Last night, the annual BAFTA awards were held in London. The BAFTAs are like the English Oscars, and the bigger awards generally go to British stars or behind-the-camera talent, although the occasional American or other nationality has won, of course. Before I talk about the actual awards given and received, two pop-culture things of note happened last night – one, that Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart were at the same awards show, but didn’t “go” together. They posed separately on the red carpet, and Kristen took home the “Rising Star” BAFTA and posed in the press room alone. The second was pretty interesting too – Prince William showed up to present one of the awards, and he was pretty much the biggest star there. Kate Middleton did not attend.

As for the actual awards, it looks like Colin Firth (A Single Man) and Carey Mulligan (An Education) took home the Lead acting awards. Kathryn Bigelow took home Best Director honors for The Hurt Locker (the award was presented by Clive “Oh My God You Look So F-cking Hot” Owen) and that film won best picture. Mo’Nique and Christoph Waltz took Best Supporting honors. A full list of BAFTA winners is here, and here’s more from People:

It was a night to remember for Twi-hards and royal fans at the Orange British Academy Awards in London, as Prince William was announced BAFTA’s new President and Kristen Stewart won the “Orange Rising Star” award with Robert Pattinson in the audience.

While Twilight’s hot couple arrived separately on the red carpet, both to loud cheers, it was Prince William signing autographs that caused the biggest frenzy on the way in to the star-studded ceremony at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden.

The young royal attended solo – minus girlfriend Kate Middleton – opened the ceremony with a heartfelt speech on his new BAFTA appointment. “This is such a privilege for me,” he said adding, “I have to say, there is nothing better than going to see a really good film so this is a great personal thrill for me.”

Prince William follows in the footsteps of his grandfather in accepting the high-profile arts role.

Later in the evening, Colin Firth scooped the Leading Actor award for his role in A Single Man and thanked his friend and director, Tom Ford, for believing in him. “An encounter with Tom Ford is to come away feeling resuscitated, a little more worldly, better groomed, more fragrant and more nominated than one has ever been before.”

Carey Mulligan won the Leading Actress award for An Education. In a stunning floral dress, the Brit-born actress tearfully told reporters that the BAFTA recognition meant “everything to me,” and that it would be kept in the UK, “probably at my parents house, in their living room.”

The war drama The Hurt Locker picked up the most awards, taking home six in total, including Best Film.

The evening ended with Prince William and Uma Thurman presenting the Academy Fellowship award to Vanessa Redgrave who gave an emotional speech and received a standing ovation from her peers and her family including her daughter, Joely Richardson.

[From People Magazine]

I’m very happy that Colin Firth won something for A Single Man. He’s been up for every major award, but has yet to win anything because it’s The Year of Jeff Bridges. No disrespect at all to Jeff whatsoever, but I think Colin is wonderful and deserving too. I’m also surprised that The Hurt Locker won so big at the BAFTAs – I thought James Cameron was liked in England, but maybe not. Oh, and I can’t believe Prince William presented something to Vanessa Redgrave and she managed not to say something political about the royal family. Shocking!

BAFTA red carpet and press room photos from February 21, 2010, courtesy of WENN and Getty/PicApp.

I’m still glowing that so many of my imaginary boyfriends got nominated for Oscars this morning! One of my favorites was Colin Firth’s nomination for Lead Actor, for his critically-acclaimed work in A Single Man, directed by first-time director Tom Ford. Can you believe this is Colin’s first Oscar nomination? He’s been in two Best Picture Oscar winners (The English Patient and Shakespeare In Love), but Colin has never gotten recognized for the big one before.

Before the nominations were announced, Colin admitted to a British publication that he was trying not to get “swept away” saying: “God knows…. I’m trying not to think about it. You don’t know how much you’ve vested in something until you have a disappointment. Years ago when I had a Bafta nomination in my mid twenties I was very blase and I didn’t go because I was filming at the time. I lost. I thought I was cool about it but I was absolutely shattered. I was astonished I was so shattered. I was very surprised. I’m getting on a bit and I’ve been up and down a few times. I’m too old to get swept away in it completely and I’ve had little enough experience of it to feel too jaded.” Once Colin heard that he got nominated, he told People Magazine: “I thought I was managing my expectations, but on hearing the news I discovered new and unfamiliar vocal tones. Perhaps I should do another musical.”

