British stars vie for BAFTA glory ahead of Oscars

Britain's cinema industry readied for its biggest night of the year on Sunday, with Oscar-nominated actors like Eddie Redmayne, Benedict Cumberbatch and Rosamund Pike vying for the BAFTA awards.
A few of the British hopefuls at the ceremony in London's Royal Opera House are already established names in Hollywood and the awards are part of the run-up to the Oscars later this month.
Two of the favourites for best film -- Alejandro Inarritu's "Birdman" and Richard Linklater's "Boyhood" -- hail from the United States but the focus of the night is likely to be on home-grown talent.
Britain's Felicity Jones, an up-and-coming star still waiting for her big break, is nominated for her role as disabled astrophysicist Stephen Hawking's wife Jane in "The Theory of Everything".
She will face stiff competition in the best actress category from fellow Briton Pike, nominated for "Gone Girl", as well as US stars Julianne Moore ("Still Alice"), Amy Adams ("Big Eyes") and Reese Witherspoon ("Wild").
Cumberbatch, who plays the troubled World War II codebreaker Alan Turing in "The Imitation Game", and Redmayne, praised for his role as Hawking, are the two names to watch for best actor.
On the eve of the ceremony, the movers and shakers in British cinema partied in Kensington Palace -- the London home of Prince William and his wife Kate -- and producer Harvey Weinstein will be hosting a big bash after the ceremony.
"Britain has had a great year across the board, across writers, producers, actors and directors. It's a very, very good time," said Cumberbatch.
The "Sherlock Holmes" star and Redmayne are up for best actor against Ralph Fiennes for his role as a concierge in "The Grand Budapest Hotel", Michael Keaton as an out-of-luck actor in "Birdman" and Jake Gyllenhaal, the shady video paparazzo in the thriller "Nightcrawler".
Wes Anderson's "The Grand Budapest Hotel" is in the lead for nominations with a total of 11, one ahead of "Birdman" and "The Theory of Everything".
Pregnant star Keira Knightley, who rose to fame with the British romantic comedy "Love Actually" and alongside Johnny Depp in the blockbuster "Pirates of the Caribbean", is in the running for best supporting actress for "The Imitation Game".
Five British actors and actresses -- Cumberbatch, Jones, Knightley, Pike and Redmayne -- have been nominated for the Oscars this year, which will be handed out on February 22.