Category: Warwick Davis

Warwick Davis was honoured at Sunday’s EE BAFTA Awards with its highest honour, the Fellowship.

The actor, 55, reduced viewers to tears as he paid tribute in his acceptance speed to his late wife Samantha – who tragically died last year aged 53. 

But he also gave a shout out to a mystery person as he thanked someone referred to as ‘Sponge’ for helping him to ‘love again’. 

Fighting back tears, his voice broke as he said: ‘Special mention should go to Sponge, you know who you are. 

‘Thank you for showing me that life can still have meaning and for helping me to laugh and to love again.’

The message left fans speculating the identity of the mystery ‘Sponge’ who has helped the Harry Potter star through a difficult year, and wished the pair happiness. 

Taking to X, formerly Twitter, viewers said: ‘Who’s sponge?’;

‘Congratulations Warwick Davis What a legend !and what a speech! Hope he and Sponge have a wonderful life together. He dedicated award to his late wife,’;

‘Warwick Davis is some man. What a legend, and what a speech! Hope he and Sponge have a wonderful life together.’ 

The actor was among the stars honoured at last night’s ceremony held at the Royal Festival Hall – but he received the academy’s top accolade, the BAFTA Fellowship.

He became emotional as he dedicated the award to his beloved wife, as he said: ‘Above all I would like to dedicate and thank my wonderful wife Sammy who died almost a year ago. 

‘She was always so supportive of my career and encouraged me to grab every opportunity with both hands.’ 

Samantha – who was herself an actor – had been married to Warwick for 33 years, welcoming three children together, before her devastating death on March 24.

Taking to the stage to a standing ovation, he began his speech: ‘This is probably the best thing that has ever happened to me… and I’ve been in Star Wars!

‘I’m going to keep this short, it’s been a long night… short, yes you can laugh.’ 

Warwick went on: ‘I’m going to say thank you to my mum, my first agent, she’s the reason I am here tonight.’

He then thanked all his team who supported him throughout his career and shared the award with them, before amending: ‘Sod that. I’ve done all the work, it’s for me! This is all mine.’

Their daughter Annabelle, 27, and son Harrison, 21, were both seen crying in the audience as their dad thanked them helping him get through the tough year.

He said: ‘Since then, life has been pretty tough for me but thanks to the support of our wonderful children Annabelle and Harrison, I’ve been able to continue working and engaging in life.’ 

Star Wars actor Warwick paid an emotional tribute to Samantha, who he described as his ‘favourite human’ following her death.  

‘Her passing has left a huge hole in our lives as a family,’ the 54-year-old said in a statement. ‘I miss her hugs.’

He described Sammy, as he called her, as his ‘most trusted confidant and an ardent supporter of everything I did in my career’.

Warwick added: ‘She was a unique character, always seeing the sunny side of life. She had a wicked sense of humour and always laughed at my bad jokes.’

The couple’s children, Harrison and Annabelle, said ‘her love and happiness carried us through our whole lives’. ‘Mum is our best friend and we’re honoured to have received a love like hers,’ they added.

Samantha was diagnosed with achondroplasia, a bone growth disorder that causes dwarfism, as a child. 

Her husband is affected by a similar condition, spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia congenita. It meant he never grew taller than 3ft 6in.

Warwick said his wife’s mobility had become impaired in recent years but shared how she was determined not to let it bring her down.

He had kept vigil at his wife Samantha’s hospital bedside as she fought for her life against sepsis five years before her death aged 53.

She fell ill with sepsis in 2019 which led to intensive care treatment. This followed operations on her spine that were undertaken at University College London Hospital.

Their family had been gearing up for a caravan holiday in 2019 when Samantha suddenly fell ill with a mystery condition, something she put down to stress.

However, within days she was at death’s door with doctors telling her terrified husband that she had sepsis, a rare condition which sees the body’s immune system attack its own organs and tissues.

In 2022 Warwick opened up about Samantha’s health issues as he revealed she initially had a sensation of itchiness and exhaustion, but concern grew when she was unable to stand up.

Warwick called an out of hours doctor who told them to immediately go to their nearest A&E as they were worried she might have sepsis.

On arrival doctors examined Samantha and quickly became concerned about a scar on her back from a recent spinal surgery that was ‘inflamed with fluid, red, and hot to touch’.

Tests came back showing she had a deadly Streptococcus bacteria and meningitis infection, meaning she needed emergency surgery.

He told The Sun: ‘The next few hours were the longest of my life as I waited on the ward with our children in the empty space left by Sam’s hospital bed. I hoped it would not symbolise a future for us without her.’ 

The ordeal left Samantha in intensive care with doctors flooding her body with antibiotics in a bid to save her life.

The infection had ‘ravaged every cell in her body’, leaving Samantha extremely weak and her family worried about whether she would pull through. 

Warwick continued: ‘Our family gathered by her bedside; although optimistic, we were sort of saying goodbye in case Sam didn’t survive.’

‘It’s so hard to see someone you love more than anything in the world fighting to stay alive without the strength to even roll over in bed.’

Samantha was able to battle through the disease, although it took three months – and the constant companionship of her husband – to nurse her back to full health.