Meanwhile, Colin is still promoting the hell out of A Single Man. He and his wife Livia (in these photos) just attended the UK premiere of the film, and Colin is currently doing a round of interviews. Colin recently spoke out about the double standard that still exists for gay actors, and Colin humbly admitted to feeling “complicit” in the double standard:

The actor, who stars as George Falconer, a homosexual college professor, in A Single Man, said at the film’s UK premiere in central London that there are still ”invisible boundaries” that homosexual actors struggle to cross.

He said: ”There might be risks for a gay actor coming out. The politics of that are quite complex, it seems to me. If you’re known as a straight guy, playing a gay role, you get rewarded for that. If you’re a gay man and you want to play a straight role, you don’t get cast – and if a gay man wants to play a gay role now, you don’t get cast.”

”I think it needs to be addressed and I feel complicit in the problem. I don’t mean to be. I think we should all be allowed to play whoever – but I think there are still some invisible boundaries which are still uncrossable.”

Nicholas Hoult, the young British actor who has been nominated for the Bafta Rising Star Award, said he did not feel he was taking a risk by playing the role of student Kenny, who takes an interest in Firth’s character in the directorial debut of Tom Ford, a fashion designer.

”There was no fear [in taking the role],” said the 20-year-old. ”It was a very interesting character and when you get the chance to work with Colin and Tom, you’d be stupid to turn it down because you’re scared of playing a character who’s potentially gay.”

Ford joked that he had a ”crush” on Firth and Hoult and admired their acting abilities, tipping them both for awards success – with Firth expected to get an Oscar nod when the nominations are announced tomorrow.

He said: ”I have a crush on Nicholas but I have a crush on every actor in the film … I think as a director you have to have crushes on the people that you cast in your movie.”

[From The Telegraph]

Don’t you love him? I don’t agree with him 100%, but I know he has a significant point. However, Colin said it the right way, I think. Unlike someone like Rupert Everett, who just comes across like he’s whining and being a big, nasty, vicious prick. Colin comes across like he’s trying to stand up for his gay actor buddies. And you know he probably has a lot of gay friends. And they probably swoon over him, just like me!

Colin and his wife Livia at the London premiere of ‘A Single Man’ on February 1, 2010. Credit: WENN.

I’ve been reading a lot about fashion designer-turned-writer/director Tom Ford’s debut film, A Single Man, and I‘m intrigued. It looks really good, and it’s been getting overwhelmingly positive reviews. The film is a day-in-the-life story of a British, gay professor (played by Colin Firth) living in California in the 1960s. I think the gist of it is that Firth’s character’s lover recently died, and Colin Firth’s character is considering suicide. The film also stars Julianne Moore, Matthew Goode, Lee Pace and Nicholas Hoult. Many critics already have Colin Firth, Julianne Moore and Tom Ford down for Oscar nominations – so, of course, the backlash has got to start now too, right?

The backlash may have started when a new trailer for A Single Man was released. In the older trailer (released a few months ago), there were several vaguely blink-and-you’ll-miss-them homoerotic shots of Colin Firth and Matthew Goode kissing, and of Colin Firth and Nicholas Hoult frolicking in the ocean. Here’s the original:

The Weinstein Company (who produced the film) just released a new trailer, this time taking out the man-on-man kiss (and yet, leaving in the kiss between Julianne Moore and Colin Firth). As Indie Wire points out in a piece de-crying the “de-gaying” of the trailers, “the film’s gay content” is left out and “the new trailer essentially is altered to suggest the core of the film is the relationship between Colin Firth and Julianne Moore’s characters, even removing the names of both Matthew Goode and Nicholas Hoult (who play Firth’s love interests) from the end of the trailer.” Here’s the new version:

The second trailer has much less impact, in my opinion, especially compared to the more visceral reaction of “I want that!” when I saw the first one.

At the end of the day, it might simply be a business decision, and one that the producers and Tom Ford (who is openly gay) feel they have to give in to. In Ford’s profile in W Magazine, both Harvey Weinstein and Tom Ford take pains to “de-gay” the story too:

Like others involved in the project, [Harvey] Weinstein notes the film’s universality: “Everyone has had the kind of day that George has, an incredible adventure, and at the end of it finding peace.” Says Firth, “Anyone who’s ever felt alienated or anyone who’s ever felt they’ve got to make an effort to face the day or anyone who’s ever lost anybody will find something in this guy, I think.” And from Ford: “That’s the thing about my film—it’s the isolation we all feel and the universal need to connect with others.”

Translation: This is not a gay movie. While one may assume the sophisticate Ford to be above so mundane a pronouncement, the marketer Ford seizes that crucial moment of consumer connection, and if he has to spell it out, so be it. “I like chocolate cake. Do I define my life by the fact that I like chocolate cake?” he queries. “For me, that’s what sexuality is. I didn’t think of making a movie with gay characters.”

