The children chase him on to the stage, and the ceremony begins proper. He is, he says, the last human host of the Oscars. And his first big joke is about opera and ballet, so well done me.

We begin with a short film of Conan dressed up as the woman from Weapons, or “Betty Davies with lupus” as he puts it.

He’s being chased by lots of children, through all the main films of the year. He runs around an F1 track. He plays a bit of ping pong. He travels back to Elizabethan England and then jumps out of a car. He turns up, animated, in KPop Demon Hunters and speaks Norwegian to Stellan Skarsgard. And Sinners.

This is spectacular. I kind of want to just watch this for four hours.

That’s a wrap from the fashion desk. A lot of brown. A lot of feathers. A lot of Chanel.

Over to the ceremony!

Michael B Jordan is chic personified in a black suit with Nehru collar, and waist chain. Understated, but with something a bit interesting, who needs more?

Paul Mescal has arrived at the eleventh hour in a black cardigan by Celine and it looks like he’s borrowed Ethan Hawke’s bolo tie. Gentle reminder: the cardigan is cashmere and it’s 27C

It’s all white on the night for Timothée Chalamet. The suit – made by Sarah Burton at Givenchy – feels a little sci-fi, and not at all the world of Marty Supreme, which is set in the 40s, and has had a signature colour of orange. If the actor infamously leaned into that, with him and his partner Kylie Jenner wearing the colour for the film’s premiere, he’s gone for a blank canvas here. Add the shades and shoes that look like they could easily stand up to 10k steps a day and he could be a futuristic overlord. Maybe that’s his next role?

Finally some vintage! Here’s the Marty Supreme costume designer, Miyako Bellizzi, in archival Dior by John Galliano

The suit of a winner! It’s Ryan Coogler, in Louis Vuitton, and what has now become a foregone conclusion: A Visible Watch. There seems to be some anxiety around over-dressing at the moment, particularly among the men. Still, the white tie on white shirt helps temper any stuffiness

Ten minutes to go until the ceremony starts. Or – if things go the same way as they did when I went a couple of years ago, and there’s a logjam of famous people who all wanted to pull a power move and be last to arrive – about 25 minutes.

Bradshaw update: Peter has made his way to the auditorium, and is currently discovering the joys of the mezzanine.

Teyana Taylor won a Golden Globe as best supporting actress wearing a Schiaparelli dress, which she said made her “feel and look like her own statue”. For the Oscars, she’s gone for Chanel, a brand that is currently winning fashion thanks to its new designer Matthieu Blazy – and a dress that is less statue and more show stopper. Who knows if that will translate to Taylor winning her again?

I was hoping Ethan Hawke would continue to dress like a cowboy in his bolo ties on the red carpet, but tonight he’s gone for a Prada three-piece tux with a longline jacket in what looks like velvet. I am, however, enjoying the memorable shirts everyone is wearing with their black tie. Death to the white shirt!

Chloé Zhao has some good previous with red carpet outfits – she wore trainers, pigtails and a plain Hermes dress to the Oscars in 2021, when she won best director. She’s gone in a different direction this time around,channelling all the best goth elements in one: shiny black layers, big sleeves and a veil. Can’t wait to see what she goes for next.

Half an hour to go until the ceremony begins. So, if you want to know where to watch, here’s a recap.

UK: ITV, 11pm to 3amish

US: ABC / Hulu, 4pm PT/7pm ET to 8pmish PT/ 11pmish ET

Australia: Channel 7, 10amish to 2pmish

Congratulations Australia – you live in the most civilised timezone to watch the Oscars.

Here’s Bugonia’s Emma Stone going full Regency in silver Louis Vuitton with little cap shoulders. It’s a little a la statuette to really stand out but maybe that’s the aim.

A word on the makeup though, which is the reason why every female nominee under 40 looks more or less the same. You can tell makeup artist Nina Park’s work from the lips. There’s no discernible lip liner, just a natural glossy tint which is smudged slightly above the cupid’s bow. But that’s more or less how Nina Park became – at least within some circles – a household name. The New York-based make up artist is known for working with some of the biggest names in Hollywood, including Emma Stone and Jessie Buckley. A bit dewy, a bit glowy, with this slightly fat lip, she’s weaponised no-makeup-makeup.

