Everything You Need To Know About The 2019 BAFTAs

The Favourite Was The Favourite

 After watching Dermot O’Leary’s dispatches from the red carpet and Kate and Wills politely applauding Cirque du Soleil’s moon landing-themed acrobatic routine, it was down to business. The first award was outstanding British film, which went to Yorgos Lanthimos’ The Favourite. This set the scene for the rest of the night, as the comedic period drama dominated the awards, with seven wins for leading actress, supporting actress, outstanding British film, hair and make-up, costume design, original screenplay and production design.

This reign was followed up by Roma, the Netflix-only black and white film, which came away with four awards, including the coveted best film and best director. It’s the first Spanish-language film to win a BAFTA for best film and is now hotly tipped for Academy Award glory.

Queen Colman Reigned

Taking place on home soil, there was no way Olivia Colman couldn’t win for her standout turn as Queen Anne in The Favourite. Shaky and breathless, her speech drew the most cheers from the audience, especially when she claimed: “We’re going to get so pissed later.” Speaking of her co-stars Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone, Colman said, "As far as I'm concerned, all three of us are the same and should be the leads, and it's weird we can't do that. This is for all three of us. It's got my name on it but we can scratch on some other ones.” Colman was up against Lady Gaga (A Star Is Born), Viola Davis (Widows), hotly tipped Glenn Close (The Wife) and Melissa McCarthy (Can You Ever Forgive Me?).

The Oscar Nods Are In

The BAFTAs always offer crucial Oscar implications: last year, the winners in the acting categories – Frances McDormand (Three Billboard Outside Ebbing, Missouri), Gary Oldman (Darkest Hour), Allison Janney (I, Tonya) and Sam Rockwell (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri) – were exactly the same at the BAFTAs and the Oscars.

Aside from Colman, the big individual winners last night included Rami Malek for his portrayal of Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody (he was up against Christian Bale for Vice, Steve Coogan for Stan & Ollie, Viggo Mortensen for Green Book and Bradley Cooper for A Star Is Born); Rachel Weisz won for The Favourite (beating co-star Emma Stone, First Man’s Claire Foy, Vice’s Amy Adams and Mary Queen of Scots’ Margot Robbie); while Mahershala Ali won for Green Book. Timothée Chalamet (Beautiful Boy), Adam Driver (BlacKkKlansman), Richard E Grant (Can You Ever Forgive Me?) and Sam Rockwell (Vice) all did a sterling job of looking pleased for Ali, who seemed visibly moved as he picked up his gong.

A Star Is Born Lost Out

As Joanna Lumley noted in her introductory speech, Bradley Cooper’s A Star Is Born was up for an impressive six nominations. However it only ended up winning just one, for original music. Given that the film’s soundtrack has become playlist favourite among most people who’ve seen the film, we’re not surprised – although we were a little disappointed that Lady Gaga was over in LA for the Grammys.

Letitia Wright Was Inspiring

Picking up the award for ‘EE Rising Star’ (which has previously been won by the likes of Kristen Stewart, Tom Hardy and James McAvoy), Black Panther star Letitia Wright thanked God, and launched into a heartfelt speech about her battle with depression. "A few years ago, I saw myself in a deep state of depression and I wanted to quit acting,” she said. "The only thing that pretty much pulled me out of that was God, my belief, my faith and my family, and an email from BAFTA saying they wanted me to be a part of the BAFTA Breakthrough Brits, and I was like, 'Let me try again’." Her award was the only one voted for by the public.

The Red Carpet Was Monochrome

Following last year’s Time’s Up campaign – where most actresses wore black on the red carpet – this year saw a bit of divergence, with most opting for a black and white look. Read on for SL’s pick of the best dressed….