Jim Broadbent has won Oscar success for the UK with a best supporting actor award for his role in Iris.

The actor beat off competition from other UK hopefuls - the category favourite Sir Ian McKellen for Lord of the Rings, and Sir Ben Kingsley for Sexy Beast.

Stone the crows

Jim Broadbent

"Making Iris was the most joyful, wonderful experience. (Thanks) above all to Richard Eyre for writing a wonderful script," said Broadbent, who played the husband of Iris Murdoch, John Bayley.

Dame Judi Dench was also nominated for her role as the writer Murdoch, but the best actress Oscar was handed to Halle Berry for her performance in Monster's Ball.

Another success for the UK was Julian Fellowes, writer of Gosford Park, who won best original screenplay.

"I feel as if I'm in A Star is Born - my thanks start with the great Robert Altman who's given me the biggest break into movies," he said.

Dame Judi Dench: Missed out for a second year

"When I'm not working I'm mean, moody and difficult and when I start working I become someone who's become even more mean, moody and difficult. Thankyou very much and God bless America."

Breaking the habit

Earlier in the evening three UK actresses missed out on awards after the best supporting actress Oscar went to Jennifer Connelly for A Beautiful Mind.

Connelly beat Broadbent's Iris co-star Kate Winslet, and Gosford Park's Dame Maggie Smith and Helen Mirren.

As Winslet arrived at the ceremony with boyfriend Sam Mendes, she had joked: "This is the third time I've been nominated and it would be a shame to break a habit if I won."

Winner Julian Fellowes shared a joke with Dame Maggie Smith before the ceremony

Music veterans Sting and Sir Paul McCartney lost out to Randy Newman for Monster's Inc in the original score category.

Sir Paul was nominated for his music in the thriller Vanilla Sky, while Sting's track was used in comedy Kate and Leopold.

Tom Wilkinson lost out in the best leading actor category to Denzel Washington, who won for his performance in Training Day.

The number of UK acting nominees this year is an improvement on 2001, when just three - Julie Walters, Dame Judi Dench and Albert Finney - were up for awards.

All ended up missing out, however, along with UK director Ridley Scott for Gladiator.

Tom Wilkinson had sought his first Oscar

Praise

This was Dame Judi's fourth Oscar nomination in five years. Last year she was up for best supporting actress for Chocolat.

In 1999 she won the same trophy for playing Elizabeth I in Shakespeare in Love.

Wilkinson's performance in the American drama In the Bedroom has been widely praised.

The Full Monty star changes tack to play Matt Fowler, a father who defies his respectable appearance to exact a terrible act of revenge after his son is murdered.

Rivals

Sting: Failed to win best original song

Britain had an early win in one of the technical categories, when Peter Owen shared the best make-up prize with Richard Taylor for Lord Of The Rings.

Briton Jenny Beavan, who worked on Gosford Park, has lost out in the best costume design category to Moulin Rouge designers Catherine Martin and Angus Strathie.

And Gosford Park art directors Stephen Altman and Ann Pinnock were also beaten to an Oscar in their field by Ms Martin, wife of Moulin Rouge director Baz Luhrmann.

Away from the acting fields, UK director Ridley Scott was nominated as best director for his war movie Black Hawk Down - he lost to Ron Howard, director of A Beautiful Mind.