However, while Samantha physically recovered, the illness left its mark on both her and Warwick. 

‘I broke down every night thinking that this terrible illness that came out of nowhere might take my soulmate away from me,’ he told The Sun.

‘We never take life for granted now, living each day as if it were our last. I appreciate and cherish every moment that Sam and I spend together.’

It was revealed last month that Warwick is suing a London hospital alleging medical negligence following Samantha’s death.

The inquest, which was adjourned to a future date ‘as quickly as possible’, is expected to hear whether the treatment Samantha received at University College London Hospital for a spinal condition contributed to her death.

Samantha met her husband of 33 years when she had an uncredited role in his 1988 film Willow. 

The couple had been through struggles before, including losing two children.

After her death, Warwick said he felt like he could achieve anything with his wife by his side and that it felt like he had a ‘superpower’.

Warwick Davis left BBC One viewers ‘absolutely sobbing’ on Sunday night, as he gave a heartfelt tribute to his late wife during his acceptance speech at the 2025 BAFTAs.

The actor, 55, was honoured with a BAFTA Fellowship, which recognises those who have made an ‘outstanding and exceptional’ contribution to the screen.

He fought back tears as he accepted the gong and dedicated it to his wife Samantha, who tragically died last year, visibly moving both the star-studded audience and viewers watching at home.

Warwick was presented the award by his former Harry Potter co-star Tom Felton, while the audience were shown a montage of scenes from his famous projects, interspersed with clips from his fellow stars and family, praising his talents.

Taking to the stage to a standing ovation, he began his speech: ‘This is probably the best thing that has ever happened to me… and I’ve been in Star Wars!

‘I’m going to keep this short, it’s been a long night… short, yes you can laugh.’ 

Warwick went on: ‘I’m going to say thank you to my mum, my first agent, she’s the reason I am here tonight.’

He then thanked all his team who supported him throughout his career and shared the award with them, before amending: ‘Sod that. I’ve done all the work, it’s for me! This is all mine.’

While he then became emotional as he dedicated the award to his beloved wife, who passed almost one year ago at the age of 53.

Warwick said: ‘Above all I would like to dedicate and thank my wonderful wife Sammy who died almost a year ago. 

‘She was always so supportive of my career and encouraged me to grab every opportunity with both hands.’

Samantha – who was herself an actor – had been married to Warwick for 33 years, welcoming three children together, before her devastating death on March 24.

Their daughter Annabelle, 27, and son Harrison, 21, were both seen crying in the audience as their dad thanked them helping him get through the tough year.

He said: ‘Since then, life has been pretty tough for me but thanks to the support of our wonderful children Annabelle and Harrison, I’ve been able to continue working and engaging in life.’

Warwick then gave a special shout out to a mystery person he referred to as ‘sponge’ and thanked them for helping him ‘love again’.

Fighting back tears, he voice broke as he said: ‘Special mention should go to Sponge, you know who you are. Thank you for showing me that life can still have meaning and for helping me to laugh and to love again’.

He concluded his speech by saying: ‘Finally thank you to BAFTA from the bottom of my heart for this incredible honour, I shall treasure it always. See you in the movies!’

The heartfelt speech caused his fellow A-listers to become visibly emotional in the audience, while viewers at home were also left in tears.

They took to social media to praise Warwick’s incredible talents and admit that they had not been ’emotionally prepared’ for his speech, which had left them ‘bawling’.

They gushed: ‘I wasn’t expecting to get teary whilst watching the BAFTAs, but Warwick Davis has set me off. It must be incredibly difficult to receive such an accolade without having that special loved one in your life anymore.’

‘I was NOT emotionally prepared for Warwick Davis’; ‘Oh god love you Warwick you’ve got me in tears’.

‘Warwick Davis and his kids have me BAWLING during the @BAFTA awards’; ‘Oh golly Warwick Davis setting me off.’

‘Warwick Davis deserves ALL of his flowers! The way we’ve all grown up watching him on screen from a young child to an adult tho. His speech about his wife who passed away a year ago truly had me choked up, we heart you Warwick! You’re an absolute legend!’

‘Warwick Davis shedding a tear for his late wife was heartbreaking, but so real. Grief isn’t something you can just switch off based on your environment.’

‘watching warwick davis win the bafta fellowship made me cry more than anything ever’; ‘Warwick Davis’ speech, bloody hell. What a great man, well deserved.’ 

‘Absolutely sobbing at Warwick Davis’ speech. What a legend’; ‘Warwick Davis crying my eyeballs all the way out!’

‘I’ve grown up with Warwick Davis, he seems like such a lovely men and he’s been in so so many awesome films. What an incredible career and hopefully he has many more films to come. The fact he has the crowd both laughing and crying shows he’s loved by all.’

After Samantha’s death last spring, Warwick releasing a touching statement where he said her passing had ‘left a huge hole in our lives’ and paid tribute to his ‘favourite human’.

He described Sammy, as he called her, as his ‘most trusted confidant and an ardent supporter of everything I did in my career’. 

The Star Wars actor said he felt like he could achieve anything with his wife by his side and that it felt like he had a ‘superpower’.