Yet he wants to make clear to those who don’t dine at the chocolate-cake table that there’s plenty of red velvet, too. For the article’s photo shoot, W had hoped to photograph the director surrounded by his leading cast members. With all but Moore assembled in London a day or two before the festival there, suggestion B was a picture of Ford with the featured male actors. He declined, saying it would send the wrong message, and subsequently agreed to the photo with only Firth.

“I want to make sure that people don’t think this is a gay film, because it is a universal film,” he says. “We all go through the same things in life—romance, grief, isolation, trying to come to an understanding of what life is about. I wouldn’t want someone not to see it, thinking, Oh, that’s a gay love story. That’s not the core of the film.”

[From W Magazine]

Indie Wire calls this “the Brokeback Mountain approach” to publicizing a film with gay content. Which I guess means that we can expect Colin Firth, his wife and Julianne Moore to sit on Oprah’s couch and talk about everything but hot, gay action. And, that approach resulted in a mixed bag during the awards season for Brokeback. The director, Ang Lee took home the Best Director Oscar, but the actors didn’t get any of the big awards. I hope that doesn’t happen with Colin and Julianne – they’re two of the most deserving actors out there. I love them. I want them to win everything this year!

Here is Colin Firth at the AFI Fest 2009 Screening Of ‘A Single Man’ at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre in Hollywood on November 5, 2009.

I’ve mentioned this before, but I love the Bridget Jones character, and I love Renee Zellweger as that character. Even though I didn’t care for the sequel book or film, I still love the franchise, and I was thrilled when they announced the third film over the summer. At the time of the announcement, the start date for the production was left up in the air, and many people assumed that was because it would take Renee Zellweger months to put on her Bridget Jones pounds.

For the first film, Renee put on something like 25 to 30 pounds to play Bridget, and she looked lovely with the extra weight. For the sequel, Renee seemed to put on even more weight, and ended up looking rather puffy and sketchy. I was hoping for a return to the first film’s weight gain, but my hopes were just dashed. A source just told the British magazine Reveal (story via the NY Daily News) that Renee isn’t interested in gaining weight for the role for a third time, and that she’ll most likely wear padding and/or a “fat suit”.

Renee Zellweger famously packed on the pounds to play “Bridget Jones,” but she’ll be faking the fat for the third installment of the popular film franchise, according to a report.

“Renee will be wearing a fat suit in the third film, as it took her a while to lose the weight last time,” a source revealed to British magazine Reveal. “She’s also thinking about the effect quickly putting on and then losing 30 pounds has on her body.”

While some fans and bloggers are worried Zellweger’s portrayal of “Bridget Jones” will be less authentic the third go-round if she dons a fat suit, the actress has voiced concern over gaining weight for the famous role in the past.

“My body is whacked by the time we finish one of those ['Bridget Jones' movies],” Zellweger told the Daily Mail in December 2007.

She went on to tell the Mail how the 2004 fast-food documentary “Supersize Me” scared her.

“I had a panic attack with all the specialists talking about how bad this is for you, long term, putting on that much weight in short periods of time and they’re all saying, ‘You must stop this now or you’re going to die.’ “

[From the NY Daily News]

Oh for goodness sake, Renee. It’s like she never stopped to think that maybe she didn’t have to take off every single little pound she gained for the Bridget Jones films. It’s like she never looked in the mirror and said, “Yes, I am scary skinny, maybe putting on five pounds would be a good thing.” I like her and everything, but I do wonder if she has some serious body image issues. From her too-thin frame, to her trying-too-hard posing, I think Renee has gotten weird.

I also wonder if she’s refusing to put on the weight because she’s in a relationship with Bradley Cooper now, and she thinks that if she gains some weight, it will affect her relationship in a negative way. Maybe it will – God knows what kind of body type Bradley goes for, but I tend to think he would be understanding about the situation.

In one other piece of Bridget Jones-related news, I’ve been hearing some rumors that Colin Firth (Mark Darcy) hasn’t officially signed on for the third film. What’s the hold up? You can’t make the film without Mr. Darcy! The rumors go either way – some saying Colin hasn’t even been approached but that he’d love to sign on, or that Colin has been approached, and is making the producers sweat. The second one might be right on – Colin’s having a little career comeback lately, and many are pegging him for a Best Actor Oscar nomination for his work in Tom Ford’s A Single Man. He might want more money. I know I would ask for more money if I had to star with Renee in a fat suit. That’s a disaster waiting to happen.