A textbook Oscar dress might have a full skirt and strapless bodice, with lots of sparkle. Elle Fanning’s dress – designed by Sarah Burton at Givenchy – fits the bill. Combined with an up-do and diamonds, the best supporting actress nominee is nothing if not classic glamour.

Also, for those not in the UK, here’s a guide to where to watch the Oscars

ITV has actually pulled off a very minor coup by booking Samson Kayo as one of its pundits. Kayo is a star of F1, which is (bewilderingly) nominated for best picture. This is almost exactly the same as if it had booked Leonardo DiCaprio in the year that Titanic won. Best of all, Kayo doesn’t look furious at all about spending the night sitting next to some bloke from TikTok in a windowless studio rather than actually being in LA.

In an industry first, Gap – yes, Gap – has found its way on to the Oscars red carpet. To clarify it’s now called GapStudio and is designed by Zac Posen who you may remember from the 90s for being as famous as the people he dressed. Until he dressed Michelle Obama. This looks like a corset-and-gown, though if I never see this electric blue again it’ll be too soon!

Oscars dressing for women is so often about The Gown – so massive props to Odessa A’zion for mixing it up. This Valentino outfit – apparently combined with 55 carats of diamonds – is both lounge-y and louche, adjectives that we’d love to apply to more red carpet outfits.

If any other Brits have been driven to a state of horrified catatonia by the unending photocalls of the AP livestream, good news is on the horizon. Actual, real-life television coverage is about to begin on ITV. Obviously the next 45 minutes aren’t going to qualify as quality telly – traditionally, it has consisted of whoever can be dragged to the studio in the middle of the night listlessly filling space with directionless waffle – but right now it’s all we’ve got.

Maleficent chic comes to the red carpet! Demi Moore’s dress is pure evil queen, complete with feathered bustier and a feathered skirt with the kind of sheen found on birds of paradise or – twitchers might note – a great-tailed grackle. Expect the birds – apparently found in south-eastern America and Mexico – to be on more moodboards soon.

It’s been a relatively sober night for menswear but this Amiri suit and tie (so many ties!) on Sinners star Miles Caton is chic and contemporary and different without clamouring for too much attention. My favourite menswear look so far

Finally some fashion derived from the event itself! Jessie Buckley has gone full throttle in a bespoke Chanel off-shoulder gown which looks somehow both old and new at the same time. She suits red, so it’s rather clever to create something face-framing which will sing when she’s standing in front of the lectern on the podium.

Wunmi Mosaku has done award season red carpets while pregnant with her second child – and worn jewel colours throughout. This emerald green dress, by Louis Vuitton, brings the sparkles needed for biggest award ceremony of all. Maybe it’s a sign that at the end of the night she’ll be named best supporting actress.

Begone the penguin suit of old. Enter the main character suit, here on Wagner Moura in Valentino. Styled by Ilaria Urbnati, who has transformed Donald Glover, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Barry Keoghan into red carpet pin ups, I’m told by Urbanati that the brooches are by a Brazilan designer.

As the costume designer behind Sinners, Ruth E Carter knows clothes – and knows black and white is always a winner, especially when it comes with a train. The addition of a clutch bag and sparkly platforms bring an endearing dash of “real person on a night out”. Actors never carry stuff or need to think about comfortable shoes, after all.

I wasn’t around much last week, and so the story of Jessie Buckley pulling a Chalamet by publicly disregarding cats is new to me, and has me in stitches. It’s interesting that Chalemet was mean about ballet and dominated the news cycle for days, but Buckley trashed an entire species of animal and seems to have got away with it. One can only conclude that the consensus sides with her, and cats are terrible animals.

Here’s Hudson Williams of Heated Rivalry fame wearing a Balenciaga suit and tie, Bulgari watch and handheld fan. To be fair it is 27C and they’re mostly in black tie

Can anyone outflank Sissy Spacek for low-key swagger? The veteran actor is in a chic Loewe suit with a popped collar and some chic sunglasses.

