Oscars 2026: Your Complete UK Viewing Guide for Hollywood's Biggest Night
The film industry's most anticipated evening has arrived as Hollywood prepares to celebrate another remarkable year of cinema with the 98th Academy Awards. The Oscars 2026 ceremony will see the biggest names in entertainment gather at the iconic Dolby Theatre, where nominees will discover if their work has earned them the coveted gold-plated statuette. For the third consecutive year, UK audiences can enjoy live, free coverage of this glittering event, though staying up late will be required.
How to Watch the Oscars 2026 in the United Kingdom
British viewers have multiple options for tuning into the Academy Awards ceremony. The Oscars will be broadcast exclusively on ITV1 and the streaming service ITVX throughout the United Kingdom. Meanwhile, audiences in Central and Northern Scotland can watch the show on ITV's Scottish counterpart, STV and STV Player.
Jonathan Ross will host live Oscars coverage beginning at 10:15pm on ITV, joined by a distinguished panel including Elle Osili Wood, Samson Kayo, and Fred Asquith. The pre-show coverage will feature live footage from the red carpet as celebrities arrive, hosted by Good Morning Britain's Ross King.
Oscars 2026 Start Time and Schedule Details
The main Oscars ceremony will commence at midnight UK time, which corresponds to 7pm Eastern Time in the United States. Coverage will continue through the early hours of Monday morning, with the ceremony expected to conclude around 2:35am UK time on ITV. As with any live television event, the exact timing may vary depending on unexpected developments during the broadcast.
Host and Ceremony Expectations
Conan O'Brien returns to host the Oscars for the second consecutive year, having taken over from fellow comedian and talk show host Jimmy Kimmel in 2025. O'Brien recently shared insights about the upcoming ceremony, stating, 'We have a lot of possibilities. Early on, you just generate possibilities for the show: "What might we do?" You have to wait and see which movies are nominated, what's in the zeitgeist, so there'll be a lot of ideas that come in late. Sometimes those are the best ideas.'
While keeping specific details under wraps, O'Brien promised audiences 'a lot of magic' and revealed, 'There'll be some explosions, CGI will be used. I see this second Oscars as an opportunity to take things up a notch.'
Notable Nominations and Contenders
The American horror film Sinners, directed by Ryan Coogler, leads this year's nominations with a record-breaking 16 nods. Following closely is One Battle After Another with 13 nominations, while Sentimental Value, Frankenstein, Marty Supreme, and Hamnet each received significant recognition with 9, 9, 9, and 8 nominations respectively.
All these films appear in the Best Picture category alongside Bugonia, Train Dreams, The Secret Agent, and F1. The Best Director category features Chloe Zhao for Hamnet, Josh Safdie for Marty Supreme, Paul Thomas Anderson for One Battle After Another, Joachim Trier for Sentimental Value, and Ryan Coogler for Sinners.
In the acting categories, notable nominees include:
- Best Actor: Timothée Chalamet (Marty Supreme), Leonardo DiCaprio (One Battle After Another), Ethan Hawke (Blue Moon), Michael B. Jordan (Sinners), Wagner Moura (The Secret Agent)
- Best Actress: Jessie Buckley (Hamnet), Rose Byrne (If I Had Legs I'd Kick You), Kate Hudson (Song Sung Blue), Renate Reinsve (Sentimental Value), Emma Stone (Bugonia)
Complete Oscar Nominations List 2026
The 98th Academy Awards feature nominations across numerous categories, highlighting the year's cinematic achievements:
- Best Picture: Bugonia, F1, Frankenstein, Hamnet, Marty Supreme, One Battle After Another, The Secret Agent, Sentimental Value, Sinners, Train Dreams
- Best Director: Chloe Zhao (Hamnet), Josh Safdie (Marty Supreme), Paul Thomas Anderson (One Battle After Another), Joachim Trier (Sentimental Value), Ryan Coogler (Sinners)
- Best Actor: Timothée Chalamet (Marty Supreme), Leonardo DiCaprio (One Battle After Another), Ethan Hawke (Blue Moon), Michael B. Jordan (Sinners), Wagner Moura (The Secret Agent)
- Best Actress: Jessie Buckley (Hamnet), Rose Byrne (If I Had Legs I'd Kick You), Kate Hudson (Song Sung Blue), Renate Reinsve (Sentimental Value), Emma Stone (Bugonia)
- Best Supporting Actor: Benicio del Toro (One Battle After Another), Jacob Elordi (Frankenstein), Delroy Lindo (Sinners), Sean Penn (One Battle After Another), Stellan Skarsgård (Sentimental Value)
- Best Supporting Actress: Elle Fanning (Sentimental Value), Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas (Sentimental Value), Amy Madigan (Weapons), Wunmi Mosaku (Sinners), Teyana Taylor (One Battle After Another)
Additional categories include Best Original Screenplay, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Animated Film, Best International Feature, Best Documentary, and numerous technical awards covering cinematography, costume design, editing, makeup, production design, score, song, sound, and visual effects.
The Oscars 2026 ceremony represents the culmination of another extraordinary year in filmmaking, with Sinners positioned as the frontrunner with its unprecedented 16 nominations. UK viewers can experience all the glamour, suspense, and celebration beginning at 10:15pm on ITV1 and ITVX, with the main ceremony starting at midnight.
