BAFTA Film Awards 2023: All the best bits from the star-studded ceremony – and a mix-up you won’t have seen on TV

Published

3 years ago

February 20, 2023

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It’s a night to celebrate the best films, actors and filmmakers of the past year, and 2023’s BAFTA Film Awards gave us a re-vamped ceremony, not one but two-hosts, and a brand-new venue.

German anti-war film All Quiet On The Western Front stole the show – bagging half of its 14 awards – and the best actor winner proved a surprise with Elvis’s Austin Butler taking the gong rather than The Banshees Of Inisherin’s Colin Farrell as expected.

With movie stars aplenty, more fashion than you can shake a stick at and some of the film world’s biggest movers and shakers all in one place, here are some of the other big talking points of the BAFTA Film Awards.

Batmobiles, slaps and sausage fingers

There were plenty of silly moments throughout the night, including a skit kicking off the show featuring host Richard E Grant having a laugh with Hollywood comedy legend Steve Martin on Zoom, before jumping into a Batmobile and zooming through the streets of London to host the awards in the new venue, Elizabeth Hall on London’s Southbank.

Grant then continued his comedy routine on stage, donning a long, white cape and labelling himself a “fashion icon” to dish out a joke revolving around “late trains”, before a gag about last year’s Oscars – telling the audience: “Nobody on my watch gets slapped tonight,” before slapping himself, twice (a reference to Will Smith’s infamous slapping of Chris Rock at last year’s Oscars).

Grant also wore two watches to the ceremony, in a nod to the complicated timings of the show tonight – the show was broadcast on the BBC from 7pm but with a delay, however the live event caught up with the broadcast by the end (as some bits were cut) and the final four awards went out live.

Last year’s best supporting actor winner, Troy Kotsur, also dished out some laughs, pulling on a massive, bendy glove, and giving a special wave to best supporting actress nominee Jamie Lee Curtis – in the style of Everything, Everywhere All At Once.

A bit you won’t have seen on the TV…

While it may have been a sparkling evening, there was a little hiccup in the night’s proceedings – and let’s face it, everyone loves a mistake.

As Oscar-winner Kotsur announced the second prize of the night – best supporting actress – via sign language, a miscommunication on the part of the translator resulted in Carrey Mulligan’s name wrongly being called for her performance in She Said.

The announcer quickly corrected the call and announced The Banshees Of Inisherin star Kerry Condon as the winner, who went on to accept her award. It was explained to the press at the event, that while Kotsur and the British Sign Language (BSL) translator had got it right, the American Sign Language (ASL) translator had made the slip up.

Event host Richard E Grant joked later that he had a defibrillator for Mulligan.

With a Carrey and a Kerry in the same category, it’s easy to see how a slip could happen in the heat of the moment. And we can all remember the Oscar mix up when La La Land was wrongly announced as best picture winner instead of Moonlight.. Thanks to the magic of a TV delay and editing, this mistake did not make it to the TV cut.

A political flavour to the night

The first award of the night, best adapted screenplay, also went to All Quiet On The Western Front (a trend that continued through the night), with director Edward Berger paying tribute to those fighting in Ukraine.

Cinematographer James Friend said the film showed how a generation of young German men were “poisoned by right-wing nationalistic propaganda” and he stressed that the film’s message remains “relevant” nearly a century on.

Screenwriter Ian Stokell said the project had been “worth the wait” because the film is anti-war.

Navalny – a film which follows Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny and his close-knit team as they navigate the months after his poisoning – won best documentary.

Sky News spoke to Navalny’s daighter Dasha Navalny on the red carpet, saying: “It’s a weird feeling being here while he is in prison”.

She said her father is aware of the programme’s BAFTA and Oscar nominations, adding that “he told us to tell him all about it in the letters we were allowed to send”.

On stage, the filmmakers say the documentary was made under “constant surveillance”.

Actress Odessa Rae paid tribute to investigative journalist Christo Grozev who could not be at the ceremony due to “a public security risk”.

“He gave up everything to tell this story, and other stories that need to be told,” Rae said.

Grozev subsequently Tweeted: “Wow.”

Cate Blanchett, Michelle Yeoh and Jamie Lee Curtis were among the stars wearing a blue ribbon to show their solidarity and support for refugees and displaced people around the world, including those affected by the Russian invasion of Ukraine and other events such as the Turkey-Syria earthquake over the past year.

Colin Farrell, Daryl McCormack, Paul Mescal, Bill Nighy and Angela Bassett all showed their support and pinned on a blue ribbon too.

A spokesperson for the organisation said: “The wearing of the blue #WithRefugees ribbon on the red carpet sends a powerful visual message that everyone has the right to seek safety, whoever, wherever, whenever.”

Is diversity an issue once again?

Representation is always a big talking point come awards season, following previous controversies around diversity at both the BAFTAs and the Oscars.

This year, while the Oscars was criticised for failing to nominate any black women in the best actress category, the BAFTAs made changes to voting which ensured more diversity in their nominations across the board.

However, the winners of all four performing categories were white actors, which is likely to raise further questions as to whether enough is being done to improve the diversity and inclusion of our biggest awards shows.

