Regal Acts for Brits at The Golden Globe Awards 2011

2011 was the year of the royal portrayal leading Britain’s best drama kings and queens to have a great night at The Golden Globe Awards.

Colin Firth was received crowning glory of the night when he scooped Best Actor for his role as King George VI in The King’s Speech.

Helena Bonham Carter was nominated as Best Supporting Actress in the film but lost out to Melissa Leo for her role in The Fighter.

The actress, who wore a Vivienne Westwood ensemble with mismatching shoes said she did not mind missing out: “I’m really glad Colin won [best actor award], it was fine. I was so glad I didn’t have to get up and give a speech.”

Dame Helen Mirren presented the award to Colin wearing a diamond necklace worth over £1million. The actress is no stranger to the awards winning two Golden Globes for her performance in Elizabeth II and The Queen in 2007.

But it was British comedian Ricky Gervais who stole the headlines with critics on both sides of the ocean asking if his jokes went too far.

The comic, back for his second shift behind the podium, mocked and made jokes about many of the glitterati in the audience or those presenting and collecting awards on stage.

From attacks in Charlie Sheen, Mel Gibson, Tom Cruise, Angelina Jolie, Johnny Depp, Ashton Kutcher as well as insulting many others, few expect Ricky to be invited back for next year.

US and British critics are divided over Gervais’s performance, with some applauding him for shaking up the awards show and providing laughs.

However, the Los Angeles Times noted that “a visible contingent in the glitzy crowd was palpably discomfited by the British comic’s full-frontal joke assault, which set a corrosive tone for this year’s ceremony”.

The Washington Post asked: “Are we at war with England? If not, then why have we been subjected to two year of Ricky Gervais hosting the Golden Globe Awards?”

Perhaps this is one English man who should be looking back to the more gentlemanly chracter such as that played by Colin Firth when addressing his next crowd.

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