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Cinema stars attend Bafta awards Mirren adds Bafta to awards haul
(about 2 hours later)
Stars have arrived for the Orange Baftas ceremony in London. Dame Helen Mirren has added the best actress Bafta to her long list of awards for The Queen, which was also named best film at the London ceremony.
Daniel Craig, a best actor nominee for Casino Royale, said: "Win or lose, it's going to be a good night." The Last King of Scotland won three honours, including best British film and best actor for Forest Whitaker's portrayal of Ugandan dictator Idi Amin.
The Queen leads the field with 10 nominations, including for best film, Dame Helen Mirren for best actress and Stephen Frears for directing. British film-maker Paul Greengrass was named best director for United 93.
Babel, The Last King of Scotland, The Departed and Little Miss Sunshine are also vying for best film, at one of the key events in the global film calendar. Low-budget comedy Little Miss Sunshine took awards for original screenplay and Alan Arkin's supporting performance.
The ceremony is being held at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden. Dame Helen's numerous awards for The Queen include the best actress Golden Globe and have made her favourite to win the Oscar in two weeks' time.
Dame Helen is favourite for the best actress prize, after numerous earlier honours for her performance as Queen Elizabeth II in the film set during the days after Princess Diana's death. The film, in which she plays Queen Elizabeth II during the days after Princess Diana's death, led the Baftas field with 10 nominations.
MAIN BAFTA NOMINEES The Queen - 10Casino Royale (above) - 9Pan's Labyrinth - 8Babel - 7The Departed - 6Little Miss Sunshine - 6United 93 - 6 class="" href="/1/hi/entertainment/6254717.stm">Full list of nominees "I read a lot about [the Queen] as a young girl and really, in a way, although I'm playing her at the age of 70... I play the young girl in her," said the actress on her way into the event. "I read a lot about [the Queen] as a young girl and really, in a way, although I'm playing her at the age of 70... I play the young girl in her," said the actress on her way into the event at the Royal Opera House.
Dame Judi Dench, also nominated in the category for Notes on a Scandal, said: "There's no chance of me winning this evening - I'm a betting woman so I'll put money on Helen." MAIN BAFTA NOMINEES The Queen - 10Casino Royale (above) - 9Pan's Labyrinth - 8Babel - 7The Departed - 6Little Miss Sunshine - 6United 93 - 6 class="" href="/1/hi/entertainment/6254717.stm">Full list of winners Dame Judi Dench, nominated in the same category for Notes on a Scandal, had said: "There's no chance of me winning this evening - I'm a betting woman so I'll put money on Helen."
The other nominees are Penelope Cruz, Meryl Streep and Kate Winslet. The latest James Bond film, Casino Royale, returned just one award from nine nominations - for best sound.
This year sees several movies picking up five or more nominations - including low-budget independent film Little Miss Sunshine and comedy The Devil Wears Prada. Daniel Craig, the sixth actor to play 007 in an official Bond film, had been nominated for the best actor Bafta.
BBC film critic Mark Kermode said it was "a very open field". "Win or lose, it's going to be a good night," he said ahead of the event.
The 10-year-old star of Little Miss Sunshine, Abigail Breslin, said: "I am so excited to be here - I have never been to London before, so I went to see Westminster Abbey, and the Tower of London and Big Ben." Film critic Mark Kermode said that securing a nomination in the role had been a significant achievement.
Breslin and her co-star Toni Colette are both nominated in the best supporting actress category. "It is one of those roles that is generally thought of as not an actorly pursuit," he said.
Colette said about the film: "It was an amazing group of very relaxed, talented folk - it was fantastic."
Best actor battle
Craig is one of three British stars among the best actor nominees, alongside Richard Griffiths for The History Boys and Peter O'Toole for Venus.
Other nominated actors are Leonardo DiCaprio for the mob drama The Departed and Forest Whitaker for his portrayal of Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in The Last King of Scotland.
As well as nine nominations in the main awards, Casino Royale gets an extra nod for Bond girl Eva Green in the rising star category.
"It's great it's done as well as it has," said Kermode of the Bond blockbuster.
Forest Whitaker is nominated for his portrayal of dictator Idi Amin Whitaker on Amin role "You just don't get nominated for best actor for playing Bond," he added. "It is one of those roles that is generally thought of as not an actorly pursuit.
"What Daniel Craig has done is demonstrate that you can play that role in a really thespian manner.""What Daniel Craig has done is demonstrate that you can play that role in a really thespian manner."
Kermode was also pleased to see Bafta recognise Pan's Labyrinth, which he called his favourite film of last year. French actress Eva Green, who played love interest Vesper Lynd in Casino Royale, won the Orange rising star award voted for by the British public.
"Eight nominations for a foreign language, fantasy film that struggles to find its place in the market - it's fantastic." The Spanish-language dark fairytale Pan's Labyrinth won three Baftas including the award for best foreign language film.
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts is celebrating its 60th anniversary, after handing out its first prize for achievement in film in 1947. Dame Helen's regal performance has made her Oscar favouriteFormer US reality TV show contestant Jennifer Hudson added the best supporting actress prize to her considerable collection for her performance in the musical Dreamgirls.
Peter Morgan and Jeremy Brock's script for The Last King of Scotland won the best adapted screenplay honour.
The award for special achievement by a British director in their first feature film went to Andrea Arnold for the Glasgow-set drama Red Road.
The best animated feature film Bafta was awarded to Happy Feet.
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts was celebrating its 60th anniversary, after handing out its first prize for achievement in film in 1947.
The awards have grown in prominence since 2001, when the ceremony was rescheduled to take place before the Oscars.The awards have grown in prominence since 2001, when the ceremony was rescheduled to take place before the Oscars.
BBC presenter Jonathan Ross hosts the event for the first time, after a six-year stint by the actor and writer Stephen Fry. BBC presenter Jonathan Ross hosted the event for the first time, after a six-year stint by the actor and writer Stephen Fry.
Last year, Western romance Brokeback Mountain emerged as the big winner, taking home four awards including best film and best director for Ang Lee.