Robbins is first Oscars winner

As expected, Tim Robbins has picked up the first award of the evening - Best Supporting Actor - for his role in Mystic River.

"Thankyou so much, members of the academy," said Robbins, collecting the award from Catherine Zeta-Jones. "This is really a lovely honour. I'd like to thank my fellow nominees who are all spectacular. I'd like to work with you all in a movie at some point."

After thanking the cast, crew and his family, he added: "In this movie I play a victim of abuse and violence. If you are out there in that situation, there is no shame or weakness in seeking counselling. It's the strongest thing you can do to stop the cycle of violence."

Other nominees included Alec Baldwin (The Cooler), Benicio Del Toro (21 Grams), Djimon Hounsou (In America) and Ken Watanabe (The Last Samurai).

Robbins had been the clear bookies favourite in the category with odds of 4/6; Digital Spy readers also accurately predicted his win with 39% of the votes.