THE BRITANNIA AWARDS
The Britannia Awards were started in 1989 by the British Academy of Film and
Television Arts / Los Angeles to celebrate the achievements of those who have
made an outstanding contribution to the entertainment industry in both the
United States and Great Britain.
Throughout the years, the academy has honored some of the most legendary
and respected talent from the worlds of film and television, including
Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Tom Hanks, Tom Cruise, Dame Elizabeth Taylor,
Dustin Hoffman, Anthony Hopkins, Clint Eastwood, Denzel Washington,
Robert de Niro and Helen Mirren.
The Britannias have also saluted some of the newer British talent making
names for themselves throughout the world with British Artist of the Year
honors going to Kate Winslet, Rachel Weisz and Emily Blunt.
And our list of presenters has been on par with our renowned honorees:
Julia Roberts, Halle Berry, Reese Witherspoon, Johnny Depp, Sandra Bullock,
Ben Stiller and Jack Black, among others. Each presenter is selected because
they have a professional and/or personal connection to the honoree making
the evening uniquely heartfelt and often hilarious as they recount their
experiences together.
The John Schlesinger Award for Excellence in Directing is named for Academy
Award-winning director John Schlesinger and has been given to such
legendary directors as Peter Weir, Antony Minghella, Stephen Frears, Martin
Campbell and Danny Boyle.
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The British Academy of Film and Television Arts is a non profit organization dedicated to the moving image. BAFTA Los Angeles has over 1,200 members and over 6,000 members belong to the London based Academy, which also has members in New York, Wales and Scotland. As the leading entertainment non-profit in the UK, BAFTA London produces the British Academy Awards, comparable to the Academy Awards and the British Academy Television Awards, comparable to the Emmys.
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2010 BRITANNIA AWARDS
November 4, 2010
HONORING
Jeff Bridges
Stanley Kubrick Britannia Award for Excellence in Film
(Academy Award winner Crazy Heart, The Big Lebowski, The Last Picture Show, Starman,
The Contender, The Fabulous Baker Boys, Seabiscuit, The Jagged Edge +)
Michael Sheen
Britannia Award for British Artist of the Year
(The Twilight Saga: New Moon; The Queen, Frost/Nixon, The Damned United,
Blood Diamond, Tron: Legacy +)
Christoher Nolan
John Schlesinger Britannia Award for Excellence in Directing
(Inception, The Dark Night, The Prestige, Batman Begins, Memento)
Ridley Scott and Tony Scott
Scott Free Productions
Britannia Award for Worldwide Contribution to Filmed Entertainment
(Robin Hood, American Gangster, Gladiator, Body of Lies, The Taking of Pelham 123, A Good
Year, Thelma & Louise, True Romance ++
Television: The Good Wife, Pillars of he Earth ++)
Betty White
Britannia Charlie Chaplin Award for Excellence in Comedy
(Seven-time Emmy Award winner – The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Golden Girls,
Ally McBeal, Boston Legal, That ‘70s Show +
Films: The Proposal, Bringing Down the House, You Again)
Host
Stephen Fry
2009 BRITANNIA AWARDS
November 5, 2009
HONORING
Robert De Niro
Stanley Kubrick Britannia Award for Excellence in Film
Presented by Claire Danes and Ben Stiller
Colin Firth
BAFTA/LA Humanitarian Award
Presented by Minnie Driver and Tom Ford
Emily Blunt
Britannia Award for British Artist of the Year
Presented by Benicio Del Toro and Amy Adams
Danny Boyle
John Schlesinger Britannia Award for Artistic Excellence in Directing
Presented by Dev Patel and Ewan McGregor
And
Kirk Douglas
Britannia Award for Worldwide Contribution to Filmed Entertainment
Presented by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
Host
Stephen Fry
2009 Honorees: Colin Firth, Emily Blunt, Danny Boyle, Kirk Douglas
and Robert De Niro
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2009 BRITANNIA AWARDS - PRESS
One of the classier early events of award season went off without a hitch last night at BAFTA LA's 2009 Britannia Awards…an annual dinner to give career achievement awards to deserving filmmakers and actors -- and they don't all have to be British. There were truly some Golden Globe worthy moments. …impressive start as Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger made a surprise appearance to present Kirk Douglas with the Britannia Award for Worldwide Contribution in Filmed Entertainment. One of Schwarzenegger's first films, "The Villain," was with Douglas and the legendary actor took him under his wing and attempted to out pump him with his own bicep curls. Douglas received three standing ovations and the 93-year-old icon whose speech is affected by a stroke won the crowd over when he hit the stage. He recalled the last movie he shot in London in 1959 with old buddy Burt Lancaster and Sir Laurence Olivier and how he and Lancaster appeared at a charity event where they did a song and dance number to a classic London song. At that point, Douglas proceeded to sing the song and he didn't embarrass himself. It was a remarkable moment.
