2011 Oscar countdown: Best Picture, Documentary, Foreign Film and the Melissa Leo fiasco

The double Goya/Bafta award ceremonies on Sunday last week left me intellectually and literally hung-over. I had diligently stocked up the freezer with champagne in the unlikely eventuality of Lesley Manville's triumph in the supporting category at the Baftas. Helena Bonham Carter predictably prevailed for her role in The King's Speech, which didn't prevent champagne from flowing. Thus, on Monday I had to deal not only with my disappointment at Manville's loss but also with a splitting headache.

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Oscar Becomes Her: why Meryl Streep should win her third Academy Award

The Hollywood Foreign Press Association will announce its nominations tomorrow and, unless the plot of the appalling 2012 proves true two years in advance and LA is literally engulfed by the ocean, Meryl Streep will receive her staggering 24th Golden Globe nomination for her perfectly delicious portrayal of American cuisine guru Julia Child in the film Julie & Julia.

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