"Birdman" -- a showbiz satire about the dark side of fame -- soared to Oscars glory on Sunday, taking four Academy Awards including the coveted best picture prize on Hollywood's biggest night.

Emotions ran high at the Dolby Theater on an evening marked by political statements about women's rights, racial equality and the lives of Mexican migrants.

Australian Oscar winner Cate Blanchett plans to leave her Sydney home and move to the United States where her artistic director husband Andrew Upton will pursue freelance writing opportunities, a report said Monday.

The in-demand actress, who won Oscars for her roles in "The Aviator" and Woody Allen's "Blue Jasmine", will make the move later this year.

Hollywood's A-list actresses oozed old-school elegance in white and glittering silver on the Oscars red carpet Sunday, even as rain tumbled down on Tinseltown's top fashion parade.

Beyond the icy color palette, another trend for the ladies was lots of pearls and beads. Many of the gowns seen on the red carpet at the Dolby Theatre were embellished to the max.

London Fashion Week opened Friday on a sombre note, as Kanye West and Victoria Beckham joined some of the leading lights of the British industry at a memorial to inspirational tutor Louise Wilson.

Catwalk shows were put on hold for the morning to remember the straight-talking 52-year-old, who was director of the fashion course at Central Saint Martins (CSM) college for 22 years until her death last May.

Kristen Stewart on Friday became the first American actress to win a Cesar, France's equivalent of the Oscars, while "Timbuktu" won seven awards including best film for its portrayal of northern Mali under jihadist control.

"Twilight" star Stewart received the best supporting actress award for her role alongside Juliette Binoche in "Clouds of Sils Maria".

y day, they are accountants with global consulting firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers. But from Friday, for two days only, they become keepers of one of the most closely-guarded secrets in the world.

Brian Cullinan and Martha Ruiz will be the only people who know the winners of the coveted golden Oscar statuettes, cinema's most prestigious prizes.

So who has actually seen the top Oscar movies? Film buffs, mostly.

That's because -- let's face it -- most of the films shortlisted for Academy Awards glory are relatively small-budget independent flicks, not crowd-pleasing blockbusters.

Egyptian authorities say they are fighting a war on terror at home and abroad, but that hasn't stopped the Miss Germany beauty pageant from organizing a flashy preliminary contest near the Red Sea resort of Hurghada.

Egypt's Red Sea resorts have taken a big hit financially since the country's 2011 uprising, but they still seem a world away from the budding insurgency in the northern Sinai Peninsula, where militants have killed scores of security forces, and the lingering political tensions in Cairo and other cities, which still see occasional demonstrations and small-scale attacks.

Doctors have replaced Bobbi Kristina Brown's breathing tube with a tube usually used for patients who need to be on a ventilator for an extended period, a person close to the family said Thursday.

The 21-year-old's breathing tube was replaced with a tracheostomy tube, the person, who is not authorized to speak on Brown's condition, told The Associated Press. A tracheostomy, which involves cutting into a patient's neck, is often performed on patients who need to be on a ventilator for an extended period.

Hollywood is holding its breath ahead of the Oscars on Sunday, with dark comedy "Birdman" and coming-of-age drama "Boyhood" neck-and-neck in the awards season home stretch.

Tinseltown's finest will be on the edge of their seats at the Dolby Theatre, waiting to finally learn who will win a coveted golden statuette -- and who will walk away empty-handed.