Triple win for Argo at the Bafta awards

Best Film award went to Argo, while Skyfall took the honour of Outstanding British Film. Credit: Jonathan Brady/PA Wire

Stars of film and television fought through the rain and snow to attend a Bafta award ceremony that was full of surprises this evening.

The Best Film award went to Argo, while Skyfall took the honour of Outstanding British Film.

Daniel Day Lewis and Emmanuelle Riva won the awards for Leading Actor and Actress respectively.

The award for Outstanding British Film went to the latest James Bond adventure, Skyfall.

Already the highest-grossing film of all time at the UK box office, its director Sam Mendes paid tribute to the "bravery and brilliance" of Craig and "the great" Ian Fleming, who created the character of Bond.

Speaking backstage, he said he would love to make another Bond film: "We would want to make a better movie next time around, and if we thought we could do that they might let me have another go again." The film also won the award for Best Original Music.

ITV News' Correspondent Nina Nannar reports:

Daniel Day-Lewis fulfilled expectations by winning the Bafta for Best Actor for his starring role in Lincoln.

The actor, who plays the assassinated US President in Steven Spielberg's political biopic, has already won a Golden Globe and a Screen Actor's Guild award for the role and is hot favourite to carry off an Oscar later this month.

Accepting his award, Day-Lewis poked fun at his own reputation for immersing himself in his characters and his devotion to method acting.

Day-Lewis, who reportedly refused to leave his wheelchair while playing the disabled Christy Brown in My Left Foot, said:

Argo was the surprise recipient of the Best Film award, pipping Lincoln to the post, and its director Ben Affleck also took home the award for Best Director.

Ben Affleck took home the award for Best Director for Argo. Credit: PA Wire

In his acceptance speech, Affleck said he was grateful to have been able to make the move from acting to directing: "I want to say this is a second act for me and you've given me that, this industry has given me that and I want to thank you and I'm so grateful and proud."

Quentin Tarantino won the award for Original Screenplay for his western Django Unchained. Tarantino thanked his actors for doing a "bang-up job with my dialogue".

The film has attracted criticism for its liberal use of racial insults and Tarantino thanked his backers for standing by what he described as "a hot potato" film.

Quentin Tarantino with Jennifer Lawrence at the Bafta awards. Credit: PA Wire

One of its stars, Christoph Waltz, won the award for Best Supporting Actor and paid tribute to Tarantino who he described as a "silver-penned" writer.

He said: "Why I get to stand here is really no mystery because it says at the beginning of our film, 'written and directed by Quentin Tarantino'."

The main awards of the night were as follows:

  • Best Film - Argo

  • Outstanding British Film - Skyfall

  • Best Director - Ben Affleck for Argo

  • Leading Actor - Daniel Day-Lewis for Lincoln

  • Leading Actress - Emmanuelle Riva for Amour

  • Supporting Actor - Christoph Waltz for Django Unchained

  • Supporting Actress - Anne Hathaway for Les Miserables

  • Cinematography - Claudio Miranda for Life Of Pi

  • Original Screenplay - Quentin Tarantino for Django Unchained