Truly a sparkling display that subverted old stereotypes about who should wear what and how and when

While we pass away the 90 remaining minutes before the Oscars actually starts, here’s a list of some of this year’s choice Oscars coverage from the super soaraway Guardian:

Peter Bradshaw’s Oscars 2026 predictions: who will win, who should win, who should’ve been in the running?

‘I’m wearing the tree fibre undies right now!’ An audience with the organisers of the Oscar goodie bags

Your Oscars questions answered: ‘The best film of the year hasn’t actually won best picture since 12 Years a Slave’

Academy wars: how did this season’s Oscars discourse get so toxic?

Oscars 2026 class photo: can you spot the tallest nominee – and a camouflaged Diane Warren?

Spike Lee can always be relied on for a bit of a look – and he’s got one here. right down to the bag covered in gold cassette tapes. But really he’s outshone by his wife Tonya Lewis Lee. Her gold dress is like an Oscar statuette – with extra cut-out detail. Both apt and also elegant.

Here’s Joel Edgerton in Louis Vuitton, tinted shades and a natty brooch.

A jazzy tie used to be a go-to for men who didn’t want to go full peacock on the red carpet but did want to show a bit more personality. Now it’s being trumped by a jazzy brooch. Forget Connell’s chain or the slutty little earring, tonight it is all about the bouji brooch.

Brown is a big colour in menswear atm – but it doesn’t usually make it to the red carpet. Kieran Culkin’s brown jacket is a refreshing change from all the black tuxedos, and is perhaps a bit more relatable to non-red carpet men, who might wear a Carhartt Michigan jacket, for example. Looks like this might become a trend – Domhnall Gleeson has also been spotted in a brown shirt.

Contemporary twists on ye olde tux continue to hold fort with Kumail Nanjiani looking dapper.

By the way, have you ever wondered: why all the watches? Well wonder no more. We’ve spoken to Ilaria Urbinati, one of the biggest menswear stylists in the biz and this year, a stylist in residence at pre-owned watch specialist, Watchfinder & Co.

“I think it’s simply the best accessory a man has. My clients have also become much more knowledgable about watches, a lot of them have a genuine interest in watches and have brands they’re passionate about. I’ve [also] seen more of a ‘watch nerd’ culture now, that maybe didn’t exist in the same way before. Many of the men I dress already own watches or have their own collections that they’re proud of. For me, it’s the accessory that really seals the outfit.”

So there you have it.

Texture is truly coursing through the red carpet tonight! Here’s Sinners star Jayme Lawson in a dress by Loewe which appears to be made of electric blue straws.

If fashion made textbooks, this picture of Vicky Krieps in Bottega Veneta might be used as an example of how black dresses look great on the red carpet.

It’s still probably the most common colour that Oscar-goers wear – from men’s tuxedos to women’s LBDs, black has been more than the default at points. See women wearing black to stand for #MeToo in 2018, or Billy Porter’s gender non-conforming black gown a year later. It also means something when they are a default. For the first Baftas post-Covid in 2021, stars stuck to black as a symbol of safety while last year, the ceremony saw a different kind of black: one that brought out celebrities’ goth side.

Judging by stars like Krieps and Amelia Dimoldenberg, so far the colour this year is giving classic with something a bit interesting. Let’s see how it develops as more attendees hit the red carpet.

Meanwhile, Peter Bradshaw’s red carpet whirlwind continues apace. It pleases me no end to announce that he has located Ken Jeong from The Masked Singer. “I can sort of go home now,” he writes on Instagram. Nice try, Peter, but if we’ve got to cover the whole ceremony then you have, too.

I don’t know if you’re following the AP red carpet feed but, if you are, you’re missing some of the most frenzied commenting I have ever seen. I have become particularly enamoured with the YouTube user who has spent the last 25 minutes typing “WHERE IS JAVIER BARDEM?” into the chatbox every few seconds. I truly pray that Javier Bardem turns up at some point, otherwise this poor fool is going to have an aneurism.

