The 2016 BAFTA Film awards took place in the U.K. last night, at London’s Royal Opera House. Stephen Fry hosted the event, and Eddie Redmayne, Dame Maggie Smith, Julie Walters were also in attendance, with nominations in the Leading Actor, Leading Actress and Supporting Actress categories respectively.
Dame Maggie Smith also got caught on the kiss cam (see below), with none other than Leo DiCaprio! After the initial shock she pulled him in for a lovely hug – probably the most adorable kiss-cam we’ve seen (Stephen Fry called it “a marriage made in heaven”:
Giving a shout-out to Dame Smith in his opening speech, Stephen Fry joked “If she were any more of an institution, she’d have railings around her!” – we can’t help but agree!
Eddie Redmayne also presented the award for Best Supporting Actress (which went to Kate Winslet). Radio Times caught him on the red carpet, where he spoke about the event’s hype:
“There’s still an adrenaline buzz and an excitement that comes. You give your everything and hope people enjoy it so when you get to these things you hope people have seen the films.”
They also reported on the winner’s press conference, in which Julie Walters admitted to losing her (expensive) earring:
“Julie Walters has been backstage in the winners press conference, discussing her role in the Brooklyn TV spin-off and the worrying misplacement of her earring on the way up to the stage. Apparently it’s borrowed and worth more than her house!”
Halfway through the evening marked the time for a tribute to huge contributors to the film industry who have sadly passed away, which included a touching tribute to Alan Rickman, featuring clips from Harry Potter, Robin Hood and Truly Madly Deeply.
The award for Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema went to Angels Costumes, who provided costumes for Harry Potter, along with James Bond, Pirates of the Caribbean and Star Wars.
Domhnall Gleeson presented the Best Film In a Foreign Language award, alongside Star Wars co–star, Carrie Fisher.
Leonardo DiCaprio gave a shout-out to Gary Oldman in his acceptance speech for Best Actor.
Though Maggie Smith and Eddie Redmayne may not have won Best Actress / Actor (losing out to Brie Larson of Room and Leonardo DiCaprio for The Revenant), Brooklyn – starring Julie Walters and Domhnall Gleeson – won the Outstanding British Film Award, whilst Star Wars: The Force Awakens (also featuring Domhnall Gleeson) won Best Visual Effects – congratulations!
Next up, the Oscars (28th February)! Eddie Redmayne is nominated for Best Actor, his film The Danish Girl is up for Costume Design and Production Design, whilst Julie Walters and Domhnall Gleeson’s Brooklyn is nominated for Best Picture and Adapted Screenplay.
Yesterday, Disney released two new teasers for Alice Through the Looking Glass, in the run-up to the film’s release in May.
The beloved Alan Rickman’s voice is heard in the clips, and the late actor will make his final appearance in the Alice In Wonderland sequel as the voice of the Blue Caterpillar. Helena Bonham Carter also appears in the teasers as the Red Queen, and the Cheshire Cat, voiced by Stephen Fry.
‘You’ve been gone too long, Alice. There are matters which might benefit from your attention’, Alan’s voice drawls ominously in the first teaser. ‘Friends cannot be neglected’.
‘You’ve been gone too long, Alice.’ he says, again in the second Hurry Up clip. ‘There are matters which cannot be neglected… Hurry.’
In this second teaser, Helena Bonham Carter’s ‘Hello, Alice.’ is followed by a very Bellatrix-esque evil laugh, and something that sounds fittingly like a yelled ‘I want her head!’.
The sequel takes place three years after the first instalment – a short summary of the plot is as follows:
“[Alice’s] quest to rescue the Mad Hatter from a heartbreaking end against the pressures of a ticking Chronosphere, a device that powers all of time itself”
See Alice Through the Looking Glass in cinemas from May 27th, 2016. A plethora of Potter actors will be making appearances in the film, which you can read about here. Take a look at the ‘First Look’ trailer below!
Alice Through the Looking Glass is set for release on May 27th this year, and will feature many of our favourite actors from Harry Potter!
Alan Rickman is returning as the voice of the Blue Caterpillar, Helena Bonham Carter will once again make a fantastic Red Queen, and Stephen Fry – a fantastic reader of the Harry Potter audiobooks – is bound to impress again as the Cheshire Cat.
All three can be heard or seen (in the case of Helena Bonham Carter) in the trailer below. Timothy Spall will also return, voicing Bayard – the Red Queen’s bloodhound.
Adding to the list of Potter names involved, Toby Jones (Dobby) will feature in the film as the voice of ‘Wilkins’, Frances de la Tour (Madame Olympe Maxime) as ‘Aunt Imogene’ and Rhys Ifans (Xenophilius Lovegood) as the Mad Hatter’s father, Zanik Hightopp.
