Glitz, glamour, Gaga … but no royals: can a real-life return save the Baftas?

Sunday's primetime film awards ceremony marks a break from recent tradition and promises a change of tack for institution

Sunday night's Baftas ceremony is set to stage a confident return to pre-pandemic levels of glitz and glamour amid fears of flagging audience engagement. The longest red carpet in Europe will wrap itself around a full-capacity Albert Hall ahead of the events, which boasts a new host in Australian comedy actor Rebel Wilson and, for only the second time in two decades, a pre-watershed broadcast on BBC One.

Last year's ceremony also took place at the Albert Hall but with minimal hooplah, virtual acceptance speeches and no live audience. Although the awards verdicts were lauded, Bafta's renewed credibility was dinted three weeks later by revelations in the Guardian of multiple allegations of verbal abuse, bullying and sexual misconduct against the film-maker Noel Clarke, who had received the outstanding contribution to British cinema prize. Bafta had known about the allegations beforehand yet continued with the presentation.