The virtual red carpet live from the GQ Men of the Year Awards 2020
Michaela Coel on the red carpet tonight
(GQ Men Of The Year Awards 2020 in association with Hugo Boss)The annual GQ Men of the Year Awards took place virtually for the first time ever — but the red carpet was still just as glamorous.
The magazine’s annual event, which celebrates the people who have shaped and inspired the realms of style, politics, entertainment and sport, was held online this year due to the coronavirus pandemic and lockdown restrictions.
It usually takes place in September and has previously been hosted at the Tate Modern. This year’s virtual proceedings were hosted by comedian Jack Whitehall .
Ahead of the ceremony at 8pm on the GQ YouTube channel, Whitehall joked about the online ceremony - and the celebrities who were “banned” from entering.
On the GQ Instagram page, he joked: “We may not have any guests at this year’s awards, but we are trying to run everything as we normally would. Security is always on hand to make sure that no one too low rent sneaks in to the awards. The black list of banned celebrities is pretty extensive.”
Walking past a series of images of the likes of Donald Trump, Joey Essex and Matt Hancock, he added: “You won’t be seeing any reality TV stars in here this evening, and we certainly don’t want a repeat of that terrible incident in 2018 when they guys from the Sketchers advert accidentally slipped through the net.”
The "red carpet" was pre-shot remotely and then beamed onto the GQ instagram account.
Writer and actor Michaela Coel wore a two-piece outfit, while James Bond star Lashana Lynch wore a lilac dress.
Among the VIPs was national treasure Sir Captain Tom Moore, who went head-to-head in the suit stakes with stars like Shawn Mendes, Marcus Rashford, and Paul Mescal.
Meanwhile, social media stars Ali Gordon, Timothy James and Oliver Proudlock, all posted about getting ready for the occasion.
Actor and ballet star Eric Underwood and model Jack Guinness also got in to the spirit of things.
Laura Whitmore posted an image of her enjoying a previous ceremony.
Fans at home had fun posting selfies with the official GQ Men of the Year in association with Hugo Boss Instagram filter. It picked what awards would be won by the user.