Ifans speaks about his role, and being on set of the film in an interview (below):
The synopsis of the film (a sequel to the 2010 film Alice in Wonderland) is as follows:
‘Alice Kingsleigh (Wasikowska) has spent the past few years following in her father’s footsteps and sailing the high seas. Upon her return to London, she comes across a magical looking glass and returns to the fantastical realm of Underland and her friends the White Rabbit (Sheen), Absolem (Rickman), the Cheshire Cat (Fry) and the Mad Hatter (Depp), who is not himself. The Hatter has lost his Muchness, so Mirana (Hathaway) sends Alice on a quest to borrow the Chronosphere, a metallic globe inside the chamber of the Grand Clock which powers all time. Returning to the past, she comes across friends – and enemies – at different points in their lives, and embarks on a perilous race to save the Hatter before time runs out.’
A still from the film was released recently and can be seen below, along with the official movie poster.
Stephen Fry (the narrator of the British Harry Potter audio books) will be honored with the Rose d’Or Award for Lifetime Achievement during the Rose d’Or Award Ceremony, December 9.
The award is given to those who have made significant contributions to entertainment and broadcasting. The Rose d’Or website explains their clear choice of Stephen Fry as the 2015 recipient. Fry also expressed his gratitude of being honored with such an award. The Rose d’Or website stated:
“Fry won a Rose d’Or Award in 2006 for “Best Game Show Host” in the BBC series QI.
“Jean Philip De Tender, director of media at the European Broadcasting Union which operates Eurovision, praised Fry’s sustained and successful contribution to the broadcasting industry. “Stephen Fry represents all that is best about entertainment broadcasting in the UK, throughout Europe and across the globe. Not only has he entertained generations and made us laugh, he has also, through his documentary work, shone light on challenging issues such as mental health. It’s only fitting that the industry will show its appreciation for him in London on December 9th with an award that represents the gold standard.”
“The host of this year’s Rose d’Or, the BBC’s Paddy O’Connell, noted Fry’s generosity in helping other industry artists. “It’s a pretty unusual talent on top of his other unusual talents, because he is altruistic”, said O’Connell. “If there’s one thing I’ve learned, the television business does have a habit of eating people up and spitting them out. And Stephen Fry has tried to remember to be good to people and also that the industry is made up of many, many thousands of people who don’t get the credit. For me, I’m pleased that someone who has tried to put in the occasional word for the work of others is being honoured in London.”
“Fry is delighted by the honour. “It does mean a lot,” he said in an interview last week. “Since I can remember watching television, the Golden Rose of Montreux, and occasionally Lucerne, really meant something, and it’s always gone out of its way to recognise this particular kind of television, so if they’ve honoured me, then I feel exactly that – honoured”, Fry said.”
The Rose d’Or press release goes on to detail Stephen Fry’s many achievements. Please read more in the
original article, here.
Thanks to a deal with Pottermore, the Harry Potter Audiobooks will be available on UK, US, Australian and German Audible websites, produced by Pottermore and read by Jim Dale (North American), Felix von Manteuffel (German) and Stephen Fry UK and the rest of the world).
The first three audiobooks in the Harry Potter series cost £17.99 each and the last four cost £32.99 each, and sold on The Pottermore Shop.
According to The Bookseller, Chief content officer of Audible (Andy Gaies) said:
“We are thrilled to offer our customers the opportunity to enjoy the Harry Potter audio catalogue seamlessly through the Audible service. J K Rowling’s celebrated series is firmly entrenched in the literary pantheon, but when the first Harry Potter novel was released in 1997, smartphones were yet to become the ubiquitous listening devices they are today. Now fans of this bellwether series have an effortless and affordable way to enjoy them in audio.”
“The breathtaking performances of Stephen Fry, Jim Dale and Felix von Manteuffel transform Harry Potter’s adventures into immersive and truly transporting new experiences—even for those who have already read the novels. We look forward to bringing more listeners to this richly imagined universe.”
Birthday wishes go out today to Stephen Fry, notable British actor, Tweeter, and narrator of the UK Harry Potter audio books. We hope you'll join us at Leaky in wishing Mr. Fry a happy 54th birthday!
It's been a quiet week in terms of news from the Harry Potter cast. Helena Bonham Carter (Bellatrix Lestrange) spoke to The Guardian newspaper's Weekend supplement about her most recent projects, including her role in Tim Burton's highly anticipated adaptation of "Alice in Wonderland." In the interview, Bonham Carter speaks briefly about the Harry Potter films:
<>We talk about the four Harry Pott...
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