Live music amid the luvvies

Ariana DeBose gave the first performance of the night, singing Sisters with backing performers.

In a contemporary rap, inspired by the 2023 BAFTA nominees, she referenced nominated actresses like Michelle Yeoh, Viola Davis and Jamie Lee Curtis by mentioning their names in her performance.

While she wore a bright pink jumpsuit for her performance, the dress that DeBose wore on the red carpet – a bejewelled nude outfit by Fendi – had plenty of sparkles but left little to the imagination as it was almost entirely sheer, except for a skin-coloured bodysuit underneath.

DeBose later told Hammond she often never watches her performances back, as she gets “a bit judgy [about herself],” but was thrilled “the Brits loved it”.

Rapper Little Simz performed near the end of the show, along with special guest singer-songwriter Joan Armatrading – who showed off her impressive guitar skills live on stage – accompanying Simz in Heart On Fire.

Speaking after the performance, Simz said: “This is my first time [at the BAFTAs] and with the legendary Joan Armatrading… We have great chemistry on stage… When I was 17, I wrote a song called Joan Armatrading so it’s full circle.”

Singer Dylan performed Nothing Lasts Forever ahead of the show’s final four prizes, which helped bridge the gap between the pre-recorded majority of the show, and the final big gongs going out live – the rising star award, best actor and actress and best film.

An emotional farewell

The In Memoriam section of the night is always emotional, but this year possibly even more than most with host Richard E Grant becoming visibly tearful as he introduced the section commemorating all the stars and filmmakers who died in the last 12 months.

Stars including Angela Lansbury, Burt Bacharach, Anne Heche, William Hurt, Leslie Phillips, Olivia Newton-John and Robbie Coltrane were all included in the segment.

Grant lost his wife Joan Washington, a dialect coach, in 2021.

Other stars in the audience who also looked visibly moved included Dame Emma Thompson, Martin Freeman, Naomi Ackie and the Prince and Princess of Wales.

It’s all about the clothes

For the first time, a costume designer – Sandy Powell – took home the prestigious BAFTA fellowship award.

She dedicated her award to the first teacher who taught her how to sew and “to my mum, and mother’s everywhere”.

She did it all in a show-stopping black and white tailored ensemble, proving her win was well and truly well-deserved.

Entertainment

Saturday Night Live announces creative team ahead of UK launch

Published

3 hours ago

November 13, 2025

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Saturday Night Live announces creative team ahead of UK launch

Saturday Night Live UK has announced its top creative team ahead of the series launching next year.

An American pop culture institution, SNL launched the careers of stars including Bill Murray, Tina Fey, Eddie Murphy, Kristen Wiig and Will Ferrell – and now a “new generation” of British comedians is set to be cast in the first UK spin-off on Sky.

While the show’s stars are yet to be revealed, details of the creative team behind it have now been announced.

Two-time Emmy winner James Longman will serve as lead producer, BAFTA winner and live broadcast specialist Liz Clare will direct the series, while writer, comedian and composer Daran Jonno Johnson takes on the role of head writer.

Longman’s credits include The Late Late Show With James Corden, for which he produced famous sketches with stars and notable figures including Sir Paul McCartney, Oprah Winfrey, Tom Cruise and then president Joe Biden.

He also worked on the Friends reunion special in 2021 and hit UK shows such as Never Mind The Buzzcocks, Alan Carr: Chatty Man, The F Word and The Friday Night Project.

Clare’s directing credits include An Audience With Adele, The Brits and MTV awards ceremonies, Glastonbury, the BAFTAs and shows such as The Voice UK and Britain’s Got Talent, while Johnson, who is part of the acclaimed sketch group SHEEPS, has written for shows including Wedding Season for Disney+, Siblings for the BBC and Rose d’Or winner Parlement for France.TV.

Saturday Night Live UK marks the first time the US producers have adapted the show, which celebrated 50 years on air earlier this year, for a British audience.

Channel 4 ran several series of a similar programme on Saturday and Friday nights in the 1980s, featuring comedians like Ben Elton and Harry Enfield, but it was domestically produced.

‘A lot of big US comedy is stolen from the UK’

Comedian Pete Davidson, another SNL star, told Sky News he’s excited about the UK version – and that it is about time the UK is able to take from US comedy, rather than the other way round.

Speaking in the summer during promotion for The Pickup, Davidson said: “I think it’s a smart idea to have SNL over there because… not that it’s a different brand of comedy, but it is a little bit.

“A lot of the biggest stuff that’s in the States is stuff that we stole from you guys, like The Office or literally anything Ricky Gervais does… there’s just tonnes of great comedy over there. Jimmy Carr is a great stand-up.”

Also highlighting Jack Whitehall, he continued: “I think anything that’s great over there, we just kind of steal… and it doesn’t seem like the other way around. This is the first time I’ve ever heard anything American going to the UK, so I think it’s great.”

Read more from Sky News entertainment:
Dua Lipa backs ticket resale cap
Sam Fender donates Mercury Prize cash

Producers say the UK series will follow the same format as the original, featuring “a new generation of comedy players in the core cast, alongside guest hosts and musical performances”.

