Oscar tip: The King's Speech

The Oscar hype machine is being revved up for another season. After premiering to rave reviews and winning the audience award at the Toronto Film Festival, The King's Speech has been named the early Oscar favourite. Its star, Colin Firth, in the pole position to pick up the award for best actor he almost won last year with A Single Man.

With eight nominations, the film is also expected to be the big winner at this year's British Independent Film Awards in London on 5 December.

"This year's nominations truly reflect the scope of independent film-making in the UK, and regardless of budget, each category showcases the wealth and variety of talent committed to making quality British films," the awards' organizers, Johanna von Fischer and Tessa Collinson, told the BBC.

The King's Speech is about the efforts of Britain's King George VI to overcome a chronic stammer in the run-up to the Second World War. It stars Firth as King George, Geoffrey Rush as his speech therapist, Timothy Spall as Winston Churchill and Helena Bonham Carter as the future queen mother.