Good evening and welcome to our BAFTA live blog! Keep refreshing the page as we talk you through the night with commentary, delivered with wit and warmth.
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21:35 – And that’s a wrap! Thank you all for joining me tonight, it’s been a whole lot of fun and I look forward now to doing it all again for the Oscars on 4 March – albeit at a daft time in the morning…
Good night!
21:33 – Martin McDonagh on Three Billboards‘ win:
‘Our film is a hopeful one in lots of ways but it’s also an angry one, and as we’ve seen this year, sometimes anger is the only way to get people to listen and to change, so we’re thrilled that Bafta has recognised this.’
21:29 – There’s just time for a BAFTA Fellowship to be handed to Sir Ridley Scott by the Duke of Cambridge and Kenneth Branagh.
21:27 – So, at the end of the night, that’s five wins for Three Billboards, three for The Shape of Water, two each for Darkest Hour and Blade Runner: 2049, with the rest given to: Call Me By Your Name, Dunkirk, I Am Not A Witch, I Am Not Your Negro, Poles Apart, Cowboy Dave, Baby Driver, Daniel Kaluuya, Coco, Phantom Thread, I, Tonya, The Handmaiden and The National Film and Television School.
21:22 – It’s…
THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI
21:21 – Best Film time! What’s it going to be people?
21:20 – Del Toro thanks Mary Shelley in his speech. Frankenstein is a clear touch stone for The Shape of Water; he says: ‘She gave voice to the voiceless and showed me that to stand up to monsters we have to create monsters ourselves with parables.’
21:15 – For sterling work on The Shape of Water, it’s
GUILLERMO DEL TORO
Which is delightful!
21:12 – Director now; it’s an unfortunately white/male/middle-aged list but you can’t deny the talent among it. Probably Nolan, maybe Del Toro.
21:11 – A first BAFTA for McDormand and a fourth for Three Billboards. Are the stars aligning for a cherry on the cake?
21:10 – The winner is…
FRANCES MCDORMAND
We knew it.
21:08 – McDormand or Hawkins? Chiwetel Ejiofor is about to tell us.
21:06 – After a thank you to Winston Churchill, his family and BAFTA, Oldman vacates the stage for Leading Actress.
21:05 – Thoroughly deserved there. Here’s what we thought of Joe Wright’s sensational Darkest Hour.
21:04 – The sound of jaws dropping accompanies a win for…
GARY OLDMAN
Who saw that one coming?
21:02 – Anyone but Oldman would be a big shock. Hayek: ‘In this very important year for women, I am here on this stage to celebrate… men’
21:01 – The final stretch now, it’s Leading Actor, presented by Salma Hayek.
21:00 – It’s another win for…
BLADE RUNNER: 2049
Surely, Deakins is a dead-set for the Oscars too. He couldn’t make it so Villeneuve picks up the award.
20:58 – After watching Blade Runner: 2049 we thought Deakins had Best Cinematography in the bag but now we find out for sure.
20:57 – Assuming that Frances McDormand gets Best Actress (not a given!), Three Billboards looks set to be the big winner from tonight. It’s claimed an award for each billboard already!
20:56 – The winner is…
THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI
We always knew McDonagh was a writing wizard.
20:55 – Our favourite here is The Shape of Water but Three Billboards should win, given that the former is kind of an adaptation of Creature from the Black Lagoon.
20:53 – Next up, it’s Original Screenplay: Get Out/I, Tonya/Lady Bird/The Shape of Water/Three Billboards.
20:50 – Stunning and memorable work from Alex Gibson, Richard King, Gregg Landaker, Gary A. Rizzo and Mark Weingarten.
20:49 – Best Sound goes to…
DUNKIRK
20:48 – And now BAFTA remembers all those who have past away in the last year. Devastating to see the likes of George A Romero, Jonathan Demme, Bill Paxton and Roger Moore here. Much missed stars.
20:44 – Turns out that she’s spent the last 35 years lying about having graduated from RADA. It was just a two-week course apparently. Eek.
