In Pictures: The 2011 Olivier Awards @ Theatre Royal, Drury Lane

Franco Milazzo
By Franco Milazzo Last edited 156 months ago
In Pictures: The 2011 Olivier Awards @ Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
The 2011 Olivier Awards generated some interested winners.
The 2011 Olivier Awards generated some interested winners.
Stephen Sondheim was given a Special Award and his Into The Woods won Best Musical Revival.
Stephen Sondheim was given a Special Award and his Into The Woods won Best Musical Revival.
Elaine Page
Elaine Page
Tamsin Grieg: "Storytelling is medicine for the soul."
Tamsin Grieg: "Storytelling is medicine for the soul."
Brian May and Anita Dobson
Brian May and Anita Dobson
Jenny Seagrove.  The Railway Children won Best Entertainment.
Jenny Seagrove. The Railway Children won Best Entertainment.
Mark Gatiss with Olivia Williams who will be appearing in Neil Labute's A Forest Dark And Deep from this week.
Mark Gatiss with Olivia Williams who will be appearing in Neil Labute's A Forest Dark And Deep from this week.
Dave Stewart and his latest protogees.
Dave Stewart and his latest protogees.
Gina McKee
Gina McKee
Stars of the upcoming Shrek The Musical (from left): Nigel Lindsay, Richard Blackwood and Nigel Harman.
Stars of the upcoming Shrek The Musical (from left): Nigel Lindsay, Richard Blackwood and Nigel Harman.
Sir. Patrick. Stewart.
Sir. Patrick. Stewart.
David Suchet
David Suchet
Gok Wan
Gok Wan
Joss Ackland
Joss Ackland
Rupert Everett and Kara Tointon
Rupert Everett and Kara Tointon
Matthew Fox who will appearing opposite Olivia Williams this week in Neil Labute's A Forest Dark And Deep
Matthew Fox who will appearing opposite Olivia Williams this week in Neil Labute's A Forest Dark And Deep
Mad Men's Elisabeth Moss who starred in The Children's Hour with Keira Knightley
Mad Men's Elisabeth Moss who starred in The Children's Hour with Keira Knightley
Frankenstein pair Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller playing a similar role for one night only.
Frankenstein pair Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller playing a similar role for one night only.
Jill Halfpenny, winner of Best Supporting Actress In A Musical for her role in Legally Blonde.
Jill Halfpenny, winner of Best Supporting Actress In A Musical for her role in Legally Blonde.
Sheridan Smith brought along her father and walked away with the award for Best Actress In A Musical for her role in Legally Blonde.
Sheridan Smith brought along her father and walked away with the award for Best Actress In A Musical for her role in Legally Blonde.
Ms Smith can be seen currently opposite Sienna Miller at the Theatre Royal Haymarket's Flare Path
Ms Smith can be seen currently opposite Sienna Miller at the Theatre Royal Haymarket's Flare Path
Mr & Mrs Lineker
Mr & Mrs Lineker
Amy Lame and Jonathan Simpson, Camden's first openly gay mayor
Amy Lame and Jonathan Simpson, Camden's first openly gay mayor
oa-22.jpg
oa-23.jpg
Michelle Terry walked off with the award for the Best Supporting Actress for her role in Tribes.
Michelle Terry walked off with the award for the Best Supporting Actress for her role in Tribes.
Sarah Goldberg plays two pregnant women in Best New Play winner Clybourne Park.
Sarah Goldberg plays two pregnant women in Best New Play winner Clybourne Park.
Anne-Marie Duff came out strongly against the cuts.
Anne-Marie Duff came out strongly against the cuts.
The lovely ladies from Love Never Dies, Sierra Boggess & Summer Strallen
The lovely ladies from Love Never Dies, Sierra Boggess & Summer Strallen
Lindsay Duncan accompanies her husband Hilton McRae who was nominated for his part in Over The Rainbow at the Trafalgar Studios.
Lindsay Duncan accompanies her husband Hilton McRae who was nominated for his part in Over The Rainbow at the Trafalgar Studios.
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Love Story's Emma Williams
Love Story's Emma Williams
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Love Story's Michael Xavier
Love Story's Michael Xavier

The Olivier Awards are probably the poshest-sounding gongs around. While the Oscar award was named after a librarian's uncle and the BAFTA after an unimaginative acronym, Laurence Olivier was one of the finest actors of his generation when things were very different: mobiles were for children, tweets are what he woke up to, and his idea of a social network would allegedly have been the gentleman's loos where the subterranean Cellar Bar at Zero Aldwych now sells cocktails in teacups.

Londonist was on hand beside the red carpet to see the runners, riders and blaggers turn up.  Unsurprisingly, many of the questions aimed at the arriving celebs dealt with the cuts to subsidised theatre.  Anne-Marie Duff and Tamsin Grieg both expounded on the importance of local theatre with Grieg lyrically adding that "storytelling is the medicine of the soul."  Sir Patrick Stewart, on the other hand, had his deflector shields up: asked if he was "made up" with James Corden after last year's spat, he pithily retorted that he never wore make up on the street.

We missed the chance to ask Brian May (astronomy PhD and occasional musician) whether a supermoon could have caused the Japanese earthquake, we wanted to find out why Dave Stewart is looking more and more like Timothy Spall and we would have loved to have known if Matthew Fox was growing his big grey beard for a bet or as an impromptu animal sanctuary.  People's Poppet Sheridan Smith brought along her dad Colin (bless) and waxed effusively over her new play but, alas, this time she didn't encourage us to fondle her tits.

We were glad to see Clybourne Park acclaimed as Best New Play, Sheridan Smith winning for Legally Blonde, La Bohème beating out far bigger competition for Best New Opera and Stephen Sondheim's Into The Woods taking the award for best revived musical.  Sondheim was also presented with a Special Award, Roger Allam deservedly grabbed the best actor gong for Henry IV Parts 1 and 2 while Michelle Terry, winner of the Best Female Performance prize at the recent OffWestEnd Awards for her role in Tribes, walked away as this year's Best Actress In A Supporting Role.  Congratulations one and all.

A full list of winners can be seen here.

All photos (c) Lisa Thomson.

Last Updated 15 March 2011