Loach breaks his duck as Baftas go La La
Veteran filmmaker accepts his award 46 years after his first nomination with a fiery speech against the rich and powerful
KEN LOACH has won his first competitive film Bafta after nearly half a century in the industry, as he opened the glitzy ceremony with a fiery political speech in front of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.
Loach, who was first nominated in 1971 for Kes, picked up the award for Outstanding British Film for I, Daniel Blake, while fellow Briton Dev Patel took home best supporting actor.
The pair flew the flag for homegrown talent in an otherwise low-key year for the British film industry across the board. Just a handful of UK stars took home prizes: four out of 31 nominees in the non-British-specific categories.
Other prizes were taken for best production for Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, the Harry Potter spin-off, and one British hair and make up artist for Florence Foster Jenkins.
But what Britain lost in numbers it retained in presence, with Loach opening the ceremony with a rant about the government, the rich and the powerful as the Duke and Duchess watched from the front row.
In a statement that raised eyebrows from viewers, he claimed all filmmakers, “despite the glitz and the glamour” are on the side of “the people”.
Patel beat odds of 6-1 to take home the award, providing the biggest bookies upset since 2012. Accepting the award on stage at the Royal Albert Hall, he thanked his “amazing team, who had the insane task” of getting “this noodle with wonky teeth and a lazy eye and floppy hair work in this industry”.
The Duke of Cambridge, president of Bafta, presented Mel Brooks with a fellowship, with Fry introducing him as Prince Bill. “Bafta has clearly run out of actors, and therefore I have been roped in,” the Duke joked.
Elsewhere, American musical La La Land, predicted to sweep the board, took home five awards including best director for Damien Chazelle and best actress for Emma Stone.
Casey Affleck, bookies favourite, won best actor for Manchester By The Sea. Viola Davis won best supporting actress for Fences, beating British actresses Naomie Harris, for Moonlight, and Hayley Squires for I, Daniel Blake.
Squires joined Loach on stage for the film’s win, along with David Johns, who admitted he had prepared for the Baftas by spending the morning plastering his kitchen.
Loach had been nominated for outstanding British film in 1994, 1996, 1997, and 1999 but did not take home the prize on any occasion.
Loach’s film beat competition from JK Rowling’s Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Denial, Notes On Blindness, Under the Shadow Cannes favourite American Honey.
Loach purported to apologise for being so political early in the night, but thanked the Academy for “endorsing the truths” of the film’s message about the flaws of the benefits system and “callous brutality” towards the poor.
“Films can do many things, they can entertain, terrify, they can make us laugh and tell us something about the real world we live in – sorry it’s early for a political speech – and in that real world it’s getting darker and in the struggle that is coming between rich and poor and the wealthy and the privileged and the big corporations and politicians who speak for them.
“The rest of us on the other side – film makers know which side they are on and despite the glitz and glamour of occasions like this, we are with the people.”
Hosted by Stephen Fry, it was a night permeated with politics, including several on-stage jibes aimed at US president Donald Trump.
American actress Meryl Streep was introduced as one of the greatest actors of all time, with Fry noting: “Only a blithering idiot would think otherwise”.
Streep’s co-star Hugh Grant had earlier called her a “militant Mary” for her Golden Globes speech, in which she condemned Mr Trump’s behaviour and he in return called her “overrated”.
As Fry embarked on the awards, he joked: “Lets see who the Russians have decided has won.”