Oscars 2019: Yes, That Was Anita Dobson You Spotted At The Academy Awards

"Something weirdly satisfying about seeing Anita Dobson off EastEnders at the Oscars"

Every year, the Oscars are invariably one of the most A-list events in the showbiz calendar, and we were pleased to see that at the 2019 ceremony, the British stars were out in force.

As well as Best Actress nominee Olivia Colman, Christian Bale was pictured on the red carpet, along with the likes of Rachel Weisz and Daniel Craig, Black Panther star Letitia Wright, Best Original Song contender Mark Ronson and, of course, the toast of awards season, Richard E Grant.

But as we looked through all the photos of the Academy Awards red carpet, there was one iconic British star we were a little surprised to see in attendance…

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Anita Dobson at the Oscars
David Fisher/Rex/Shutterstock

Yes, that’s EastEnders legend Anita Dobson serving full red carpet glamour at the Oscars.

Sadly, Anita was not there to collect an award for her own contribution to the world of acting, but rather to support her husband Sir Brian May, a producer of Best Picture nominee Bohemian Rhapsody, who also opened the show with a performance of Queen hits, to mark the film’s success.

Early on in the ceremony, Bohemian Rhapsody picked up a number of technical categories, and when the camera panned to Sir Brian, we weren’t the only ones surprised to see Anita seated in the Oscars audience...

But Anita Dobson wasn’t the only potentially unlikely guest at this year’s Academy Awards.

Also in attendance was RuPaul’s Drag Race finalist Shangela, who stunned on the red carpet in full drag, off the back of her scene-stealing role opposite Lady Gaga in A Star Is Born.