 LONDON, 28th October 2007 — The furry stars of the Oscar-winning film "The Queen" are the winners of Britain's first-ever Fido Awards for canine cinematic excellence. After strolling the red carpet, Oliver, Poppy, Anna, Alice, and Megan — the five corgis who appeared alongside Helen Mirren in the film about Queen Elizabeth II — were named best historical hounds during a ceremony at London's South Bank arts center Sunday. The corgis also took the ceremony's top accolade, "best in world." Sadly, Dame Helen Mirren (who won an Oscar for her portrayal of the Queen in the movie) couldn't be in attendance due to filming commitments in the US, but shared the puppy love and admiration for her four legged co-stars. "I know one should avoid acting with animals and children, but these little chaps were a pleasure to work with and deserve all the plaudits for their fine performances," she said. The FIDOs were presented by Oscar-nominated Chariots of Fire director Hugh Hudson, James Bond star Maryam D’Abo, Carol Thatcher, Christopher Biggins and designer Lulu Guinness. Fortunately from all reports, there was no evidence of Kevin Rudd supporter Rupert the Jack Russell's performance in the Australian Election Campaign :( The English monarch's love of corgis is well known. She has owned more than 30 of the breed during her 55-year reign. 
American Travis, a Welsh cardigan corgi, was named Best Comedy Canine for "Year of the Dog". Following in the method-acting paw-steps of Daniel Day-Lewis in “My Left Foot”, Travis had to learn to walk in a doggie wheelchair to play a severely handicapped dog - although he’s able-pawed. The Fidos call themselves the world's first-ever international awards ceremony for canine screen stars. They were presented in conjunction with the London Film Festival, which runs until Thursday. The Fido Awards
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