BAFTAs 2020: The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge arrive at the Royal Albert Hall

In protest at the lack of diversity, Erivo turned down an invitation to sing at tonight’s ceremony at the Royal Albert Hall in London.

The actress said: “I felt like [the invitation] didn’t represent people of colour in the right light. It felt like it was calling on me as an entertainer, as opposed to a person who was a part of the world of film, and I think that it’s important to make it known that it’s not something that you just throw in as a party trick.

“I work hard and every single person of colour who is working in these films this year has worked really hard, and there are many of them who deserve to be celebrated. And no women directors? It was just like, “Come on”.”

Micheal Ward [corr sp], 21, from Romford, east London, who stars in the critically acclaimed Blue Story, is shortlisted in the rising star award, the only one with any minority ethnic nominations and the only one voted for by members of the public.

The film, about gang violence in south London, was overlooked by Bafta, leading its director, Rapman, to tweet: “@BAFTA’s done Blue Story dirty!! Numbers, Impact, Critic reviews we ticked all boxes but we were still snubbed from all nominations. Minus the rising star list. The lack of black faces is ridiculous.”

William has spoken out on issues of race, and recently condemned the “outrageous” racism in football, saying that as president of the FA, he was determined to “do something” to tackle the issue.

Last month, William and Kate visited Bradford, where they carried out a series of engagements celebrating ethnic diversity in communities.

Joker leads the nominations tonight, with the movie, starring Joaquin Phoenix as Arthur Fleck, is in the running for best film, best actor, best adapted screenplay and best director.

It is closely followed by Martin Scorsese’s gangster epic The Irishman and Quentin Tarantino’s ninth film, Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood, which both scored 10 nominations and will also compete in the best film category, alongside Sir Sam Mendes’ war film 1917 and Korean film Parasite.

The star-studded ceremony, which is one of the last stops on the awards circuit before the Oscars on February 9, will see guests walk on a recycled red carpet before tucking into a dinner made of sustainably sourced food, including a vegan starter and pudding, as it endeavours to be carbon neutral for the first time.

Single use plastic will be banned at the ceremony and branding that has not been re-used from previous years will be made using reclaimed and recyclable materials.