The UK enjoyed one of its best nights at the Bafta film awards for many years, despite having no success in the high-profile acting and directing categories.
Veteran playwright and author Peter Straughan was perhaps the biggest name among the British winners, picking up best adapted screenplay for the tense religious drama Conclave.
His win comes 13 years after he triumphed in the same category for his adaptation of John Le Carre’s spy thriller Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy.
Conclave delivered the UK three further Baftas on Sunday night: best film; outstanding British film; and best editing, which went to first-time winner Nick Emerson.
Elsewhere, Nathan Crowley and Lee Sandales won best production design for their dazzling visual work on the musical fantasy Wicked.
Bafta success for Crowley has been a long time coming: first nominated in 2006, he has clocked up a total of six nominations across his career, missing out each time until now.
His collaborator on Wicked, Sandales, is also a multiple Bafta nominee and now a two-times winner, having first taken home the award in 2020 for the film 1917.
Paul Lambert was among the team awarded the Bafta for best visual effects, for his work on the science fiction blockbuster Dune: Part Two.
It is his third Bafta victory in this category, following wins in 2018 for Blade Runner 2049 and in 2022 for the first part of Dune.
Dune also delivered UK success in the category of best sound, the winning team including British mixer and engineer Gareth John – his first ever Bafta.
Epic period drama The Brutalist was responsible for two more first-time British winners: Daniel Blumberg, who picked up best original score; and Lol Crawley, who won best cinematography.
The long-awaited return of the UK’s own Wallace & Gromit, in the typically madcap adventure Vengeance Most Fowl, picked up two Baftas: one for best animated film – the first ever success for the UK in this category – and one for the new award of best children’s and family film.
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story, a joint US-UK co-production, took the prize for best documentary.
While the UK failed to win any of the four main acting categories – the third year in a row this has happened – the rising star award went to British actor David Jonsson, best known on the big screen for his role in Alien: Romulus, as well as appearing in the TV drama Industry.
In the UK-only categories, Rich Peppiatt picked up the award for outstanding debut by a British writer, director or producer, for his film Kneecap, which charts the rise of a Belfast-based hip-hop trio; Rock, Paper, Scissors took the prize for best British short film; Wander To Wonder was named best British short animation; and the charity MediCinema won the award for outstanding British contribution to cinema.
Bafta’s judges decided to hand all four of the main acting prizes, as well as best director, to artists from the United States.
It is the first time all five of these awards have been won by the US since 1973.
Overall there were UK wins in 17 Bafta categories.
This is the highest number in a single year so far this century, although some categories have not been awarded at every ceremony, such as outstanding debut and outstanding British contribution, while the rising star and animated film awards were introduced only in 2006 and 2007 respectively.
