All Quiet On The Western Front has followed up its BAFTA promise, leading the wins on the night with seven awards – including top prizes for best film and best director.
The First World War movie had led the nominations with 14, equalling the record set in 2001 by Crouching Tiger as a non-English language film with the most nods.
Ian Stokell, Lesley Paterson and Edward Berger accept the Adapted Screenplay Award for All Quiet on the Western Front
Martin McDonagh’s Irish tragi-comedy The Banshees Of Inisherin – which tells the tale of male friendship gone sour – took four gongs, as did Baz Luhrmann’s whirlwind biopic Elvis, about the king of rock and roll.
Austin Butler took best actor, for his portrayal of Elvis, who died prematurely aged 42 in 1977. The emotional star paid tribute to the Presley family as he accepted his award.
Elvis’s only daughter, Lisa Marie Presley, died last month aged just 54.
Cate Blanchett took the best actress award, calling the role of monstrous maestro Lydia Tár, “dangerous and potentially career ending”.
Becoming emotional towards the end of her speech, she paid tribute to her family – listing her mother and four children – who she said had to put up with her absence for long periods of time while she was working on the movie.
The Banshees of Inisherin saw a double win in the supporting actor and actress categories, with Kerry Condon and Barry Keoghan taking the prizes.
Condon’s win followed a brief mix up, when a mis-communication between the sign language translator and deaf Oscar-winning actor Troy Kotsur saw Carey Mulligan initially announced as the winner.
Troy Kotsur and Kerry Condon
With the translator quickly correcting himself, the ceremony soon got back on track, with Condon thanking the cast, her horses and dogs for the win.
For the first time, this year’s awards were held at the Queen Elizabeth Hall on the Southbank in London.
The night was hosted by actor Richard E Grant, who led the show from the auditorium, and This Morning presenter Alison Hammond who spoke to the stars in a new BAFTA studio, giving viewers at home an access-all-areas experience of one of the biggest nights in film.