Here’s Renee spotted sipping coffee after going shopping in Vancouver on September 13th. Images thanks to INF Photo.

The world premiere of Mamma Mia! held at the Odeon Leicester Square in London, England was a huge success with hundreds of fans all the way from Waterloo to the celebs spending tons of Money, Money, Money on their wardrobe, hair and jewelery. Meryl Streep can do no wrong in her acting career. On the red carpet however, she’s made bigger mistakes than Barbara Walters letting Rosie O’Donnell leave The View.

My first thought is: “Didn’t her stylist see Madonna’s Nothing Really Matters Video? WTF? It’s been done!” My second thought is: “Damn, those Christian Louboutin shoes are kickin’! ‘Atta Girl!”

Amanda Seyfried looks like a barmaid who had to work late on St. Patrick’s Day.

Judging by Colin Firth’s wife Livia Giuggioli’s dress, she really isn’t that happy to be there or that busy of a bee. I mean if she were, she wouldn’t have to advertise it.

Christine Baranski looks lovely, dignified and uber classy. LOVE the color, LOVE the couture trojan feel (yes, I just said Couture Trojan), and any amateur would have paired this sheath with silver shoes, but Ms. Baranksi took the high road with the Midas touch.

Pierce Brosnan looks completely dashing. I’m not digging the busy floral print on wife Keely Shaye-Smith’s dress. She runs the risk of having Colin Firth’s wife trying to pollinate her at the after party.

Mamma Mia opens nationwide in the US on July 18th and Knowing Me, Knowing You, we’ll both be there.

Here’s the trailer:

Thanks to WENN for these pics.

Yesterday Colin Firth was on The Daily Show last night to promote his upcoming movie with Helen Hunt, Then She Found Me. Firth talked about his experiences filming in New York City – mentioning that he’d done all the usual NYC things – “I’m always here for brief periods. I’ve taken in the sights, seen the shows, had my penis photographed…” Jon Stewart makes him go back a bit and relate what happened.

According to Firth, he was in the bathroom at a Broadway show, and while at the urinal noticed a man was taking pictures of him. He asked the man what he was doing, and he responded gruffly (and almost angrily) that he wasn’t taking pictures of him. However he clearly was taking pictures not just of Colin Firth using the urinal but of his penis.

Colin said he tried to push the camera away (which means the guy must have been pretty damn close and pretty damn obvious) – with what he admitted was a slightly girly push. When he started to think he should confront the guy or do something more, he admitted he couldn’t decide what to do, noting, “It’s hard to do when you’re not entirely in your pants.” Touché.

He joked that if you Google “Colin Firth Penis” you’ll probably find the picture out there – and while that doesn’t appear to be the case (yet), there are lots of people referencing his appearance and asking for the picture. Oh and by the way, I only Googled that for research and to see what other people were saying. Not looking. And now I’m uncomfortable.

Here’s the clip from The Daily Show.

The daydreams of thousands of women across the globe have just been shattered – by none other than Mr Darcy himself! Colin Firth, 47, who played Mr Darcy in the best adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, and also Mr Darcy again in Bridget Jones’ Diary, has come out saying that the characters that he and Hugh Grant play in those films do not exist. I’m devastated.

Firth, who appears alongside Uma Thurman in new movie The Accidental Husband, said: “I’ve decided the quintessential Englishman I play doesn’t exist.

“I play him but you don’t run into him very often. There aren’t very many Mr. Darcys out there. I think he’s a figment of our folklore or film lore.

“My character exists in mythology and he may have existed once but now he only exists in the hands of actors.”

Firth also revealed he is bemused that foreign journalists have fallen for the Hollywood image of Englishmen and ignored the legions of rebellious rockers Britain has produced.

He added: “I was questioned about this by a group of Greek journalists recently while making a movie version of Mamma Mia!.

“They were insisting on the stereotypical Englishman, that no Englishman has ever grown his hair long, played the electric guitar or pierced his ear.”

The Melbourne Age

I’m sure I’m not the only one to plan a romantic trip to england, to hang out at the gates of Oxford University and meet a quintessential Englishman, who will obviously fall madly in love with my Australian attitude and we’ll live happily ever after in a moderate sized castle. I’m nothing if not a realist. Now I’ll just have to stay home and marry Hugh Jackman. Don’t tell me he’s married too…

So ladies, if you are planning on hitting England to meet a man with a debonair manner, cute accent and a general Englishness you can’t find anywhere else, but you have seen in film, don’t bother. They don’t exist!

