Oscar-nominated actress Salma Hayek arrived in London's West End on Thursday night for the UK premi�re of Frida.

Hayek plays the role of revolutionary Mexican artist Frida Kahlo in the film, which has received six mentions for next month's Academy Awards.

As she stepped on to the red carpet at the Odeon West End in Leicester Square, the 36-year-old said she was "very excited" about the prospect of winning the best actress Oscar.

Meanwhile, a few miles away in Notting Hill, west London, George Clooney was attending the British premi�re of his new sci-fi film, Solaris.

Clooney is promoting his sci-fi film, Solaris

In it the 41-year-old actor stars as a psychologist sent to investigate a series of mysterious events aboard a space station orbiting a strange planet.

Clooney and Hayek have been friends since co-starring in the cult 1996 vampire film From Dusk Till Dawn.

As well as Hayek's best actress nomination, Frida is up for best art direction, costume design, makeup, original score and song.

Hayek said it was thrilling for the film to receive six nominations.

"Only very few get to have this kind of acknowledgement and we just feel very fortunate," she told BBC Three's Liquid News programme.

Hayek spent seven years bringing Frida to the screen

She faces tough competition in the best actress contest against stars such as Nicole Kidman for The Hours and Ren�e Zellweger in Chicago.

But Hayek said: "It must be a little bit frustrating if you lose to someone you don't respect, but all of them are terrific, and I'm relaxed about it."

Frida tells the story of Kahlo's extraordinary life and how she came to be regarded as one of the world's greatest female artists.

At the age of 18 she was involved in a bus accident in which a metal handrail pierced her pelvis, leaving her unable to have children.

She suffered a number of other injuries, and began to paint during a lengthy convalescence.

The film co-stars Alfred Molina as Kahlo's husband, fellow painter Diego Rivera.

Hayek has light-heartedly described the movie as "a love story between an overweight man and a hairy woman".