· Live gallery: Oscars red carpet arrivals

3.57pm (8.57pm in LA): 12 Years a Slave wins best Picture

And director Steve McQueen is pretty happy about it. On to the after party!

3.50pm (8.50pm in LA): Matthew McConaughey wins Best Actor for Dallas Buyers Club.

Thanked his Dad who is up in heaven “with a big pot of gumbo and a lemo meringue pie”.

3.45pm (8.45pm in LA): CATE THE GREAT!

Cate Blanchett wins Best Actress for Blue Jasmine and jokingly congratulates her fellow nominees:

“To Sandra, I could watch that performance till the end of time and I sort of feel like I did, and to Julia Roberts, hashtag SUCK IT, am I right?”

3.35pm (8.35pm in LA): Alfonso Cuaron is Best Director!

The Gravity director thanks his wife in Spanish. That takes it to seven awards for the space saga.

3.16pm (8.16pm in LA): The latest awards…

Best cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki for Gravity

Best adapted screenplay: 12 Years a Slave

Best visual effects: Gravity

Best song: Let it go from Frozen

Best film editing: Gravity

Best original screenplay: Her by Spike Jonze

Best original score: Gravity

2.58pm (7.58pm in LA): Things get emotional

Bette Midler sings Wind Beneath My Wings to farewell the movie industry figures we have bid farewell to this year and last year.

2.50pm (7.50pm in LA): Ellen’s selfie beats Obama

In a matter of mere minutes, the Degeneres’ star-studded selfie overtakes Barack Obama for most retweeted photo.

Ellen’s Oscar selfie just beat out Barack Obama’s re-election tweet pic.twitter.com/CxpypzVwqa http://t.co/Zs6CHhGrdF #Oscars2014

— HuffPost Canada (@HuffPostCanada) March 3, 2014

2.44pm (7.44pm in LA): Catherine Martin wins her second Oscar of the night

The Aussie and her team mate Beverley Dunn score the trophy for Best Production Design for The Great Gatsby.

2.11pm (7.11pm in LA): Lupita Nyong’o wins Best Supporting Actress

The stunning Kenyan actress wins the award for her performance as Patsey in 12 Years a Slave. In her speech, she laments the fact that “so much joy in my life is due to so much pain in someone else’s.”

2.10pm (7.10pm in LA): Ellen breaks the internet

That incredibly re-tweeted selfie has now has prompted Twitter to freeze. It’s back now though, so don’t panic. She also demands that the stars in the front row pay her back for the pizza party (into Pharrell’s hat nonetheless) and tip generously.

The #Oscars pizza party, in pictures: http://t.co/zjJ7leI6Xi pic.twitter.com/OFkhQpyFrU

— ELLE Magazine (US) (@ELLEmagazine) March 3, 2014

2.00pm (7.00pm): Ellen Degeneres’ antics continue

The host asks if anyone wants pizza (Kerry Washington is very quick to throw her hand up) and then takes what is possibly the best. selfie. ever. Lupita Nyong’o, Jared Leto, Meryl Streep, Jennifer Lawrence, Channing Tatum and Brangelina all jump in. Magic.

Jared Leto’s face is perfection in Ellen DeGeneres’s group selfie pic. #oscars pic.twitter.com/G0uyflWToa

— People magazine (@peoplemag) March 3, 2014

1.40pm (6.40pm in LA): The awards so far:

Best supporting actor: Jared Leto for Dallas Buyers Club

Best animated feature: Frozen

Best animated short film: Mr Hublot

Best visual effects: Gravity

Best costume design: Catherine Martin for The Great Gatsby

Best makeup and hairstyling: Dallas Buyers Club

Best documentary feature: 20 Feet from Stardom

Best live-action short film: Helium

Best documentary short: The Lady In Number 6: Music Saved My Life

Best foreign film: The Great Beauty (Italy)

1.15pm (6.15pm in LA): Frozen wins Best Animated Feature.

1.00pm (6.00pm in LA): First Aussie victory!

Catherine Martin wins Best Costume Design for her work on The Great Gatsby and thanks her team and her husband, Baz Luhrmann.

12.50pm (5.50pm in LA): Pharrell wins

The Happy singer gets the stars up and dancing – Meryl Streep and Amy Adams are particularly enthusiastic. He also brings that darn hat back.

