All Dogs Matter ambassador Michelle Collins, actor Jean Christophe Bouvet (Emily In Paris), actress Monica Dolan (Mr Bates vs.The Post Office), and composer Alfie Godfrey (Mission Impossible – The Final Reckoning). Director Jessica Swale recorded a special acceptance speech on video.
Nestling firmly between the BAFTAs and the Oscars, the event was hosted by the founder of Palm Dog and FIDOS, Toby Rose. Many of the jury members of top film journalists presented the awards including Anna Smith from the Girls On Film podcast; Rita Di Santo of FIPRESCI; Joe Utichi, film critic; Tim Robey of The Daily Telegraph with his beagle Nina; and Damon Wise of Deadline with his cockapoo Bosie.
FIDO AWARD CATEGORY WINNERS 2026
Historical Hound
Winner: Hamnet (dir. Chloé Zhao) – Toad the Jack Russell
Also nominated: Nuremberg (dir. James Vanderbilt) – aristocratic retrievers
Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale (dir. Simon Curtis) – Isis the yellow labrador retriever
Rom Com Rover
Winner: Pillion (dir. Harry Lighton) – Maggie (‘Rosie’) the Rottweiler.
Also nominated: The Summer With Carmen (dir. Zacharias Mavroidis) – Nala, the chihuahua
Is This Thing On? (dir. Bradley Cooper) – Bradley’s own labradoodle, Charlie
Mutt Moment
Winner: I Swear (dir. Kirk Jones) – April (‘Rosie’), the springer spaniel
Also nominated: Marty Supreme (dir. Josh Safdie) – Moses, the Belgian Malinois mix
The Alto Knights (dir. Barry Levinson) – De Niro’s own pet dogs, Bob (a Maltese) and Nancy (a terrier mix)
Blockbuster Bowser
Winner: Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning (dir. Christopher McQuarrie) – Huskies
Also nominated: Superman (dir. James Gunn – Krypto, CGI clone of director James Gunn’s dog, Ozu
Nobody 2 ( dir. Timo Tjahjanto) – Carbon, a shepherd-husky mix
Comedy Canine
Winner: Merv (dir. Jessica Swale) – Gus, a terrier-mix rescue dog
Also nominated: The Roses (dir. Jay Roach) – Rottweiler, belonging to Alison Janney’s character
The Naked Gun (dir. Akiva Schaffer) – Buddy, the labrador retriever
Horror Hounds
Winner: Good Boy (dir. Ben Leonberg) – Indy, the Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever
Also nominated: Frankenstein (dir Guillermo del Toro) – real and CGI working dogs
Together (dir. Michael Shanks) – a blue heeler, and a mixed breed
Femme Fido – in recognition of this year’s fab female-focused FIDOs contenders
Winner: Dragonfly (dir. Paul Andrew Williams) – Dixie (‘Sabre’), the American bulldog
Also nominated: Die My Love (dir. Lynne Ramsay) – Creature and Yeti, who play the couple’s dog
Christy (dir. David Michôd) – Casey, the pomeranian
BFI Best In World Award – Dragonfly (dir. Paul Andrew Williams) – Dixie (‘Sabre’) the American bulldog
Creature Clothes Crown Award – Dogspiracy. Documentary directed by Paul Crompton
The Caravan Cup (chosen by sponsors Caravan Restaurant) – The Summer With Carmen (dir. Zacharias Mavroidis) – Nala, the chihuahua
FiDogmanitarian Award
The FiDogManitarian Award is presented to May Wong, co-founder of Rescue Dogs of London and continuing charity work including the Hyde Park Cockaopoo Meetup and Christmas Jumper Parade Walk. She’s also an award-winning blogger with Miss Darcy’s Adventures now George & Lulu’s Adventures, which aims to share adventures with other dog owners to encourage them to share their daily life with their dogs.
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