‘She was a unique character, always seeing the sunny side of life she had a wicked sense of humour and always laughed at my bad jokes,’ Warwick said in a statement given to the BBC.

Warwick was born with spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia congenita, a rare bone growth disorder that causes dwarfism. 

Samantha also had dwarfism but hers was caused by was caused by a condition called achondroplasia. 

The EE BAFTA 2025 Awards returned for an unmissable night of entertainment, celebrating the year’s best films and the creative talent who bring them to life.

Mikey Madison and Adrien Brody scooped top gongs for Best Actor and Actress at 2025 BAFTAs, while Conclave and The Brutalist equally led the pack with four awards at the star-studded ceremony.

For his starring role in The Brutalist and her lead part in Independent film Anora, Adrien, 51, and Mikey, 25, accepted their awards on stage at The Royal Festival Hall.

The biggest night in British film returned with actor David Tennant as host and an array of guest presenters on hand to deliver awards throughout the night. 

Up against a huge list of 10 nominees, Conclave – who won Best Film – came up triumphs in BAFTAs very unique category Outstanding British Film Award – adding to their previous two gongs for Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Editing.

The Brutalist won four awards including Adrien’s Best Actor, impressive Best Director gong for the well-deserving Brady Corbet, Best Cinematography gong and Best Original Score.

Acknowledging the ‘British public’, Adrien shared a moving tribute to England, admitting ‘It’s felt quite a bit like home lately’. 

He said: ‘I am so grateful. I want to thank the British public for embracing me and my creative endeavors. It is incredibly meaningful as England has felt quite a bit like home lately. I will cherish this, thank you all’.

Brady said: ‘I am humbled and very grateful, there is no such thing as best director, it’s like a joke.’ 

Receiving the BAFTA for Outstanding British Film for Conclave, director Edward Berger said: ‘It is a huge honour, outstanding British film, and I’m not even from here! I feel so welcome in your midst. We live in a time of crisis for democracy. Institutions that used to bring us together are used to pull us apart.

‘Sometimes it is hard to keep the faith in that situation, but that’s why we make movies and that’s why we made this movie.’

As well as Mikey’s Best Actress award, the $6million Independent movie Anora, which beat blockbuster movies at the Critics Choice Awards last week, picked up Best Casting gong. 

Tearful Zoe Saldana accepted Best Supporting Actress award with a expletive-laden speech for her Mexican movie Emilia Perez.

The award-winning actress, 46, was quickly pulled off camera for swearing as she shouted ‘f***, f***, f***’ when the countdown hurried her.

Zoe was in floods of tears as she accepted the award, admitting it is ‘so validating and a true honour’ to be honoured an award after being previously told by dialect coaches ‘that her British accent wasn’t going to work’.

Listing off her thank yous, Zoe said: ‘Oh my god I’m getting a countdown. F*** f*** f***!’

The Mexican movie, which has received mixed reviews despite its starring cast including Selena Gomez, is up for a staggering 11 nominations. 

Jesse Eisenberg, 41, accepted his co-star Kieran Culkin’s Best Supporting Actor gong for his starring role in A Real Pain.

Picking up Kieran’s gong, which he admitted is the fifth time he has received an award on his behalf this season, Jesse joked: ‘It’s confirmed what I always thought… we have a similar life but his is 27% better than mine.’

Jesse, who directed and starred in A Real Pain, also collected Best Original Screenplay gong and shared an emotional speech on the stage. 

Picking up the movie’s second prize, he admitted: ‘I didn’t write anything because I didn’t think I’d win. I want to share this with my wife, who didn’t come because she didn’t think I’d win.’

Meanwhile Emilia Pérez director Jacques Audiard, 72, paid a heartfelt tribute to disgraced star Karla Sofía Gascón while accepting the award for Best Film Not In The English language.

Spanish actress Karla, 52, was left off the BAFTA guest list, after several of her offensive social media posts resurfaced and sparked controversy amid allegations of racism, homophobia and body shaming.

During his speech Jacques thanked the film’s cast before ending his speech by saying: ‘I also thank you Karla Sofía, who I kiss’.

Meanwhile Zoe, who also appears in he movie, read a long list of persons she wished to thank in her expletive acceptance speech, one of whom was Karla. 

The director previously branded the actress’ tweets as ‘inexcusable’ and ‘hateful’ saying they had ‘affected’ the pair’s relationship. 

Orlando Bloom and Vanesa Kirby graced the stage to present Jesse’s BAFTA award at the ceremony. 

Demi Moore’s The Substance picked up Best Makeup and Hair award, while Dune: Part Two picked up two awards, one for Best Sound and another for Best Visual Effects.

Wallace and Gromit also bagged two BAFTAs during the evening including Best Animation and Best Children’s and Family Film award.

Kneecap director and writer Rich Peppiatt won the Outstanding Debut gong and shared a touching tribute to ‘everyone who is out there fighting that fight.’

Jon. M. Chu’s Wicked unsurprisingly received the Best Production Design award, their first BAFTA of the night. Later on the evening, the blockbuster movie received its second award for Best Costume Design.