And the Oscars went to.......

The Oscars are done and dusted for another year in what was another long and drawn out ceremony only occasionally bolstered by controversial host and Family Guy creator Seth McFarlane. Here are the major winners and highlights……..

BEST MOTION PICTURE: ARGO

Curiously announced by First Lady Michelle Obama via satellite after an unexpected political diatribe, an ecstatic director Ben Affleck who first picked up a golden man with Matt Damon for writing Good Will Hunting 15 years ago, referenced the hard road to his spectacular return to form (ten years ago he was at the depths starring in turkey gobbler Gigli) “I never thought I would be back here but I am,” said Affleck who was snubbed in the Best Director category. “You can’t hold grudges,” he said of working in the dream factory. “It doesn’t matter how you get knocked down in life. All that matters is that you’ve got to get back up.”

BEST LEAD ACTOR: DANIEL DAY LEWIS (LINCOLN)

Day-Lewis, now the first man to win three Best Actor Oscars and sporting a fresh congratulatory lipstick kiss from presenter Meryl Streep initially looked shell-shocked but proved what a good actor he is launching into a comedy set dropping some of the wittier lines of the awards;

“Since we got married sixteen years ago, my wife has had to live with some very strange men,” he quipped.

BEST ACTRESS: JENNIFER LAWRENCE (SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK)

Poor Jen had a stack up the stage stairs which was then rewarded by a standing ovation from the audience;

“You guys are just standing up because I fell and you feel bad, thank you, it’s so embarrassing” Lawrence joked.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: CHRISTOPH WALTZ (DJANGO UNCHAINED)

An unexpected winner beating favourite Tommy Lee Jones (Lincoln), the Austrian praised his director Quentin Tarantino who cast Waltz in his first Oscar winning role in Inglourious Basterds in 2010.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: ANNE HATHAWAY (LES MISERABLES)

No surprises here with Hathaway picking up a swag of awards for her portrayal of the tortured Fantine. And she, like the rest of the Les Mis cast, proved that their on-set vocal gymnastics were no fluke in a rousing Les Mis medley that was the highlight of the night.

BEST DIRECTOR: ANG LEE (LIFE OF PI)

Quite the shock win here but no less deserving, Ang Lee wins for Life of Pi beating favourite Steven Spielberg (Lincoln).

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY: QUENTIN TARANTINO (DJANGO UNCHAINED)

The quirky Tarantino proved just as modest as ever accepting the gong for his original screenplay for his blood soaked ode to the spaghetti western;

"I actually think if people are knowing about my movies 30 or 50 years from now, it's going to be because of the characters I create. And I really only got one chance to get it right. I have to cast the right people to make those characters come alive and hopefully live for a long time. And, boy, this time did I do it,” said the king of self belief.