The British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTA Awards, is an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to honour the best British and international contributions to film. The ceremonies were initially held at the flagship Odeon Cinema in Leicester Square in London, before being held at the Royal Opera House from 2007 to 2016. From 2017 to 2022, the ceremony was held at the Royal Albert Hall in London before moving to the Royal Festival Hall for the 2023 ceremony. The statue awarded to recipients depicts a theatrical mask.
| British Academy Film Awards | |
|---|---|
| Current: 77th British Academy Film Awards | |
 | |
| Awarded for | The best in film |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| First awarded | 29 May 1949; 75 years ago (1949-05-29) |
| Website | bafta.org |
The first BAFTA Awards ceremony was held in 1949, and the ceremony was first broadcast on the BBC in 1956 with Vivien Leigh as the host. The ceremony was initially held in April or May; since 2001, it typically takes place in February.
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) was founded in 1947 as The British Film Academy, by David Lean, Alexander Korda, Carol Reed, Charles Laughton, Roger Manvell, Laurence Olivier, Emeric Pressburger, Michael Powell, Michael Balcon, and other major figures of the British film industry.[1][2] In 1958, the Academy merged with The Guild of Television Producers and Directors to form The Society of Film and Television, which eventually became The British Academy of Film and Television Arts in 1976.[3]
The stated charitable purpose of BAFTA is to "support, develop and promote the art forms of the moving image, by identifying and rewarding excellence, inspiring practitioners, and benefiting the public". In addition to high-profile awards ceremonies, BAFTA runs a year-round programme of educational events, including film screenings and tribute evenings. BAFTA is supported by a membership of about 6,000 people from the film, television, and video game industries.
The Academy's awards are in the form of a theatrical mask designed by American sculptor Mitzi Cunliffe, in response to a commission from the Guild of Television Producers in 1955.[4]
The ceremony previously took place in April or May, but since 2001 it has been held in February in order to precede the Academy Awards. Most of the awards are open to all nationalities, though there are awards for Outstanding British Film and Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Producer or Director. Only UK films are eligible for the categories of The British Short Film and British Short Animation awards.
During each annual ceremony, BAFTA pauses in memoriam to pay tribute to those in the industry who have died over the past 12 months, showcasing a montage of images accompanied by music.
The Awards ceremony has been historically delayed broadcast on British television the same evening, and across the world. The first broadcast was on the BBC in 1956, with Vivien Leigh (who would present an award to her husband Sir Laurence Olivier) as the host.[5] It has been broadcast in colour since 1970. In the US it is broadcast on BBC America. In 2023, the BAFTA Film Awards included a live telecast for its major award categories during the culmination of the ceremony.[6]
The award ceremony is held in London. From 2000 to 2007, the ceremonies took place at the flagship Odeon Leicester cinema in Leicester Square. Between 2008 and 2016, the ceremonies took place at the Royal Opera House. The 70th Awards in 2017, and subsequent ceremonies up to the 75th Awards in 2022, were held at the Royal Albert Hall.[7][8]
For the 76th British Academy Film Awards in 2023, it was announced that the ceremony would be moved to the Royal Festival Hall as part of a new multi-year deal between BAFTA and the Southbank Centre, bringing the Film Awards in-line with the British Academy Television Awards and British Academy Games Awards, which were already held there.[9]
Until 2012, the mobile telephone network Orange sponsored the awards. Orange's parent company, EE, took over the sponsorship of the event from 2013.[10]
| Superlative | Male Actor | # | Female Actor | # |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Most Nominations | Michael Caine Dustin Hoffman Laurence Olivier |
8 | Judi Dench Meryl Streep |
15 |
| Most Wins | Peter Finch | 5 | Judi Dench | 6 |
Note: Dench and Hoffman's tally of wins and nominations includes those received in the Most Promising Newcomer category.