One thing that Conan O’Brien will almost certainly address in his monologue later is the slightly berserk furore that Timothée Chalamet blundered into when he told Matthew McConaughey that people don’t care about ballet and opera. The din caused by the ballet and opera communities getting their knickers in a twist has been so colossal that this weekend even Steven Spielberg waded in.

Speaking about his new movie Disclosure Day, Spielberg said that he still made films with the collective audience in mind. “We are all united with a whole bunch of feelings that we walk into the daylight with, or into the night-time with,” he said. “And there’s nothing like that. It happens in movies, and in concerts, and it happens in ballet and opera, by the way.”

Which is a relatively sick burn, and it probably means that Chalamet probably shouldn’t get his hopes up about landing a role in the next Jaws movie. But it also speaks to how happily Chalamet has allowed himself to become the villain of this year’s awards season. If he wins best actor later, there is a non-zero percent chance that he’ll even be booed. And opera singers can really boo from the diaphragm.

A rare sighting of pastels on the red carpet. This Louis Vuitton gown, with layers and layers of parma violet frills, is equal parts sweet and scene stealer. Much like Chase Infiniti, the woman who wears it.

Sentimental Value’s Renate Reinsve has been dialling up the glamour since she started the campaign trail. Here she is in a structually rigid strapless Louis Vuitton dress with what is technically known as a mega-slit. I worry about that train on the podium should she win but she still looks glorious.

It’s worth pointing out here that her stylist is Danielle Goldberg.
As my colleague Chloe Mac Donnell writes: “You might not know her name but you will know her work. She’s the stylist who has put Greta Lee in that Dior bow dress, Ayo Edibiri in Chanel’s turn-up jeans before they’d even appeared on the catwalk and Saoirse Ronan in a teeny, tiny electric blue JW Anderson shift dress.

Goldberg has the power to shape a celebrity’s style so that it transcends the red carpet. Her clients go on to secure lucrative brand deals, become fixtures on best dressed lists and influence the high street.

Goldberg’s minimalism is the antidote to method dressing. She lets her clients carve out and develop a quieter more personal style. It’s polished but not try-hard. It sounds easy but it’s no mean feat in Hollywood to ensure an A-lister doesn’t look like the clothes are wearing them.”

Expect to see more Goldberg girlies on the red carpet shortly …

We’re still early on the red carpet but there’s already a trend – with attendees wearing political pins. Hamnet costume designer Malgosia Turzanska wore an ICE Out pin on a safety pin dress, while producer Elizabeth Woodward and actor Saja Kilani both had “Artists4Ceasefire”.

This isn’t the first time Hollywood has worn pins to draw attention to issues – with HIV/Aids ribbons, anti-war badges and women’s rights appearing on the red carpet over the years.

2026 follows on from last year – when Billie Eilish and Mark Ruffalo wore red pins calling for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza. At this year’s Golden Globes and Grammy awards, “ICE Out” and “Be Good” pins were widely worn as part of the condemnation of actions of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Is it drawing attention to these issues in a way that broadcasts them to the world, or virtue signalling? You decide.

Old Hollywood is such a hackneyed reference – but Rose Byrne in a dress by JW Anderson’s Dior manages to make it look, well, pretty exquisite really. The key to updating the classic to 2026? Bright red, slightly clashing, lipstick.

Who doesn’t want to go to the Oscars in leather dungarees and a polka dot shirt? Blues singer Buddy Guy – who performs at the end of Sinners – is giving us outfit inspo. Let’s hope the rest of the red carpet brings more attendees having this much fun with their outfits.

Amelia Dimoldenberg’s brand of comedy is often described as awkward – so it makes sense her red carpet pose has a little of that quality. Otherwise, a black strapless Ralph Lauren gown with peplum and a string of sparkles is pure blue chip elegance.

Felcity Jones has arrived in lemon-coloured Prada proving old Hollywood – sleeveless, a sprinkle of crystals, a little tulle train, hair in a soft side wave – is bomb-proof if you stick to the formula

One of the most miraculous aspects of the night is that Conan O’Brien will once again host. His turn last year saved what had the potential to be a very dull evening, and it is very exciting to think about what he’ll do this year, with films that people have actually heard of. And, for that matter, what he’ll do about Train Dreams, a film so lacking in comedic potential that O’Brien tore into it during an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel last week.

