Firth starred in the 2010 film '' The King 's Speech '' as Prince Albert , Duke of York/King George VI . The film details his working to overcome his speech impediment while becoming monarch of the United Kingdom at the end of 1936 . At the Toronto International Film Festival ( TIFF ) , the film was met with a standing ovation . The TIFF release of '' The King 's Speech '' fell on Colin 's 50th birthday and was called the " best 50th birthday gift " . On 16 January 2011 , he won a Golden Globe for his performance in '' The King 's Speech '' in the category of Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama . The Screen Actors Guild recognised Firth with the award for Best Male Actor for '' The King 's Speech '' on 30 January 2011 . In February 2011 , he won his second consecutive best actor award at the 2011 BAFTA awards . He received an Academy Award for Best Actor in a motion picture for '' The King 's Speech '' on 27 February 2011 . It went on to gross $ 414,211,549 worldwide
2011 BAFTA awards
64th British Academy Film Awards
Colin Firth