Nine actors have received dual nominations in the same category in a single year at the BAFTA Film Awards.[12]
| Superlative | Director | |
|---|---|---|
| Most Nominations | Martin Scorsese | 10 |
| Most Wins | Woody Allen | 2 |
| Joel Coen | ||
| Alfonso Cuarón | ||
| Ang Lee | ||
| Louis Malle | ||
| Alan Parker | ||
| Roman Polanski | ||
| John Schlesinger | ||
| Peter Weir | ||
The only director to receive dual nominations in the same year at the BAFTA Film Awards was Steven Soderbergh for Erin Brockovich and Traffic in 2000. Additionally, Sidney Lumet received double citations, although counted as one nomination, for Murder on the Orient Express and Serpico in 1974.
| Event | Date | Host |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | 29 May 1949 | |
| 2nd | 29 May 1949 | |
| 3rd | 29 May 1950 | |
| 4th | 22 February 1951 | |
| 5th | 8 May 1952 | |
| 6th | 5 March 1953 | |
| 7th | 25 March 1954 | |
| 8th | 10 March 1955 | Jack Buchanan Leslie Mitchell Anthony Havelock-Allan |
| 9th | 1 March 1956 | Vivien Leigh |
| 10th | 11 July 1957 | |
| 11th | 6 March 1958 | Ian Dalrymple Leslie Mitchell |
| 12th | 18 March 1959 | |
| 13th | 22 March 1960 | Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh |
| 14th | 6 April 1961 | |
| 15th | 5 April 1962 | |
| 16th | 7 May 1963 | Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh |
| 17th | 3 April 1964 | Anthony Havelock-Allan |
| 18th | 30 March 1965 | Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh |
| 19th | 23 March 1966 | Leslie Caron |
| 20th | 1967 | |
| 21st | 28 March 1968 | |
| 22nd | 26 March 1969 | Lord Mountbatten |
| 23rd | 8 March 1970 | David Frost |
| 24th | 4 March 1971 | Richard Attenborough[13][14] |
| 25th | 23 February 1972 | |
| 26th | 28 February 1973 | Michael Parkinson John Mills[15] |
| 27th | 6 March 1974 | Eamonn Andrews Petula Clark |
| 28th | 26 February 1975 | David Niven[15] |
| 29th | 17 March 1976 | Diana Rigg Eamonn Andrews |
| 30th | 24 March 1977 | Esther Rantzen Roger Moore[16] |
| 31st | 16 March 1978 | Andrew Gardner Susannah York |
| 32nd | 22 March 1979 | Sue Lawley Michael York |
| 33rd | 20 March 1980 | Anna Ford Edward Fox |
| 34th | 22 March 1981 | David Frost |
| 35th | 18 March 1982 | Denis Norden |
| 36th | 20 March 1983 | Frank Bough Selina Scott |
| 37th | 25 March 1984 | Michael Aspel |
| 38th | 5 March 1985 | Terry Wogan |
| 39th | 16 March 1986 | Michael Aspel |
| 40th | 22 March 1987 | Ronnie Corbett Ronnie Barker |
| 41st | 20 March 1988 | Michael Aspel |
| 42nd | 19 March 1989 | David Dimbleby Anna Ford |
| 43rd | 11 March 1990 | Magnus Magnusson Sally Magnusson |
| 44th | 17 March 1991 | Noel Edmonds |
| 45th | 22 March 1992 | Michael Aspel |
| 46th | 21 March 1993 | Griff Rhys Jones |
| 47th | 15 April 1994 | Sheena McDonald |
| 48th | 9 April 1995 | Billy Connolly |
| 49th | 23 April 1996 | Angus Deayton |
| 50th | 29 April 1997 | Lenny Henry |
| 51st | 18 April 1998 | Rory Bremner |
| 52nd | 11 April 1999 | Jonathan Ross |
| 53rd | 9 April 2000 | Jack Docherty |
| 54th | 25 February 2001 | Stephen Fry Mariella Frostrup |
| 55th | 24 February 2002 | Stephen Fry |
| 56th | 23 February 2003 | |
| 57th | 15 February 2004 | |
| 58th | 12 February 2005 | |
| 59th | 19 February 2006 | |
| 60th | 11 February 2007 | Jonathan Ross |
| 61st | 10 February 2008 | |
| 62nd | 8 February 2009 | |
| 63rd | 21 February 2010 | |
| 64th | 13 February 2011 | |
| 65th | 12 February 2012 | Stephen Fry |
| 66th | 10 February 2013 | |
| 67th | 16 February 2014 | |
| 68th | 8 February 2015 | |
| 69th | 14 February 2016 | |
| 70th | 12 February 2017 | |
| 71st | 18 February 2018 | Joanna Lumley |
| 72nd | 10 February 2019 | |
| 73rd | 2 February 2020 | Graham Norton |
| 74th | 10–11 April 2021 | Clara Amfo Dermot O'Leary Edith Bowman |
| 75th | 13 March 2022[17] | Rebel Wilson |
| 76th | 19 February 2023 | Richard E. Grant Alison Hammond |
| 77th | 18 February 2024 | David Tennant[18] |
