• Best Actress winner Helen Mirren revealed she didn’t have to wear underwear for the big event because her Christian Lacroix dress was custom-made. Helen took the dress along with her to show it off when she appeared on Oprah Winfrey’s annual post-Oscar special yesterday. She said: “you look at the inside of this dress. It’s as beautiful as the outside. It’s fantastic. It was all made for me, so I didn’t have to have any underwear. It held [my boobs] like two angel’s hands.”
  • Helen has also said that after winning the award for playing Queen Elizabeth II, she would like to play the Queen’s daughter-in-law Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall. Helen is particularly interested in showing how Camilla stuck by Prince Charles despite a public backlash: “I am fascinated by the notion of playing Camilla. It made me ashamed for my country that people could be so venal and nasty.”
  • X Factor judges Sharon Osbourne and Simon Cowell were spotted having an argument at Elton John’s Oscar Viewing Party. An onlooker told the Sun that Sharon was disgusted by how Simon had treated Best Supporting Actress winner Jennifer Hudson on his show American Idol in 2005: “Sharon was screaming, ‘F*** you’. She was steaming angry and didn’t care who was watching. Cowell looked furious. He ended up storming off and going outside to cool off.” Simon had told Jennifer that she was “out of [her] depth” in the competition.
  • Sharon Stone took to the auctioneer’s pedestal for the fundraising element of Elton’s party to help drum up some money for his AIDS Foundation but while last time she led an auction, the audience were the problem, this time it was her. Sharon admitted to being drunk when she took to the stage, saying: “I’ve been sitting at my table with P Diddy and Jon Bon Jovi, and I’m a little messed up. S**t happens. I’m a bad, bad girl.” However despite that, the auction raised $4.2million for the charity.
  • Eddie Murphy was reportedly not best pleased to lose the Best Supporting Actor award to Alan Arkin. Eddie, who was favourite to win, told Us Weekly soon after the announcement, “It’s fine. It happens. It’s OK,” but then he and girlfriend Tracey Edmonds left the ceremony early and didn’t return, missing co-star Jennifer Hudson picking up her award and the Dreamgirls performances.
  • Best Supporting Actor winner Alan Arkin is glad that his 10 year old co-star Abigail Breslin didn’t get the Best Supporting Actress award. On the way into the ceremony, Alan said: “I hope she loses frankly. No, I’m serious. I am not joking. What, next year the Nobel Prize? It’s enough. She has had enough attention. I love her and I love her family. I feel enough is enough. She is a kid, she needs to have a childhood.”