IN what may be the most significant harbinger of the Oscars yet, the Tolkien epic “The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring” and the musical spectacular “Moulin Rouge” led nominations for the British Academy Awards yesterday, with 12 nods apiece.

Both were nominated for best film, along with “Amelie,” which bagged an impressive nine overall; the animated comedy “Shrek,” with a surprising six; the Iris Murdoch biopic, “Iris,” also with six; and the putative Oscar front-runner, the dramatic “A Beautiful Mind,” which took four.

The stately home spoof “Gosford Park” racked up an impressive nine nominations – including one for outstanding British production, a category that also included the hit fantasy “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” (seven nods) and the comedy “Bridget Jones’s Diary” (four nominations).

In the British best actor race, Russell Crowe (“A Beautiful Mind”) will face off against Ian McKellan (“Lord of the Rings”), Tom Wilkinson (“In the Bedroom”), Kevin Spacey (“The Shipping News”) and Jim Broadbent (“Iris”), who was also nominated for best supporting actor for “Moulin Rouge.”

Also double nominated was Judi Dench, for best actress (“Iris”), and also for best supporting actress in “The Shipping News.”

For best actress, Dench is up against Nicole Kidman (for “The Others” rather than “Moulin Rouge”), Sissy Spacek (“In the Bedroom”), Audrey Tautou (“Amelie”) and Renee Zellweger (“Bridget Jones’s Diary”).

The British awards, also known as the BAFTAs or Orange awards, will be given out Feb. 24.