There will be a heavy British presence at the Oscars after actress Kate Winslet and movie Slumdog Millionaire were nominated for gongs.

Winslet bagged a best actress nod for her role in The Reader, in which the 33-year-old plays a former Nazi prison guard.

It has been Winslet's year so far, becoming a double Golden Globe winner and being nominated twice earlier this month for a leading actress at the Orange British Academy Film Awards.

Meanwhile, Danny Boyle's Slumdog Millionaire was nominated for three awards, including best picture and best director at the 81st Academy Awards on February 22.

The Reader, by Britain's Stephen Daldry - who bagged a director nod - is also up for best picture, along with Frost/Nixon, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Milk.

And there was a best (original) screenplay nomination for Mike Leigh for Happy-Go-Lucky.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, which sees Brad Pitt playing a man who ages backwards, led the field of Oscar contenders with 13 nominations.

Mumbai-set Slumdog Millionaire - the tale of an impoverished orphan's improbable victory on an Indian television game show - followed with ten.

The film, which has taken Hollywood by storm by scooping up a series of gongs, has also received 11 Bafta nominations.

Batman sequel The Dark Knight landed eight nods, including best supporting actor for the portrayal of villainous Joker by Heath Ledger, who died of an accidental prescription tablet overdose exactly a year ago.

And 59-year-old Meryl Streep - already the all-time acting Oscar record holder with 14 nominations - landed her 15th with Doubt, in which she plays a vindictive nun.

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