Yikes what a disaster of an opener. A great win but errr there’s no sound initially for Kaluuya to talk via Zoom. Presenter Laura Dern talks him off but oh then it starts working just as they told us it wasn’t going to happen as planned. What a mess. Kaluuya’s connection isn’t great but it’s a deserved win to start the night – a fantastic performance and Kaluuya ends with a tribute toward his character Fred Hampton and his hope that people will learn more about his incredible life as a result. But urgh Zoom.

And so begins another strange semi-virtual awards ceremony in both a strange year for us all but also a strange year for the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, under scrutiny for allegations of corruption as well as a lack of diversity with both their members and the performers they chose to nominate.

Tina Fey and Amy Poehler arrive to masked audiences on different coasts, brought together by technology. There are early jokes about tech issues, met with weird laughter from a small handful of people (that’s gonna take some getting used to). It’s then revealed that the in-person crowd is made up of first responders – a nice touch.

“Those bitches are messy” Fey says of the normal front tables of celebrities, such as Meryl Streep and Brad Pitt.

Ooh and here are some HFPA jokes (“European weirdos”), referring to the lack of diversity as well as the ridiculous nature of their membership (“most of them might be ghosts”).

Amy Poehler screaming the word Mank is fun followed up by Tina Fey calling The Queen’s Gambit “whatever James Corden was up to in The Prom” – hmmmm. Going to celebs sort of laughing at jokes at home is strange, especially when Fey calls “French Exit” what she did after episode one of Emily in Paris and Lily Collins looks uncomfortable.

They are now criticising the Globes for their lack of inclusivity again. It’s well-intentioned but not really working. The HFPA and NBC is donating $2m to Covid-19 relief which is something. But woof, a rough start.

Here’s a reminder of who is nominated for what and all that (it’s about to begin)

Tina Fey

Is it a dress? It is a tuxedo? It’s both, and it’s another vote for the heartening micro-trend of tights on the red carpet by co-host Tina Fey. Nicely played.

One of the most talked about snubs of the evening is Michael Coel’s extraordinary drama I May Destroy You, last year’s most lauded show. Now, anyone who has kept a track of the Globes voting history won’t have been too surprised by this (quality isn’t usually part of the process) but it was still left a sour taste in the mouth.

Emily in Paris writer Deborah Copoaken summed up her, and many of our, thoughts rather well in this piece she wrote for us:

Amy Poehler

Amy Poehler looks as happy to be on the red carpet as I am to see her. What I like about this dress is that it looks like a Christmas Elf refashioned in black sequins, and there is nothing that isn’t festive about that.

Cynthia Erivo

This is very ‘Cynthia Erivo as 80s sweets: a thread’ and we love it. Dressed in Valentino couture this is a bold op-art referencing moment and we’re here for it.

Tina Fey has already said that tonight “doesn’t seem like a venue for political jokes” while she and Amy Poehler want to “make it a fun hang out for people at home – a stress reliever”.

Poehler has referred to the situation as “full-on weird” but is hoping the weirdness will “translate into something fun and interesting”.

As rubbish as the HFPA is in many ways, one good thing is the amount of free rein the hosts are always given to poke fun at anyone and everyone, including the HFPA themselves. This year more than ever they deserve a roast so fingers crossed.

So the LA Times continued to report on the HFPA, including the fallout from their original pieces earlier this week. Yesterday, they covered internal emails which blamed part of the problem on their own bylaws (sure) as well as former HFPA President Meher Tatna who said the group hadn’t had a black member for at least 20 years. It’s a mess and one that will take a huge amount of work on the HFPA’s part to start to fix and how they will address it tonight is to be seen but it will for sure be a part of the speeches.

Amanda Seyfried

And you thought the flower crown was persona non grata didn’t you? Well it turns out, it looks pretty magnificent if you wear if just below your shoulders. Joking asking, Karen from Mean Girls looks utterly wonderful in this Oscar De La Renta number.

What started out as a strange season for awards-aiming fare has ultimately turned into a rather normal one with the standard mixture of biopics and issues-led films dominating. As ever the HFPA has some made some car crash decisions with their nominees this year (Sia’s deeply offensive autism musical Music nabbing two nods is among the most egregious mis-steps) making their thought process as messy and hard to predict as usual but here with his idea on who will triumph tonight is Peter Bradshaw:

Jared Leto wears a jumper

As far as we understand it (but this semi WFH semi socially distant red carpet is confusing), this snap reveals Jared Leto’s wfh red carpet outfit. Wow. This is a man that went to the Met Ball holding a replica of his own head (by Gucci) a few years ago. Here he stands by a window and wears a nice rollneck jumper. He’s changed. Also: balayage!