Danny Boyle was introduced by his "Slumdog Millionaire" star Dev Patel and early collaborators, Ewan McGregor. McGregor praised Boyle, who was receiving the John Schlesinger Britannia Award for Excellence in Directing by noting "how safe I felt working with him."
Emily Blunt was honored with the Britannia Award for British Artist of the Year. Benecio del Toro presented along with "Sunshine Cleaning" co-star and close friend Amy Adams. Adams recalled how they met on "Charlie Wilson's War" where they bonded after she ogled Blunt's breasts. Perhaps it's an inside joke, but it was nice fodder for host Stephen Fry during the rest of the show.
A more serious moment of the night was the presentation of the BAFTA/LA Humanitarian Award to Colin Firth. Many will be surprised to discover he has a long history as a champion for the underprivileged working with Oxfam, Survival International and Amnesty International. Longtime friend Minnie Driver described Firth's passion for change, and noted that like his acting style, "He's quiet about it. He doesn't draw attention to himself." Firth's final presenter was his "Single Man" director Tom Ford. Firth sheepishly accepted his award declaring he'd really done nothing, but if he could shine a light on the issues of fair trade he hoped it would help.
The night’s final honoree was Robert De Niro with the Stanley Kubrick Britannia Award for Excellence in Film. De Niro's "Stardust" co-star Claire Danes described what appears to be a true friendship with her fellow New Yorker. Ben Stiller was his next presenter and stole the show and that's hard to do when the Governator has magically appeared to honor Kirk "freakin'" Douglas. When he kills. He kills. He noted he was overwhelmed by all the "prestigiousness" in the room. Stiller mocked himself in regards to his own resume compared to his "Meet the Parents" and upcoming "Little Fockers" co-star. During one night shoot, De Niro stunned Stiller by saying, "Yeah, this reminds me of shooting 'Mean Streets' at night." Stiller admits all he could nervously come up with in reply was, "Yeah, this reminds me of shooting 'Mystery Men'" Oh, and who is dying at his seat of laughter? De Niro. There's also the fact De Niro has two Academy Awards and Stiller has a collection of Teen Choice, Kid's Choice and MTV Movie Awards, "Maybe this Kubrick Award will even things up, huh Bobby?" Stiller said that after ten years he has such a close relationship with De Niro that he's been able to "pull his ear, grab his cheek, kiss him in drag in a wedding dress and shoot a needle in his penis. And we haven't even started shooting yet."
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Left: 2007: Julia Roberts presents Denzel Washington with the Stanley Kubrick Award
Right: 2007: British Artist of the Year Honoree Kate Winslett accepting her award with presenters Reese
Witherspoon & Kathy Bates and host Michael Sheen
Below: 2006: Stanley Kubrick Award honoree Clint Eastwood with guest Forrest Whitaker
Above: 2008 Humanitarian Award Honoree Don Cheadle with presenters Eddie Izzard and Ben Affleck.
Cheadle was honored for his work with Darfur.
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