Prince William drops out of Baftas this weekend following death of grandfather Prince Philip

Prince William has withdrawn from this weekend’s Baftas following the death of his grandfather Prince Philip.

The Duke of Edinburgh – Bafta’s first president – died at Windsor Palace on Friday morning at the age of 99.

In the wake of the loss, the Duke of Cambridge, who is the current president of Bafta, will no longer deliver a speech for Sunday’s ceremony, Kensington Palace has confirmed.

William was due to feature on Saturday in a pre-recorded conversation with costume designer Jenny Beavan and make-up and hair designer Sharon Martin, talking about filming in lockdown and the craft of filmmaking.

On Sunday, William was scheduled to deliver a speech via video link, celebrating the resilience of the film industry over the past year.

However, he will no longer deliver this speech.

The Baftas will go ahead tonight and on Sunday after the BBC reinstated its regular programming, following a day of rolling news coverage on Friday. 

The awards show will be a bit different this year, as eight winners will be revealed on Saturday night as Clara Amfo hosts the Opening Night show.

The Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema award will be the only in-person awards moment on the first night, which will be filmed live at the Royal Albert Hall, and viewers will also see a showcase of the nominated films.

The following night, Edith Bowman and Dermot O’Leary will host the full awards show live on BBC One, with the remaining 17 awards handed out.

The pair will be joined at the Royal Albert Hall by a small group of presenters, while all nominees and the audience will be tuning in virtually.

The Father, The Mauritanian, Nomadland, Promising Young Woman and The Trial of the Chicago 7 will battle to be named best film, while Calm With Horses, The Dig, The Father, His House, Limbo, Mogul Mowgli, Promising Young Woman, Rocks and Saint Maud are up for outstanding British film.

Bukky Bakray (Rocks), Radha Blank (The Forty Year Old Version), Vanessa Kirby (Pieces Of A Woman), Frances McDormand (Nomadland), Wunmi Mosaku (His House) and Alfre Woodard (Clemency) are nominated for leading actress, while Riz Ahmed (Sound of Metal), Chadwick Boseman (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom), Adarsh Gourav (The White Tiger), Anthony Hopkins (The Father), Mads Mikkelsen (Another Round) and Tahar Rahim (The Mauritanian) are all up for leading actor.

The Baftas Opening Night is on tonight at 8pm on BBC Two, while the Baftas are on from 7pm until 9pm on BBC One on Sunday night. 

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