Bafta guests were served vegan starter and dessert

Guests at last night’s BAFTAs were served vegan dishes as the awards ceremony moved towards being more ‘sustainable’. 

A plant-based starter and dessert were created for the A-listers attending the lavish bash at London’s Royal Albert Hall, although exact details of the menu have not been revealed. 

It was one of a series of measures taken by organisers to make the event more sustainable. Stars were encouraged to re-wear clothes for the red carpet, rather than buying new, and were given eco-friendly wallets instead of traditional goodie bags. 

It comes after plant-based dishes were served at the Golden Globes last month, and ahead of the Oscars, which is expected to feature a similar vegan menu.   

Speaking ahead of the awards, Dame Pippa Harris, the deputy chair of BAFTA, said: ‘Like everyone, we are increasingly concerned about the impact of climate change and it just feels like we can no longer do nothing, that is just not acceptable,’ said Bafta chair.

‘For the last year and intensively over the last eight months, everyone has been working across every area, not just the ceremony itself, the red carpet, the Grosvenor House dinner, every element that makes up the Baftas, to make sure that by the end of the day, the whole thing will be carbon neutral.

‘We traditionally have these big bags which have been filled with beauty products and big bottles of champagne and whatever.

‘We felt that, in terms of transporting those around both before they are given to people and then the nominees have to lug them all the way back to America or wherever, that in and of itself was not a very sustainable thing to be doing.’

Pictured: King oyster mushroom scallops on a bed of wild mushroom risotto with roasted Brussels sprouts, prepared by Beverly Hilton Executive Chef Matthew Morgan

She said that the ‘gifting wallet’ will ‘have some nice things slotted into it’ and will be easy to transport which won’t increase ‘anyone’s emissions if they are travelling with it.’

‘But offsetting is the last resort, I think the real goal for all of us is to look to reuse and recycle and through those means to end up at the carbon neutral position,’ she said.

As well as serving a completely ‘sustainably sourced’ meal, organisers have also said that every sign and branding board will either be reused from last year or made ‘using reclaimed and recyclable materials.’  

Ahead of this year’s ceremony, Bafta bosses had urged attendees to ‘dress sustainable’ and encouraged to re-wear outfits, hire gowns or don vintage ensembles for the occasion. 

The last minute change came after then Joker nominee (now winner), Joaquin Phoenix, pushed for the menu alteration. He won the Best Actor Oscar last night

One of the notable attendees recycling a dress was Kate Middleton, wearing a stunning Alexander McQueen gown, she first donned during a tour of Malaysia in 2012. 

Guests at the Golden Globes were served an entirely vegan meal last month, which included chilled beet soup and caramelised hazelnuts. 

And following the trend, both the Critics Choice Awards and the Screen Actors Guild Awards served up plant-based meals, while the Oscars next week will also be vegan. 

A statement last week read: ‘The Academy is an organization of storytellers from around the world, and we owe our global membership a commitment to supporting the planet,’ the organization said in a statement on Monday. 

‘For the past decade, the Academy has been committed to reducing its carbon footprint. For the past seven years, the Oscars show has had a zero-carbon imprint.’

The statement added: ‘We continue to expand our sustainability plan with the ultimate goal of becoming carbon neutral.’