20:42 – Janney’s an excellent performer and very good in I, Tonya (our review) but we were backing Lesley Manville’s subtler turn in Phantom Thread (our review).
20:40 – And the winner is…
ALLISON JANNEY
For I, Tonya – not so sure about that one.
20:39 – Supporting Actress now. It’s being presented by Bryan Cranston, who was at the Berlin Film Festival only yesterday for Isle of Dogs.
20:37: Oldroyd, Birch and O’Reilly are ones to watch all the same.
20:35 – The winner is:
I AM NOT A WITCH
It’s a good night for Nyoni and co!
20:34 – The nominees are:
The Ghoul: Gareth Tunley, Jack Healy Guttmann and Tom Meeten
I am Not a Witch: Rungano Nyoni and Emily Morgan
Jawbone: Johnny Harris and Thomas Napper
Kingdom of Us: Lucy Cohen
Lade Macbeth: Alice Birch, William Oldroyd and Fodhla Cronin O’Reilly
20:31 – Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer now – Lady Macbeth please BAFTA!
20:30 – That’s a pat on the back for: Richard R. Hoover, Paul Lambert, Gerd Nefzer and John Nelson.
20:29 – It’s…
BLADE RUNNER: 2049
What a journey for the franchise!
20:29 – Tough one this one with first class work all round.
20:28 – Karen Gillan and Taron Egerton are no strangers to CGI and are now here for Best Special Visual Effects.
20:26 – Congrats to Paul Austerberry, Jeff Melvin and Shane Vieau. Surely not the last time we’ll be seeing The Shape of Water on stage tonight.
20:25 – And it’s a second win for…
THE SHAPE OF WATER
20:24 – Ah, Toby Jones is here with Rebecca Ferguson to award Production Design. It’d be The Shape of Water for me.
20:23 – Critics of Three Billboards‘ racial politics might not be totally satisfied with Rockwell’s win but it’s certainly a strong performance in its context.
20:22 – Rockwell says that it’s been ‘a magical journey’.
20:20 – It’s not, it’s…
SAM ROCKWELL
…who was terrific in Three Billboards – that’s a second win for McDonagh’s film.
20:19 – It’s a tough one to call this but if it’s Hugh Grant we get no help guessing the Oscars.
20:18 – First acting BAFTA now and it’s Supporting Actor, courtesy of Lupita N’Yongo – also currently of Black Panther.
20:17 – There’ll be lots of happy people on social media with that one.
20:16 – James Ivory adapted André Caiman’s book for Luca Guadagnino.
20:15 – Chan-wook being abroad, we move swiftly on to Adapted Screenplay, which goes to…
CALL ME BY YOUR NAME
20:11 – Thrilled to announce that Park Chan-wook’s The Handmaiden has the award!
THE HANDMAIDEN
Loved it! Review right here.
20:10 – Elle, First They Killed My Father, The Handmaiden, Loveless and The Salesman now go for Film Not in the English Language.
20:07 – It’s a neat twist that sees Poles Apart win after the Outstanding Contribution is awarded to its home at the NFTS!
20:07 – Best British Short goes to…
COWBOY DAVE
From Colin O’Toole and Jonas Mortense.
20:04 – Best British Short Animation goes to…
POLES APART
By Paloma Baeza and Ser En Low.
20:02 – The wonderful Letitia Wright (on a Black Panther high) is now presenting British Short Animation with Anya Taylor Joy. Brilliant CVs between them, they’re doing British Short Film too.
20:00 – Jon Wardle accepts the Outstanding British Contribution award for the NFTS.
20:00 – How’re you liking the awards so far? Any predictions for the biggie? Let us know in the comments!
19:56 – No surprise here (it was a pre-announcement):
The National Film and Television School
19:54 – No nominees for the next award, it’s Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema and being presented by Celia Imrie.
19:52 – From what I’ve heard, Raoul Peck’s film is brilliant though. Nominated for an Oscar last year but a later release in the UK – lost there to OJ: Made in America.
19:51 – Documentary now. I’ve a sad confession that I haven’t seen these.
