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The Fashion Memo

The best-ever BAFTA red-carpet moments

Fashion

As London rolls out the red carpet for the 2018 BAFTAs, here’s a look back at some of the most standout appearances in the award ceremony’s history.

Cher and Val Kilmer, 1984
Remember when these two were a couple? Hollywood legend has it that they met at a birthday party thrown for Cher by Meryl Streep. Their appearance together at the 1984 BAFTAs – the year Kilmer made his film debut in ‘Top Secret!’ and Cher was winning accolades for her role in ‘Silkwood’ – was star wattage at its best.
Gwyneth Paltrow, 1999
Paltrow wore a cropped top and maxi skirt the year that she was nominated for the Best Actress in a Leading Role award for ‘Shakespeare in Love’. She didn’t win – the prize went to Cate Blanchett for ‘Elizabeth’ instead – but she did collect an Oscar, wearing that pink Ralph Lauren dress. The crop top was the winner in our eyes. 
Michelle Williams and Heath Ledger, 2006.
This was the year that ‘Brokeback Mountain’, the film that brought together Michelle Williams and Heath Ledger in 2004, featured heavily at awards ceremonies. At the BAFTAs, Ledger was nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role, missing out to Phillip Seymour Hoffman for ‘Capote’, and Williams for Best Actress in a Supporting Role, which was won by Thandie Newton for ‘Crash’. Williams’ saffron-yellow Oscars dress designed by Vera Wang may be one of the all-time best awards looks ever, but this was an excellent warm-up.
Kate Winslet and Emma Thompson, 1996
Winslet and Thompson are holding their respective awards for Best Actress in a Supporting Role and Best Actress in a Leading Role, which they won for the 1996 adaptation of Jane Austen’s ‘Sense and Sensibility’. It was Winslet’s breakout film, but the following year she would appear in a little film called ‘Titanic’, boosting her star power just a smidge. ‘Sense and Sensibility’ was also the set on which Thompson met her future husband, Greg Wise; they have now been together for more than 20 years.
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, 2014
This may be our favorite Jolie look ever. Usually, the actress does an impeccable job of looking almost regal in classic gowns with a leg-revealing twist, which just makes this his’n’hers tuxedo outing all the more appealing. The cherry on top? She looks better in her Hedi Slimane for Saint Laurent two-piece than then-fiancé Brad – proving once again that anything men can do, women can do better.
Scarlett Johansson, 2004
This was Johansson’s break-out year. Previously best known for her role in 1998’s ‘The Horse Whisperer’, in 2004 she emerged as a true movie star courtesy of her performances in ‘Lost in Translation’ and ‘Girl With a Pearl Earring’, which earned her two separate nominations in the Best Actress in a Leading Role category. She won for ‘Lost in Translation’, collecting her award wearing Prada, while her co-star Bill Murray picked up the Best Actor award.
Joanna Lumley and Jennifer Saunders, 1993
The British comedy double act won BAFTA TV awards in 1993 for the first series of their legendary show, ‘Absolutely Fabulous’. This year’s ceremony will see Lumley take to the stage as host – let’s hope this outing is equally as memorable.  
Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor, 1967
When they attended the BAFTAs together in 1967, legendary couple Taylor and Burton were part-way through their first marriage to each other – they divorced in 1974 before briefly remarrying in 1975. At this ceremony, they won the Best British Actor and Best British Actress awards for the big-screen adaptation of the Edward Albee play, ‘Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?’, proving they were just as charismatic off-screen as on.
Sofia Coppola and Renée Zellweger, 2004
These two have never actually worked together, but now that we’ve found this picture, we really wish they would. This was a big night for both artists; Coppola’s ‘Lost in Translation’ bagged three BAFTAs while Renée Zellweger picked up the Best Actress in a Supporting Role award for ‘Cold Mountain’.

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