The UK show will be overseen by US producer Lorne Michaels. Along with his production company Broadway Video, which has made The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and 30 Rock, the show will be led by UK production team Universal Television Alternative Studio.

Saturday Night Live UK will be broadcast on Sky Max and streaming service NOW in 2026.

Entertainment

Dua Lipa and Coldplay call on government to keep its promise on ticket resales

Published

12 hours ago

November 13, 2025

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Dua Lipa and Coldplay call on government to keep its promise on ticket resales

Some of the biggest names in music – including Coldplay, Dua Lipa and Radiohead – have urged the government to honour a pledge to cap ticket resale prices and shutout touts.

They have joined artists including The Cure’s Robert Smith, New Order, Mark Knopfler, Iron Maiden, PJ Harvey and this year’s Mercury Prize winner Sam Fender to sign a statement calling for a cap to “restore faith in the ticketing system” and “help democratise public access to the arts”.

Other signatories include the watchdog Which?, FanFair Alliance, O2, the Football Supporters’ Association and organisations representing the music and theatre industries, venues, managers, and ticket retailers.

In the statement, the coalition says new protections are needed to “help fix elements of the extortionate and pernicious secondary ticketing market that serve the interests of touts, whose exploitative practices are preventing genuine fans from accessing the music, theatre, and sports they love”.

Labour had promised in its manifesto to put a stop to concert-goers being scammed or priced out of events by touts using bots to buy tickets in bulk the moment they go on sale, which they can then sell on for huge mark-ups on secondary ticketing websites.

In government, the party again made that promise – but more than a year after it vowed action, and seven months since its consultation on the issue closed, there has been no clear indication of when new laws will be introduced.

The campaign comes as a new investigation from Which? found prolific sellers in locations including Brazil, Dubai, Singapore, Spain, and the US hoovering up tickets for popular events in the UK before relisting them at vastly inflated prices on StubHub and Viagogo.

How much?!

Which? found Oasis tickets for Wembley shows listed for £3,498.85 on StubHub and £4,442 on Viagogo.

A seat for the Minnesota Vikings vs Cleveland Browns NFL clash at Tottenham Hotspur was listed for £3,568.39 on StubHub, while a Coldplay ticket, also for Wembley, was £814.52 on StubHub.

And a ticket for the All Points East festival in London’s Victoria Park, headlined by Raye, for £114,666 on Viagogo.

The watchdog found it was often difficult for buyers to establish the seller’s identity or to contact them – despite the Competition and Markets Authority securing a court order in 2018 requiring Viagogo to outline the identity of traders.

And there’s more…

Which? also found evidence of speculative selling – when tickets are listed on secondary sites even though the seller has not bought them yet.

Tickets for a Busted vs McFly show in Glasgow, which were available through Ticketmaster – the original seller – were simultaneously being listed on StubHub and Viagogo at double the price.

Government to set out plans ‘shortly’

Which? consumer law expert Lisa Webb urged Prime Minster Sir Keir Starmer to commit to legislation.

A government spokeswoman said it is “fully committed to clamping down on touts,” had listened to comments in response to the consultation earlier this year, and would set out its plans “shortly”.

Entertainment

Police take no further action over Bob Vylan’s London performance

Published

1 day ago

November 12, 2025

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Police take no further action over Bob Vylan's London performance

Police will take no further action over alleged chants at a Bob Vylan concert in London.

Met Police had launched an investigation after allegations the singer, real name Pascal Robinson-Foster, was heard in footage saying “death to the IDF (Israel Defence League)”.

The footage was filmed at a performance supporting Iggy Pop, 78, at Alexandra Palace in May.

In a video, Mr Robinson-Foster is also alleged to have said: “Death to every single IDF soldier out there as an agent of terror for Israel.”

But the Met Police confirmed they are closing the investigation following advice from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).

‘No further action will be taken’

A spokesperson for the force said: “On Wednesday 2 July, officers became aware of footage that appeared to have been filmed at Alexandra Palace in London on 28 May. An investigation was launched into the language used in the footage.

“Early investigative advice was sought from the Crown Prosecution Service who considered a number of potential offences but determined that, based on the information and material available, there would likely be insufficient evidence to take the case forward.

“As a result, officers have decided that no further action will be taken. We recognise the concerns that the footage caused, particularly among many in London’s Jewish communities.

“It emerged during a period where we have seen a concerning rise in antisemitic hate crime.

“We continue to work closely with community representatives to understand those concerns, to ensure the safety and security of Jewish Londoners and to provide reassurance moving forward.”

It followed footage of Mr Robinson-Foster allegedly leading a chant of “death, death to the IDF” during a BBC live-streamed performance at Glastonbury Festival, in June earlier this year, leading to an investigation from Avon and Somerset Police.

A man, in his 30s, understood to be Mr Robinson-Foster, had voluntarily attended an interview on Monday in relation to the band’s Glastonbury performance, the force said.

Police added the individual was not arrested but an investigation is ongoing.

After the Glastonbury appearance, the group were dropped from a number of festivals.