Jessie Buckley has won Leading Actress at the BAFTA Film Awards in London for her performance in Hamnet.
She becomes the first Irish actress to take the top honour in the category at the main BAFTA Film Awards, and she received the award from her fellow Irish actor and BAFTA winner Cillian Murphy.
Hamnet, which "tells the powerful love story that inspired the creation of Shakespeare's timeless masterpiece, Hamlet", sees Buckley play Agnes, the wife of William Shakespeare, played by Paul Mescal.
Accepting her BAFTA, Buckley said: "As a little girl, I never in a million years thought I would get to make a film."
Recalling her early days, the Killarney native said: "I had nuclear bad fake tan on, white hoop earrings, a polka-dot red skirt, and had the audacity to say one day I wanted to be like Judi Dench.
"This is nuts, this really does belong to the women past, present, and future who taught me and continue to teach me how to do it differently."
Watch: Hamnet stars Jessie Buckley and Paul Mescal talk to RTÉ Entertainment's Alan Corr
Addressing her fellow nominees at London's Royal Festival Hall, Buckley said: "You are all just radical and you are doing it for the naughty girls, and I'm in awe of all your incredible performances."
She continued: "I love films and I believe in storytelling. I believe in women's voices to tell those stories."
She added: "I share this with my daughter, who has been with me since she was six weeks old on the road with this.
"It's the best role of my life being your mum and I promise to continue to be disobedient so you can belong to a world in all your complete wildness as a young woman. I am very grateful for this."
There was disappointment for Buckley's Hamnet co-star Mescal in the Supporting Actor category, where he lost out to One Battle After Another star Sean Penn.
Hamnet was also named Outstanding British Film on the night.
The Chloé Zhao-directed historical drama of Coleraine-born author Maggie O'Farrell's bestseller had been nominated in 11 categories.
Avatar's Irish visual effects lynchpin Richard Baneham was once again a BAFTA winner - his third - for Avatar: Fire and Ash.
The incredible team behind Avatar: Fire and Ash accept the Special Visual Effects BAFTA 🔥 #EEBAFTAs pic.twitter.com/y021DgEkMv
— BAFTA (@BAFTA) February 22, 2026
The Dublin-based Element Pictures also had a win to savour on the night: the acclaimed Nigeria-set drama My Father's Shadow, which it co-produced, was named Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director, or Producer.
The political action-comedy One Battle After Another was the biggest winner on the night with six BAFTAs, including Best Film and Best Director for Paul Thomas Anderson.
Attention now turns to the Oscars in Hollywood on Sunday, 15 March.
The winners on the night:
Best Film
One Battle After Another
Leading Actress
Jessie Buckley, Hamnet
Leading Actor
Robert Aramayo, I Swear
Director
Paul Thomas Anderson, One Battle After Another
BAFTA Fellowship Award
Donna Langley
EE Rising Star Award (voted for by the public)
Robert Aramayo
Outstanding British Film
Hamnet
Film Not in the English Language
Sentimental Value
Adapted Screenplay
One Battle After Another, Paul Thomas Anderson
Original Score
Sinners, Ludwig Göransson
Cinematography
One Battle After Another, Michael Bauman
Animated Film
Zootropolis 2, Jared Bush, Byron Howard, Yvett Merino
Casting
I Swear, Lauren Evans
Editing
One Battle After Another, Andy Jurgensen
Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema
Clare Binns, Creative Director of Picturehouse Cinemas
Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director, or Producer
My Father's Shadow, Akinola Davies Jr, Wale Davies
British Short Animation
Two Black Boys in Paradise, Baz Sells, Dean Atta, Ben Jackson
Original Screenplay
Sinners, Ryan Coogler
British Short Film
This Is Endometriosis, Georgie Wileman, Matt Houghton, Harriette Wright
Documentary
Mr Nobody Against Putin, David Borenstein, Helle Faber, Radovan Síbrt, Alzbeta Karaskova
Costume Design
Frankenstein, Kate Hawley
Production Design
Frankenstein, Tamara Deverell, Shane Vieau
Sound
F1, Gareth John, Al Nelson, Gwendolyn Yates Whittle, Gary A Rizzo, Juan Peralta
Make Up & Hair
Frankenstein, Jordan Samuel, Cliona Furey, Mike Hill, Megan Many
Children's & Family Film
Boong, Lakshmipriya Devi, Ritesh Sidhwani
Supporting Actor
Sean Penn, One Battle After Another
Supporting Actress
Wunmi Mosaku, Sinners
Special Visual Effects
Avatar: Fire and Ash, Richard Baneham, Daniel Barrett, Joe Letteri, Eric Saindon
