The Empire Podcast is back and blasting out of the gates in a week that delivered not just the BAFTA and Oscar nominations, but the release of Gangster Squad and epic Working Title musical Les Misérables. Plenty to talk about in other words, and plenty to share your views on below.

Tom Hooper's Gallic singalong epic is in the running for 17 gongs across the two events - a mantlepiece the length of a Champs-Élysées' pavement will be needed if it picks that lot up - so we asked the man himself, already an Oscar-winner for The King's Speech, to chat about the experience of making it. He offered a fascinating insight into the mechanics of live singing, the input of his powerhouse cast and the correct shorthand for the movie. Is 'Les Miz' acceptable? Here's where to find out.

The Master himself, or at least the man who plays him in The Girl, Toby Jones, also popped by for a lovely chat about his depiction of Alfred Hitchcock, Snow White And The Huntsman's cockney mafia and Berberian Sound Studio's audio porn. To here what he and Hooper had to say, and for detailed analysis of the Oscars, click play on the SoundCloud file below, or subscribe to the Empire Podcast via our iTunes page or this handy RSS feed. Happpppy new podcast year!