Someone might want to let TIME mag know that the BAFTA awards were not held before the Oscars until around 2000, when they changed their date and thus became an influencer, or not. TIME uses Gandhi as an example of an unbeatable BAFTAMPAS movie — but we Oscar watchers know that you can’t count it as a precursor if it happened “after.” Still, TIME says it’s a crazy person who bet agains the sweepie.
But no amount of magic can disguise the fact that this year’s awards will be forever associated with The King’s Speech. Its seven BAFTA’s can be added to the mantelpiece (which will surely need an extension before the month’s out) with the gongs already collected at the Producers Guild of America, the Directors Guild, and the Screen Actors Guild. Only the little gold men remain, and if you’re impressed with The King’s Speech receiving 14 BAFTA nominations, a look back in history may well point to future Oscar success. The film that holds the record for the most ever BAFTA nods is Gandhi, which was shortlisted for 16 and won five in 1983. But it went on to win eight Oscars, including those for Best Film and Actor. It would be folly to not think that The King’s Speech will similarly reign supreme.