I AM NOT YOUR NEGRO
19:48 – A deserved nod for Jonathan Amos and Paul Machliss there.
Amos on Edgar Wright: ‘His innovative approach to filmmaking challenges you creatively to do your job in ways you never considered.’
19:47 – The winner is…
BABY DRIVER
Not coming away empty handed then!
19:45 – Natalie Dormer and Hayley Squires are on-stage to deliver Best Editing (which is unlikely to make it to BBC One)
19:44 – We loved Coco. Director Lee Unkrich thanks ‘the people of Mexico’ – bravo all.
19:42 – And you/we would be right.
COCO
19:41 – Phantom Thread being a film about fashion, it’d have been harsh for that one to go anywhere else. Animation now – Coco you would think.
19:40 –
PHANTOM THREAD
1939: Flying through now! Edward Holcroft and Tom Taylor present Best Costume Design to…
1938 – The magic there came courtesy of: David Malinowski, Ivana Primorac, Lucy Sibbick, Kazuhiro Tsuji.
19:37 – Oldman was totally unrecognisable so this is well deserved. I mean, look at him:
19:36 – Best Make-Up and Hair goes to…
DARKEST HOUR
Of course!
19:34 – Fun Fact: Early Man composer Tom Howe called that one when we interviewed him earlier this week. That’ll be live later this week.
19:33 – The winner is…
ALEXANDRE DESPLAT
For his gorgeous Shape of Water score.
19:31 – Gemma Chan and Sergei Polunin are doing Original Music now.
19:29 – Kaluuya: ‘I am a product of arts funding within the United Kingdom, I’d like to thank people that financially support that’
Very pleased for him!
19:27 – Nope, it’s…
DANIEL KALUUYA
Hooray! (The others were all terrific too!)
19:25 – Octavia Spencer and Margot Robbie now present the EE Rising Star Award – voted for by YOU! Daniel Kaluuya, Florence Pugh, Josh O’Connor, Tessa Thompson or Timothée Chalamet.
It’ll probably be Chalamet.
19:24 – Interesting…does this make it more or less likely to grab Best Film? And how do we feel about a very American-British film winning the gong?
19:21 – And the winner is…
THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI
19:18 – First up…Outstanding British Film, awarded by Jennifer Lawrence.
19:16 – All very gentle from Lumley and what you’d expect (there’s a dig at Hugh Grant) but not long till the first award!
19:13 – Joanna Lumley: ‘In [Get Out]’s most memorable moments Daniel [Kaluuya] is trapped in a chair powerless to move. A skill that will come in handy tonight because, I’m afraid to say, nobody gets a comfort break until we’re done here.’
An obvious gag perhaps but always going to be a winner.
19:07 – Watch out for the Shape of Water themed Cirque du Soleil performance at the start of tonight’s show.
19:05 – Take a drink every time Joanna Lumley says: ‘darling’
19:03 – BAFTA Chair Jane Lush has revealed why there’s a two hour delay on the TV broadcast…it’s to give Ridley Scott enough time to re-shoot the whole thing!
18:56 – Winners have been told to keep it short and not do the ‘naff’ thing of pointing out that they’re being told to hurry up whilst the audience is asked to summon their ‘inner American’ and whoop – you won’t get that bit on the telly.
18:52 – The red carpet live-stream has ended and the show is about to begin…
1835 – Margot Robbie on I, Tonya: ‘I was just hoping people would want to see the film…to come here for nights like tonight is crazy!’
I, Tonya‘s up for five awards tonight, including Best Actress for Robbie and Best Actress in a Supporting Role for co-star Allison Janney. Here’s what we thought of the film.
18:24 – Sally Hawkins just got distracted talking to Edith about Guillermo del Toro on the red carpet: ‘He’s an artist and…ooh! There’s Annette Bening!’
Hawkins will have to fight off Frances McDormand to come away with Best Actress tonight and it’s a tough call.
