An Emmy for Emma?

Emma Thompson and Dame Helen Mirren are pitted against each other in competition for one of America's most prestigious acting awards - an Emmy.

Both actresses have been nominated in the outstanding actress in a mini-series or movie category, it was announced today.

Dame Helen is in the running for her sixth outing as policewoman Jane Tennison in Prime Suspect 6: The Last Witness.

Thompson won her nomination for her performance alongside Al Pacino and Meryl Streep in the big-budget US mini-series Angels In America.

Thompson plays an angel, a nurse and a homeless woman. The surreal drama attracted barely a million viewers when screened in Britain by Channel 4 in January, but was a huge hit in the US.

In all the mini-series received 21 nominations for the television Emmys, one ahead of the secondplaced Sopranos.

TV Academy members gave a fond farewell to Sex And The City with a best comedy series nomination for its final season, but didn't select two other departing series, Friends and Frasier.

Other contenders include Will & Grace.

For best drama series, nominees include The Sopranos, which has yet to win the category, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, 24, and last year's winner, The West Wing.

Jennifer Aniston of Friends was nominated for best lead actress in a comedy series. She faces competition from Jane Kaczmarek of Malcolm In The Middle and Sarah Jessica Parker of Sex And The City.

Nominees for best lead actor in a comedy series include Kelsey Grammer of Frasier and Matt LeBlanc of Friends.