Saoirse Ronan and Brendan Gleeson honoured at BIFAs

Irish talent collected a host of awards at last night's British Independent Film Awards, with Saoirse Ronan and Brendan Gleeson among the night's big winners.
Ronan (pictured above) claimed the Best Actress award for her work in Brooklyn, for which she's also expected to grab an Oscar nod. Gleeson, meanwhile, made it two from two, as he followed up last year's Best Actor winner for Calvary, with a Best Supporting Actor gong for Suffragette; in his absence, the silverware was collected by his son, Domhnall.
The Best International Independent Film, meanwhile, was Room, directed by Lenny Abrahamson - capping an awesome night for the Irish contingent.
Leading the tributes from home has been The Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Heather Humphreys TD. “I would like to congratulate all of the Irish winners at last night's BIFAs," she said in a statement. "Saoirse, Brendan and Lenny are fantastic examples of the wealth of talent that exists within the Irish film industry, which is rightly being recognised internationally. Irish successes at major film festivals and awards ceremonies not only provides recognition to the actors and film makers involved, it helps to shine a spotlight on the entire Irish film industry. With the continuing success of Brooklyn and the imminent release of Room, as well as a range of other releases, 2016 promises to be a very exciting year for Irish film."
And so say all of us!