Veteran actress Julie Walters and up-and-coming star Ben Whishaw took the top acting honours as British talent dominated the International Emmys awards.

Mamma Mia! star Julie, 59, won the best actress prize for assisted suicide drama A Short Stay In Switzerland on the BBC, while 29-year-old Ben landed the best actor gong for the broadcaster's five-part drama Criminal Justice.

British programmes won three other trophies at the US ceremony honouring TV programmes made outside America, with interviewing legend Sir David Frost also being presented with an honorary Founders Award for lifetime achievement.

Harry Potter actress Julie's role in the one-off show was based on a true story, and came amid fierce controversy over the assisted suicide issue.

Ben won plaudits for his portrayal of a young man accused of murdering a woman after a drunken and drug-filled night on the town, who is unable to remember what happened. He is currently starring in the film Bright Star about poet John Keats.

The ceremony in New York was hosted by BBC chat show host and presenter Graham Norton. Other British winners included CBBC programme Dustbin Baby in the children and young people category, about an adopted teenager determined to find where she came from.

Two programmes which aired on Channel 4 also won Emmys - The Mona Lisa Curse which featured critic Robert Hughes reflecting on his likes and dislikes in contemporary art and The Ascent Of Money in which historian Niall Ferguson traced the financial background behind great powers, wars and revolutions.