18:17 – Roger Deakins has a shot at seizing a fourth BAFTA tonight for his cinematographic work on Blade Runner: 2049. It’s his eighth nomination but at least he’s won in London before – try fourteen ‘didn’t win’s at the Oscars…
18:11 – We love this:
18:07 – A reminder of tonight’s Best Film nominees…
Call Me By Your Name – ★★★★ review
Darkest Hour – ★★★★★ review
Dunkirk – ★★★★ review
The Shape of Water – ★★★★★ review
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri – ★★★★★ review
18:01 – Three Billboards‘ director Martin McDonagh on tonight’s nominees: ‘It’s kind of cool not to hate any of your competitors for a change’
What we want to know is who he took against when In Bruges won at the 2009 BAFTAs? Mamma Mia? Tropic Thunder?
17:52 – Guillermo del Toro on Best Actress nominee Sally Hawkins: ‘She is one of the most beautiful, luminous people in cinema today’
17:51 – We asked some of the best and brightest Film Twitterers to give their opinions on this year’s awards season – here’s what they had to say.
17:47 – Many stars wearing a pin-badge tonight, this is the one:
17:38 – Black Panther–star Letitia Wright is very much up for a stand-alone Shuri film. We’d go for that! You can catch her next in Avengers: Infinity War.
17:35 – For those who missed it, nominees Saoirse Ronan, Tessa Thompson and Florence Pugh were among the 190 women who signed an open letter, published in today’s Observer, calling for an end to sexual abuse and inequality. Read it here.
17:30 – Natalie Dormer on #TimesUp: ‘I think it’s a thick black line across this period of time.’
17:29 – The BAFTA ceremony itself is due to kick off at 19:00, with BBC One broadcasting a delayed stream from 21:00. We’ll be live blogging the results right here as we hear them #spoilers.
17:24 – Not so much love for Baby Driver in tonight’s nominations. We loved it but perhaps time and the Kevin Spacey scandal went against it. It’s up for Best Editing and Best Sound.
17:19 – Edgar Wright on Baby Driver 2: ‘It is in the works…’
17:15 – ‘It’s more likely we’ll see an alien in a film than you’ll see an asian woman in my industry’ says Andrea Riseborough – star of Battle of the Sexes and The Death of Stalin – who’s wearing black tonight for #TimesUp
17:12 – A BAFTA voter herself, Kristin Scott Thomas loved Phantom Thread, Call Me By Your Name and I, Tonya last year. Possible winners tonight?
17:11 – One way of predicting tonight’s BAFTA winners is to look at the other ceremonies from the past few months. Three Billboards came out on top at the Golden Globes (Drama) and the London Critics Circle Awards last month, with Dunkirk as the British Film of the Year for the latter.
17:03 – A few highlights from last year to warm us all up. The big winners in 2016 were La La Land and I, Daniel Blake for Best Film and Best British Film respectively.
17:00 – And they’re off! ‘The eyes of the world are on London tonight’ says Edith Bowman as she, along with Dermot O’Leary, begin a whole lot of filler from the red carpet.
16:48 – New host tonight: Joanna Lumely! After a decade of Stephen Fry, many people have been asking whether the actress will be any good but we’re confident that she’ll be absolutely fabulous. Lumely is soon to hit cinema screens herself as it goes in Richard Loncraine’s Finding Your Feet – find our review here!
16:40 – For anyone following tonight’s action with a drinking game:
16:32 – A few pointers for tonight:
1) Most (if not all) are following suit with the Golden Globes in wearing black to mark the Time’s Up campaign against industrial sexism and sexual abuse.
2) Unlike the Oscars, there are only 5 Best Film nominations at the BAFTAs – meaning no sign of The Post, Phantom Thread, Lady Bird or Get Out on this list.
3) The Shape of Water is out at the front of the pack with twelve nominations. Darkest Hour and Three Billboards each have nine, with Blade Runner: 2049 and Dunkirk on eight. We’re cheering on Paddington 2 as well in its three categories.
16:25 – Not long to go now! Let us know in the comments who you’re rooting for tonight, the full list of nominees are right here.
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