Note by Celebitchy: I dated a typical English guy with a wild streak when I was in my early 20s. He was super charming, and to my naive eyes he was the best thing ever – for a while. He was like Hugh Grant’s character more than Colin Firth’s though. Maybe I’m the one who made him out to be a stereotype and that wasn’t all he was about, but those type of guys do exist, at least for that limited period of time when you’re infatuated and totally blind to reality.

Who are we kidding? This was just an excuse to post hot Colin Firth pictures. He’s shown in his films Bridget Jones’ Diary, Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, The Importance of Being Earnest, Pride & Prejudice, Love Actually, and The Accidental Husband.

In the header he is shown at the Rome Film Festival on 10/20/07. He is also seen below with his wife of ten years, Livia Giuggioli, in October and December of last year. Thanks to PRPhotos and Allmoviephoto.

Who has the most enviable figure in the celebrity world?

A UK poll by fitness firm Premier Training International has come up with some less than predictable answers in a hot body poll.

Enviable Women

Myleene Klass – Big Brother contestant
Halle Berry – actress
Jessica Simpson – singer
Madonna – singer
Sophia Loren – actress
Angelina Jolie – actress
Uma Thurman – actress
Jennifer Aniston – actress
Gabby Logan – Strictly Come Dancing contestant

Enviable Men

Daniel Craig – actor
Jonny Wilkinson – rugby player
Brad Pitt – actor
Hugh Grant – actor
David Beckham – soccer player
Orlando Bloom – actor
Johnny Depp – actor
Lee Mead – Any Dream Will Do winner
Colin Firth – actor
Sir Sean Connery – actor

New Zealand Herald

It seems that being over 70 isn’t going to stop you from having an enviable body – Sophia Loren is 73 and Sir Sean Connery is 77. Checking out the pictures on IMDB I can only hope I look that good when I’m that sort of age, although I passed my mirror this morning and turned it to face the wall – but maybe by the time I’m old I’ll look better than I do now. Do you have to be good looking in your youth (I use the term loosely) to look good in your old age?

Also, it’s amazing that three of the celebrities are from reality TV shows. Myleene Klass was on last year’s Big Brother UK edition and she gained notoriety for her physique in a bikini. I’m amazed anyone can remember Big Brother from last year? Who can remember even last night’s reality TV?

Picture note by Celebitchy: Myleene Klass pregnant bikini picture from The Daily Mail. Die another Day, Dukes of Hazzard, and Troy movie stills from allmoviephoto. Brad Pitt Premiere cover from members.fortunecity.com/mattdamon. Shirtless Becks from PRPhotos.

Words you never want to hear again: Postal Worker Stalker. Unfortunately for Colin Firth, he’s hearing these words again.

The 45-year-old postal worker was arrested after she begged her bosses to let her deliver to the £2.5 million home of the 46-year-old actor in leafy Chiswick, west London.

The woman is also understood to have posted fake accounts of meeting her idol on an internet site for fans of Firth, perhaps best known for his role as Mr Darcy in the BBC adaptation of Pride And Prejudice.

Firth, who lives in Chiswick with his 37-year-old wife Livia, became a sex symbol and gained an army of female fans after emerging from a lake in skintight breeches in the 1995 Beeb version of the classic Jane Austen novel.

Staff at the obsessed fan’s depot are understood to have raised the alarm after she applied to swap delivery routes with a colleague.

A pal of the actor, who asked not to be named, said: “Colin is normally very at ease with his fans, but he was aware one woman was veering closer to obsession.”

Life Style Extra

Some reports suggest this isn’t the first time the postal worker has been arrested for the stalking.

If I had a stalker, which is highly unlikely given that I have never emerged sexily from a pond in a wet white shirt and tight breeches, I would be really worried that they had been cautioned twice. And that they continued to be employed by the Royal Mail. Where they might be able to touch my mail, or even do something unsavoury to it. Actually, any postal worker could probably do that. I wonder if they do?

Colin Firth is currently filming Mama Mia the musical movie, where he plays a British banker who might be homosexual. He’ll be warming up his pipes, singing the hit music of ABBA, to tell the tale of a bride-to-be who is unsure of the identity of her father. The potential candidates for fatherhood are Colin, Pierce Brosnan, and Stellan Skarsgård. Which is a combination I doubt we’ll ever see in a real life paternity battle.

I wonder if singing the hit music of ABBA would be enough to put off a potential stalker? I think a compulsion to burst into ABBA songs would be a deal breaker in many relationships.