Heath Ledger’s much-predicted run of posthumous awards could be about to begin, after the actor was nominated for a Golden Globe.

Recognised in the Best Supporting Actor category for his feted turn as The Joker in The Dark Knight, the actor, who died from a prescription drug overdose in January, is now a step closer to the Oscar he is widely expected to win.

Despite a slew of publicity and breaking records at the box office, Ledger claimed the only nomination for The Dark Knight.

A host of Brits were on the nominations list, often seen as an indication for Academy Award nods, with Kate Winslet, Ralph Fiennes, Emma Thompson and Dame Judi Dench all being named.

Already nominated five times before, Winslet is up for two gongs at the January awards - Best Actress for the forthcoming Revolutionary Road and Best Supporting Actress for The Reader.

Fiennes also received two nods, picking up a Best Actor nomination, for his role as Tobacco heiress Doris Duke’s gay butler in Bernard and Doris, and a Best Supporting Actor nod, for his cold portrayal of the Duke of Devonshire opposite Keira Knightley in The Duchess.

Dames Judi Dench and Eileen Atkins have both been recognised for their roles in the BBC period drama Cranford.

Fresh from winning Best Director at the British Independent Film Awards, Danny Boyle received a nod for his surprise success Slumdog Millionaire. He is up against two other Brits for the Best Director gong – Stephen Daldry for The Reader and Oscar winner Sam Mendes, who directed his wife Winslet in Revolutionary Road.

All three of the directors’ films also made it onto the Best Film shortlist, but competition is stiff with the Ron Howard-directed critical favourite Frost/Nixon and the Brad Pitt film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button also in line for the award. Pitt is also up for Best Actor for the film, but has strong competition from Milk's Sean Penn, Frost/Nixon's Frank Langella, Revolutionary Road's Leonardo Dicaprio and veteran actor Mickey Rourke, for his comeback role in The Wrestler.

Pitt’s equally high-profile partner Angelina Jolie is up for Best Actress, for her tear-stained performance in Changeling, but is also up against heavyweight thespians in the form of Doubt's Meryl Streep, I've Love You So Long's Kristen Scott Thomas, Rachel's Getting Married's Anne Hathaway and Winslet.

British director Mike Leigh’s uncharacteristically upbeat film Happy-Go-Lucky is up for Best Comedy or Musical, as is Irish director Martin McDougal’s In Bruges. Also nominated in the category is the Coen Brothers' off-beat comedy Burn After Reading, film festival favourite Vicky Cristina Barcelona and the box office hit Mamma Mia!

The winners will be announced in Los Angeles on January 11.

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