The 50th British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTAs, took place on 29 April 1997 at the Royal Albert Hall in London, honouring the best national and foreign films of 1996. Presented by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, accolades were handed out for the best feature-length film and documentaries of any nationality that were screened at British cinemas in 1998. Anthony Minghella's The English Patient won the award for Best Film (and previously won the Academy Award for Best Picture), while Mike Leigh's Secrets & Lies was voted Outstanding British Film. Geoffrey Rush won for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his role in Shine and Brenda Blethyn won for Best Actress in a Leading Role for her role in Secrets & Lies, respectively. The ceremony was hosted by actor and comedian Lenny Henry.

Winners and nominees

BAFTA Fellowship

Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema

Awards

Winners are listed first and highlighted in boldface.

Statistics