The 1998 British Academy Television Awards were held on 18 May at the Prince of Wales Theatre in London. The ceremony was broadcast on ITV, hosted by Bob Monkhouse, and it was the first occasion since 1968 that the Television Awards had been held separately from the British Academy Film Awards, instead of as a joint ceremony.

The 1999 British Academy Television Awards were held on 9 May at the Grosvenor House Hotel in Park Lane, London. It was hosted solely by Michael Parkinson, who was due to share hosting duties with Jill Dando until her murder two weeks earlier.