12.40pm (5.40pm in LA): Jared Leto wins!

The Dallas Buyers Club actor wins Best Supporting Actor for his role as transsexual AIDS sufferer Rayon. He thanks his mother for “teaching me to dream” and dedicates the award to the “36 million people who have lost the battle against AIDS.”

12.30pm (5.30pm in LA): Ellen kicks it all off

The comedienne takes the stage with a fairly tame, but hilarious, opening monologue. Highlights include:

“To all the people watching around the world…It’s been a tough couple of days here. It’s been raining. We’re fine, thank you for your prayers.”

“The best Liza Minnelli impersonator I’ve ever seen is here. well done sir.” (It was the real Liza Minnelli)

“Amy Adams has been in two Oscar-nominated films this year. That’s just…what’s the word? Selfish.”

(To Jennifer Lawrencere: her many falls) “If you win I think we should just bring the Oscar to you. It’s safer.”

“Jared Leto is the prettiest person here tonight. Matthew McConaughey is pretty but different. Like a dirty pretty.”

“There are two possibilities tonight. Possibility one: 12 Years a Slave wins Best Picture. Possibility two: You’re all racists.”

11.45am (4.45pm in LA): Margot Robbie, Pharrell and Julia Roberts

Australian ingenue Robbie shows off some newly-dark locks, Pharrell’s shorts already have their own Twitter account and Julia Roberts arrives in lace Givenchy.

Just made my #RedCarpet debut at the #Oscars. Feeling pretty badass.

— Pharrells Shorts (@PharrellsShorts) March 2, 2014

Margot Robbie #Oscars2014 #redcarpet pic.twitter.com/NrppQRdVn7

— ♡ Silvia Quirós ♡ (@SilviaQuiros) March 3, 2014

11.31am (4.31pm in LA): Jennifer Lawrence arrives in red strapless Dior…

…And promptly falls over. Again.

Oh. HELL. YES. http://t.co/HMXEothOtA pic.twitter.com/2Axl3uFZoi

— ELLE Magazine (US) (@ELLEmagazine) March 3, 2014

11.24am (4.24pm in LA): Cate has arrived!

The statuesque Australian beauty is wearing nude, high-necked embellished Armani Prive. Her statement Chopard earrings steal the show.

11.06am (4.06pm in LA): Jared Leto is wearing his hair down

…No “man bun” tonight, he’s rocking his coveted shoulder-length hair free-flowing.

JARED!!! http://t.co/VdH7UnTpvz pic.twitter.com/0HtrBuZPo6

— ELLE Magazine (US) (@ELLEmagazine) March 3, 2014

10.50am (3.50pm): The big names are here

Red carpet icon Lupita Nyong’o has chosen powder blue Prada while Amy Adams is stunning in blue Gucci. Pharrell Williams (nominated for Best Song for Happy from Despicable Me 2) has forgone the hat but chosen shorts to make his statements.

LUPITA IS HERE! via @EHolmesWSJ pic.twitter.com/2o3QOEYkL8

— ELLE Magazine (US) (@ELLEmagazine) March 2, 2014

9.15am (2.15pm in LA): Red carpet ready

Giuliana Rancic in Paolo Sebastian.

It’s a rainy day in LA at the Dolby Theatre and stars are expected to arrive with umbrellas in tow. E! Entertainment hosts Giuliana Rancic and Kelly Osbourne were the first to appear, and Rancic is wearing a dress by 22 year-old Adelaide designer Paolo Sebastian. According to Harper’s Bazaar Australia, Cate Blanchett will wear Armani Prive for her big moment.

This just in: Cate Blanchett will wear crystal-embellished nude-gold @armani Privé tonight! #oscars #redcarpet #bazaarbestdressed

— Harper’s Bazaar (@harpersbazaarus) March 2, 2014

It is also confirmed that nominee Amy Adams will wear blue Gucci.

Second designer confirmation! Amy Adams is wearing a custom Gucci Première sapphire silk crepe tuxedo inspired gown #Oscars

— People StyleWatch (@StyleWatchMag) March 2, 2014

Viola Davis has hit the red carpet in green Escada and music legend Liza Minelli has matched her blue gown to her hair with a sapphire streak.