How to watch the 2021 BAFTA Film Awards online from anywhere

Bafta Awards Bafta (Image credit: BAFTA)

The 2021 awards season continues and this weekend fans of British films can tune in to watch the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) present the 74th annual BAFTA Film Awards and we have all the details on how you can watch this year's award show on TV or online.

The BAFTA Film Awards are Britain's answer to the Oscars and for the first time ever, the awards have been split into two separate ceremonies which will both be broadcast live from the Royal Albert Hall in London. However, this year's winners will be accepting their awards virtually due to the pandemic. At the same time though, BAFTA has introduced a brand new voting system which has resulted in a much more varied lineup than in years past when it comes to the nominees. The 2021 BAFTA Film Awards will also feature a long list of star presenters including Hugh Grant, Tom Hiddleston, Felicity Jones, James McAvoy, Pedro Pascal and more.

The BAFTA Film Awards Opening Night ceremony will take place on Saturday and will be hosted by the British radio and television presenter Clara Amfo. The first night of this year's awards show will give viewers an in-depth look at the filmmaking process by using behind the scenes footage from the nominated films. Craft categories will also be a big focus on Saturday at the BAFTA Film Awards and the winners from casting, costumes, make up and hair, production design, sound, special visual effects, British short film and British short animation will all be announced.

Sunday's ceremony will be hosted by the Scotish radio DJ and TV presenter Edith Bowman as well as the British radio DJ and TV presenter Dermot O'Leary. The remaining 17 awards in the will be presented on Sunday night including the EE Rising Star award that is voted for by members of the public.

When it comes to this year's nominees, Nomadland and the British film Rocks lead the pack with seven nominations. Other films that have been nominated for this year's BAFTA Film Awards include The Mauritanian, The Trial of the Chicago 7, Promising Young Woman, The Father and Sound of Metal.

Whether you're a big British film fan or just want to tune in to see one of the first ever award shows spread across two nights, we'll show you exactly how to watch the 2021 BAFTA Film Awards from anywhere in the world.

BAFTA Film Awards: When and where?

The 2021 BAFTA Film Awards will take place over the course of two nights on Saturday, April 10 and Sunday, April 11 at the Royal Albert Hall in London. The BAFTA Film Awards Opening Night and craft awards will be shown on Saturday at 3pm ET / 8pm BST on BBC Two while the EE BAFTAs will be shown on Sunday at 4pm ET / 9pm BST on BBC One. In the U.S., you'll be able to watch both nights of the 2021 BAFTA Film Awards on BBC America.

Live stream the BAFTA Film Awards in the UK for free

UK viewers will be able to watch both nights of the 2021 BAFTA Film Awards on TV on BBC or online using BBC iPlayer. The BAFTA Film Awards Opening Night and craft awards will air on BBC Two on Saturday, April 10 at 8pm BST while the EE BAFTAs will air on BBC One on Sunday, April 11 at 9pm BST.

BBC iPlayer

Viewers in the UK can watch the BBC's coverage of the BAFTAs for free via BBC iPlayer.

Watch the BAFTA Film Awards from anywhere

We have all the details on how you can watch the 2021 BAFTA Film Awards in the U.S., Canada, the UK and Australia further down in this guide. However, if you want to watch this year's award show when you're away from home, then you'll run into problems as your domestic coverage online from abroad will likely be geo-blocked.

That's where a VPN (Virtual Private Network) can really come in handy. They allow you to virtually change the IP address of your laptop, tablet or mobile to one that's back in your home country which will let you watch as if you were back there.

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How to watch the BAFTA Film Awards in the U.S.

If you live in the U.S. and want to watch the 2021 BAFTA Film Awards, then you'll need either a cable package or a subscription to a streaming service that gives you access to BBC America. The network will show Sunday's EE BAFTAs at 9pm ET/PT. However, in order to watch the BAFTA Film Awards Opening Night and craft awards on Saturday, you'll need to grab a VPN and follow the instructions above.

Don't want to sign up for cable just to watch the 2021 BAFTA Film Awards? Don't worry as there are now a number of streaming services, all at different price points, that will give you access to BBC America so you can watch the awards show online. We've listed a few of our favorites below to make things easier for you.

Philio - $20 per month - Philio gives you access to BBC America and 60 other live TV channels for just $20 per month. The service also includes unlimited DVR so you can record your favorite shows and there is a 7-day free trial so you can test it out for yourself.
Sling TV - $35 per month - In order to get access to BBC America, you'll have to sign up for either Sling TV's Sling Blue or Sling Orange package as they both include the channel. The service also lets you watch on three screens simultaneously and record live TV with its Cloud DVR.
YouTube TV - $65 per month - YouTube TV gives you access to BBC America as well as over 70 other TV channels and a free 7-day trial is available.
FuboTV - starting at $64.99 per month. FuboTV gives you access to BBC America as well as over 80 other channels. The service also includes a 7-day free trial so you can test it out for yourself.
AT&T TV Now - $69.99 per month - In order to watch BBC America on AT&T TV Now, you'll need to sign up for the service's Entertainment package which costs $93 per month. AT&T TV Now also allows you to watch o

Get a BAFTA Film Awards livestream in Canada

Canadian viewers will be about the watch the 2021 BAFTA Film Awards on Hollywood Suite's 00s Movies channel beginning at 8pm ET / 10:20pm PT on Sunday, April 11. Just like in the U.S. though, you'll need to grab a VPN and follow the instructions above to watch the BAFTA Film Awards Opening Night and craft awards on Saturday.

Watch the BAFTA Film Awards in Australia

While the BAFTA Film Awards have aired on BBC UKTV in Australia in the past, it looks like the network won't be showing this year's award show. This means that you'll need to grab a VPN and follow the instructions above to watch the 2021 BAFTA Film Awards in Australia.

2021 BAFTA Film Awards Nominees

While you can see the full list of nominees for this year's BAFTA Film Awards on the official BAFTA website, we've listed a few of the nominees from our favorite categories below:

Best Film

The Father (Philippe Carcassonne, Jean-louis Livi, David Parfitt)
The Mauritanian (TBC)
Nomadland (Mollye Asher, Dan Janvey, Frances Mcdormand, Peter Spears, Chloé Zhao)
Promising Young Woman (Ben Browning, Emerald Fennell, Ashley Fox, Josey Mcnamara)
The Trial Of The Chicago 7 (Stuart Besser, Marc Platt)

Documentary

Collective (Alexander Nanau)
David Attenborough: A Life On Our Planet (Alastair Fothergill, Jonnie Hughes, Keith Scholey)
The Dissident (Bryan Fogel, Thor Halvorssen)
My Octopus Teacher (Pippa Ehrlich, James Reed, Craig Foster)
The Social Dilemma (Jeff Orlowski, Larissa Rhodes)

Animated Film