Stars, royalty arrive for British film's big night

Hollywood royalty turned out in force on Sunday for the Baftas, Britain's top film accolades, a ceremony that will be watched for what light it sheds on the outcome of Oscars in two weeks' time.                                           

Quentin Tarantino, up for best director for World War Two caper "Inglourious Basterds", walked the red carpet where hundreds of fans waited for autographs, and was followed by "Precious" actress and rising star Gabourey Sidibe.                                           
 

"I'm really excited because this isn't even my country," she said of her best actress nomination.                                           

Sidibe is up against Carey Mulligan, Saoirse Ronan, Meryl Streep and Audrey Tautou in the category.                                           

"Twilight" co-stars Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson arrived separately, and both stopped to sign autographs before the ceremony at London's Royal Opera House.                                           

Designer-turned-director Tom Ford arrived to see if Colin Firth, lead actor in his debut feature "A Single Man", could make it a British acting win.                                           

Firth is nominated with Jeff Bridges, George Clooney, Jeremy Renner and Andy Serkis for best actor.                                           

Prince William, second in line to the British throne, shook hands with the public and had his picture taken with some, while Kate Winslet and producer Harvey Weinstein also attended.                                           

Mirroring the race for the Oscars, 3-D adventure "Avatar" and Iraq war drama "The Hurt Locker" led the field heading into the glitzy ceremony with eight nominations apiece.                                           

There is a distinctly British flavour with the coming-of-age drama "An Education", which is also short-listed for eight prizes.                                           

Veteran British actress Vanessa Redgrave was at the ceremony to receive an Academy Fellowship in honour of a career spanning six decades.                                           

The fellowship is Baftas’ highest accolade, and Charlie Chaplin, Alfred Hitchcock, Steven Spielberg, Sean Connery, Elizabeth Taylor and Julie Christie are among the previous recipients.                                           

The Baftas have positioned themselves in the awards season to have more relevance to the outcome of the Oscars, the highest film awards globally which are held this year on March 7.                                           

But its track record is patchy, with only four of the last 10 best film awards at the Baftas matching the Academy Awards' choice of best picture.