Get red carpet ready: a UAE guide to the Oscars
▶ Wondering what time and where to watch all the fashion, tears and drama? Chris Newbould gets us primed for the 90th Academy Awards
It’s all change for the Oscars this year, with the ceremony taking place a week later than its usual February date to avoid clashing with the Winter Olympics in South Korea.
This means the 90th Academy Awards will take place on Sunday (the early hours of Monday UAE-time).
In keeping with the spirit of change, the organisers have also opted to start the ceremony at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood half an hour earlier, at 5pm in Los Angeles. The thinking behind this is that it will ensure the ceremony ends earlier for the show’s crucial United States East Coast viewers, meaning that the fashion, speeches and tears should all be wrapped up by 12.30am New York-time to give everyone the chance to get a good sleep before work on Monday. Not for us, though.
So, what time in the UAE?
The bad news for fans in this region is that this decision means the show will now start at the slightly more ungainly than usual time of 5am, and if you want to catch the red carpet coverage too you’ll have no choice but to pull an all-nighter – that starts at 3.30am.
Where to watch it? Fortunately, OSN have you covered to catch all the action from the comfort of your bed, with exclusive coverage of the red carpet action and the ceremony itself, on OSN Movies HD in English, and OSN Yahala Cinema HD with Arabic commentary. Coverage will run from 3.30am until the final statue is presented (probably around the time the working day begins in the UAE).
Don’t have OSN? Watch it in the cinema
OSN is not offering the show on its streaming services, but if you’re not an OSN subscriber, or if you just fancy heading out to catch the action live, the broadcaster is teaming up with Vox Cinemas across the region to screen the show live – free of charge to those brave enough to get up early.
Locations in the UAE include Mall of the Emirates and Deira City Centre in Dubai, and Yas Mall in Abu Dhabi. The screenings are free to attend, but you will need to register for tickets first to secure your front-row seat to the action.
Cinema screenings are also taking place in Oman, Bahrain and Egypt.
To catch the 90th Academy Awards live on the big screen, register for free tickets at www. osn.com/en-ae/oscars/vox