Day-Lewis wins best actor at Baftas21:30, Feb 10 2008


Daniel Day-Lewis took the best actor prize at the Baftas but Britain's leading ladies were left empty-handed as a little-known French actress stole the limelight.

Marion Cotillard was the surprise winner of the best actress award for her portrayal of singer Edith Piaf in La Vie En Rose.

Julie Christie had been odds-on favourite to win for Away From Her and Atonement's Keira Knightley was not far behind.

But the Bafta judges plumped instead for Cotillard, 33, rewarding a performance which has already earned her a Golden Globe win and an Oscar nomination. She is believed to be the first French actress to win the best actress Bafta.

It was a bad night for Atonement, although it did win the big prize of best film.

The lavish adaptation of Ian McEwan's best-selling novel was nominated for 14 awards, but came away with just two - the other was for production design.
There were no surprises in the best actor category, which went to Day-Lewis for There Will Be Blood. The 50-year-old plays oil baron Daniel Plainview in the film and is tipped to scoop an Oscar later this month, having already won a Golden Globe and a Screen Actors' Guild Award.

It is the second Bafta for Day-Lewis, who won in 1990 for My Left Foot. This time he beat the likes of James McAvoy for Atonement and George Clooney for Michael Clayton.

Jonathan Ross hosted the Bafta ceremony from the Royal Opera House in London's Covent Garden.

La Vie En Rose was the night's big success story with four awards, also winning gongs for music, costume design and make-up.

...another claim to fame:

Whilst filming Stefan Khizcho - A Life for a Life. I was kitted out by wardrobe to play a prisoner, a scene to be filmed in Risley Remand Center.

It was only whilst removing the clothing after filming I realised that I had been wearing Daniel Day-Lewis's clothes he had worn during In The Name of the Father!

How did I know? the clothing still had his name in the back!

:PDT11

Very interesting, Kev. Thanks for that anecdote. :PDT_Aliboronz_24:

Chris

i always thought he was irish, but a mate at footy tonight reckons he's american ( irish) is this right.

Quote from Wkipedia: Day-Lewis was born in London, the son of actress Jill Balcon and the Anglo-Irish Poet Laureate Cecil Day-Lewis. Daniel Day-Lewis' mother, who comes from a Jewish family, is the daughter of Sir Michael Balcon, who was the former head of Ealing Studios

Quote from Wkipedia: Day-Lewis was born in London, the son of actress Jill Balcon and the Anglo-Irish Poet Laureate Cecil Day-Lewis. Daniel Day-Lewis' mother, who comes from a Jewish family, is the daughter of Sir Michael Balcon, who was the former head of Ealing Studios

Very interesting. Thanks, Shy. I knew he wasn't American although I had heard that he counts himself as being Irish, and thus is carrying on the tradition of other great Irish actors such as Peter O'Toole, Richard Harris, and Ralph Fiennes.

Chris