Only 20 Muslims were praying or sitting cross legged reading the Koran in the Tomb of the Patriarchs yesterday

Only 20 Muslims were praying or sitting cross legged reading the Koran in the Tomb of the Patriarchs yesterday, a year after the Israeli settler, Baruch Goldstein, killed 29 worshippers with repeated bursts of automatic fire. Outside Israeli soldiers were checking the identity of a trickle of visitors who pass through two metal detecting gates before they enter the 700-year-old Mamluk al-Ibrahimi mosque. And Paul Scofield won a place on the best supporting actor's list for the US movie, Quiz Show The winners will be announced on 27 March.. It was represented in all of the major categories, except best director.The Madness of King George, another British project which relied on American money, won a place in the Best Actor's category for Nigel Hawthorne and nominations in best supporting actress (Helen Mirren), art direction, and adapted screenplay.The British smash-hit Four Weddings and a Funeral was nominated as one of the year's best films, but there was nothing for its leading actor, Hugh Grant.

"There is a gentleman in Paris who has had a 150 per cent return on his money," said Mr Samuelson, "It's just a shame that the money is not going to Britain."Such views were echoed by Davina Belling, co-chair of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts in Los Angeles: "We are delighted with the results, but why is that when British producers want to make a British film they have to go to half a dozen different sources?"The issue is under review by the National Heritage Committee, although industry sources are pessimistic about the outcome - and some privately question the expertise of the sitting MPs.Although attention in Hollywood last night focused on the extraordinary success of Forrest Gump, which won the most nominations (13) since Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf in 1966 - Britain's success was not unnoticed. And when backers were found two-thirds of the cash came from the United States and France, from financiers who will now strike it rich. The film has already gone into profit, even before opening in the United States's huge market. British movie makers yesterday uncorked the champagne to celebrate a bagful of Oscar nominations, but threw in an important reservation before they knocked it back: theirs was a triumph despite, rather than because of, the British government and the City's wary financiers. Three low-budget, British-made movies won a variety of nominations of this year's Academy Awards, yet again demonstrating to the US film industry that it is possible to make successful (and excellent) films for less than a third of the $32m (£20m) average cost of a Hollywood production.

But industry insiders pointed out that their success will not produce the kind of financial dividends in the UK that would have been won with a more positive attitude from the government and financial institutions. While the French continue pressing for quotas, the emphasis among British moviemakers was on the lack of incentives from Westminster, and the overly cautious City."We have a fiscal environment in Britain that is deeply discouraging," said Peter Samuelson, co-producer of Tom & Viv, which won nominations for Miranda Richardson (best actress), and Rosemary Harris (best supporting actress).The movie, the story of the chequered love affair between T S Eliot and his first wife, illustrates his point.Even though it only cost $10m (a relative pittance by Hollywood standards), it took several years to raise the money. We give culture the same priority as the economy and agriculture," said Mr Toubon "Europe must have a cultural personalty.". The rights to market the National Gallery's paintings on CD have been bought by the US Microsoft company, which is believed to be eyeing the Louvre. Economists predict that a European audio-visual industry could support four million jobs but not if the Americans get there first."If Europe follows France's lead, I am optimistic we can win If not, all will be lost. France is the only country giving priority to preserving Europe's popular living culture. In five to 10 years it will even be true for the BBC," said Mr Toubon.

"I say to Sir Leon: `It is I who am the liberal because it is I who am against this monopoly.' And I say: `Why do you protect European aircraft industries without protecting our culture?' "It looks likely that the Commission, charged with proposing new measures, will produce a compromise, but the way has been cleared for abandoning quotas. However, the argument over Europe's cultural indentity will not end there.The French say Europe must now regulate US domination of the multi-media market, which will offer viewers English-language television shopping, chat-lines and much more. Already multi-media giants are snapping up European art for conversion into audio-visual display on CD-ROM. "Without quotas it will soon be 100-per-cent American shows on television. However, this too is a deception, say the regulators.Britain operates the slackest rules against US media giants, letting them broadcast by satellite to Europe without restrictions; Commission officials say quotas would work if properly enforced. In 1993 the US exported $4bn of audio-visual work to Europe; Europe's exports were worth $336m.Hollywood, helped by the US government, has built pan-European distribution networks. Cinema is under almost total US domination, with 80 per cent of box-office receipts in Europe going to Hollywood.

Free-marketeers say that with more television channels there will be room for Starsky and Hutch as well as Germinal. It is a tenth cheaper to buy an American package than a European-made product because Hollywood has already covered its costs in the US before the programme is effectively dumped on Europe. Britain and Sir Leon Brittan, the EU Trade Commissioner, say quotas do not work. Stephen Dorrell, the Secretary of State for National Heritage, said yesterday that, while Britain, like France, believed in supporting European culture, it rejected the principle of quotas because they limited choice.But many MEPs and people in the film and television world say US domination is such that there is no free choice. The son of a croupier, Mr Toubon's credentials are often mocked: his nickname is Mr All-good. Simply sneering at him, however, does no justice to his arguments. Recently the minister advocated banning Franglais, only to be overruled by the French Constitutional Council on grounds that his diktat violated right of free communication.