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RECOGNITION: (l-r) Octavia Spencer who is up for an individual award as well as celebrating the nomination of Hidden Figures with co-stars Taraji P. Henson and Janelle Monae

WITH EVERYONE from the BBC to director of MTV documentary White People, Jose Antonio Vargas, getting involved in circulating #OscarsNotSoWhite on social media; anyone would think there was a non-white dominance of the Oscar nominations this year, which is not the case.

GLOWING: Naomie Harris
Still very much the anglo-American bastion of what is considered 'good' and 'worthy' film, the judging panel of this year's awards did give a respectful nod to many black filmmakers and actors, including Britain's very-own Naomie Harris (Moonlight), Golden Globe winner Viola Davis (Fences, movie titan Denzel Washington, relative newcomer Ruth Negga (Loving), Octavia Spencer (Hidden Figures and Mahershala Ali (Moonlight).

RADIANCE: Viola Davis with her recently-acquired Golden Globe
Yesterday afternoon bookmakers Betway shared their predictions on who would win what yesterday afternoon, naming Denzel Washington as second favourite to win Best Actor for theatre adaptation Fences, Ruth Negga a possible winner for Best Actress in true story Loving, Moonlight another second favourite to win Best Picture for its portrayal of a young man's navigation of the world, with Hidden Figures and Fences close behind in the rankings.

BEST IN CLASS: Ruth Negga with co-star Joel Edgerton

RIGHT HAND MAN: Mahershala Ali
Mahershala Ali (Moonlight), known for playing the bad guy in Marvel's Netflix series Luke Cage is a hands-down favourite to win Best Supporting Actor whilst Viola Davis is tipped to win Best Supporting Actress for her role as noble matriarch Rose in Fences; with Brit Naomie Harris and Octavia Spencer being named as other possible winners.

CROSS-ATLANTIC: Denzel Washington on The Graham Norton Show

The Oscar ceremony itself will take place on 26 February.

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