London Film Critics' Circle

The London Film Critics' Circle is the name by which the Film Section of the Critics' Circle is known internationally.

The word London was added because it was thought the term Critics' Circle Film Awards did not convey the full context of the awards' origins; the LFCC wished its annual Awards to be recognised on film advertising, especially in the United States, and in production notes.

The Critics' Circle, founded in 1913, is an association for working British critics. Film critics first became eligible for membership of the Circle in 1926. The Film section now has more than 120 members drawn from publications and the broadcasting media throughout the United Kingdom.

Film section members of the Critics' Circle will have worked as a critic or have written or broadcast informed analytical features or programmes about film for British publications and media for at least a year, their income mostly derived from reviewing and writing about film.

The Critics' Circle Film Awards, instituted in 1980 and known for several years as they are awarded annually by the Film section of the Critics' Circle.

Voted for by all members of the Film section, the Awards have become a major event in London, presented at a dinner dance held in a large West End hotel. Since 1995 they have been a charity event in aid of the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC).

Over time the Award categories have gradually changed, some added, some dropped. For some categories this means that winners were not necessarily declared or listed in each of the Awards year.

In 2007, following widespread objections from Irish actors and filmmakers at being nominated for "Best British" awards, it was decided that Irish filmmakers, actors and others involved in the film industry would be eligible for awards which do not have the word "British" in the title. To that end the titles of several of the awards were amended to exclude the word "British". The Attenborough Award now goes to the best "British" and/or "Irish" film of the year, while the two British Supporting Actor awards lost the word "British" so that actors who regard themselves as either British and Irish (or both) are eligible for the supporting acting awards.[citation needed] The policy of including Irish candidates in certain "British" categories continues to generate controversy.[1]

Since 2007, the Newcomer Award was divided into two Breakthrough Awards, one for Acting, the other for Filmmaking. Previously filmmakers and actors had competed against each other for the Newcomer award.[citation needed]