BAFTA Young Presenter 2021 winner

That’s exactly the right level of excitement you would expect from any football-mad teenager. And so it was with 15-year-old Samaira Iqbal, repeating this phrase over and over when she learned that the Manchester United and England player was to be her first interviewee after winning the annual Young Presenter competition.

Samaira says she became interested in presenting as early as year six (around age 10) and had already done a few “presenting bits and bobs”, but entered the BAFTA competition more on a whim. “I saw there was a competition and told my sister,” she explains. “We thought there was no way we would win, but we’d give it a go. The theme was ‘express yourself’, so we decided to do it about British Sign Language (BSL), to spread awareness. I interviewed her, just a little sisterly bond on camera.”

Good communication is vital in Samaira’s world. Her little sister, Rubi, as well as her parents, aunt and uncle are deaf, so BSL was the first language she learnt. She also has an infectious personality and a keen mind, priceless traits for a presenter. “Being in front of the camera is just what I want to do,” she notes. “I know how big this could be. This is BAFTA and BAFTA is massive. It’s already opened a lot of doors.”

As for that Lingard interview: “I don’t think you could enjoy something more. He’s such a chill guy, it was easy to make a connection. Hopefully, it’s the first of many. Can you imagine?"

Read the full interview: bafta.org/about/awards-brochures