What makes this even more miraculous is that it’s been reported that O’Brien will earn $15,000 for tonight’s duties, a figure that simultaneously seems quite high and extremely low. This isn’t just a one-night deal for O’Brien; he’s been writing jokes for the show with his staff since the end of last year, and has been on an exhausting weeks-long press tour for the ceremony. And, to put it into perspective, in 2010 – when he became host of the Tonight Show, then lost the Tonight Show, then received a settlement from NBC – it’s estimated that he made close to $40 million.

In other words, O’Brien is making tonight what he literally made in three hours of sleeping 16 years ago. He must really enjoy hosting.

Virality seems to be the end goal for Alice Carvalho, the brilliant lead of the brilliant The Secret Agent, who appears to be wearing a hessian dress with hip cut outs and some sort of molten brooch. Most of the cast are wearing South American designers, and indeed Carvalho is wearing Normando, a sustainable Amazonian brand.

Funnily enough, what really stands out here is the bag. No one brings a bag to the Oscars.

Here’s Maggie O’Farrell, author of Hamnet, looking like a modern Venus de Milo in a shocking pink gown, and what I think are lace sleeves. You have to respect people who treat red carpets as vehicles of unfettered self-expression

One person who is crushing the red carpet this year is our very own Oscars emissary Peter Bradshaw. If his Instagram is any indication, Peter is already blowing through the ceremony in a flurry of suave selfies. He is demonstrating a refreshing lack of self-consciousness, and my prediction is that he will have had his photo taken with every notable figure by the end of the evening.

Ever the wallflower, Arden Cho of KPop Demon Hunters is wearing a dramatic fishtail gown by Miss Sohee with an olive green sleeve-train.

This feels like a good segue into this year’s rug which is … red. For something nudging 50,000 sq ft, you’d think there would be some consistency on the colour. For the most part, it’s been red since 1961. It’s even named after it, Academy Red, though it’s closer in fact to burgundy. Then came 2023’s champagne-coloured carpet, which felt a bit on the nose (and got very dirty very quickly). It was actually prompted by the weather – they had to erect a tent over the carpet, which turned out to be orange, and that would have been a bit of a clash.

Vis a vis the gowns, none of this matters, says Melanie Wilkinson, our Guardian styling editor. “The red carpet dresses are so hard to get right. I think whether the dress goes well with the carpet or not is probably the last consideration.”

She did, however, suggest people avoid green.

(In case you were wondering, once the ceremony is over the carpet, the carpet is destroyed in an undisclosed manner.)

Perhaps slightly better is the Associated Press video, which is trained on attendees posing for the cameras. Obviously it’s worth pointing out that currently it’s a video of attendees who are willing to arrive at a ceremony two full hours before it actually begins, so maybe don’t brace yourself for too many A-listers just yet, but it’s better than nothing.

A quick word for UK readers. British television coverage of the run-up to the ceremony is a bit meagre and austere this year, so you won’t find much in the way of red carpet footage. However, there are live YouTube videos for us to monitor. There is this one, for example, which for the time being seems to solely consist of bored-looking reporters sullenly looking at their phones. But it will probably pick up in time.

Hello from the Guardian’s fashion desk! Lauren and I will be tracking the gowns and jackets and shoes (and pins?) on the Oscars red carpet tonight.

The greatest honour tonight is, of course, taking home an award. But given that stylists have arguably replaced editors as the most powerful brokers of taste, it would be a shame (and dull) to ignore the clothes, which are an extraordinarily well choreographed culmination of months of plotting and liaising and strategising. There will be a lot of Chanel because there is a new designer, Matthieu Blazy, and everyone wants to be part of his cabal. Ditto Dior. And Prada, which is the go-to brand if you fancy yourself as a bit of a kook.

It’s worth pointing out what they wear is not really about personal expression. The stylist-to-celebrity pipeline is a highly engineered marketing machine where celebrities borrow gowns, brands pay people to wear their stuff and fashion houses battle for visibility.

Try not to let that put you off though – and enjoy the frocks!