Ricky Gervais provided one of the few surprises at the Emmy awards last night, when he won the best comedy actor honour for his performance in Extras.

The British funny man showed once again how well his brand of gently anarchic humour has gone down in the United States. The shortlist for the comedy actor award contained not only Alec Baldwin, the pre-ceremony favourite for his role as a difficult boss in 30 Rock, but Steve Carell for the US version of Gervais's own multi-awarding winning comedy series, The Office.

One of the other British contenders, Helen Mirren, was named best female actor in a mini-series or movie for her role in the last installment of crime drama Prime Suspect: The Final Act.

Gervais did not attend the awards show to collect his statuette, but still managed to collect the biggest laugh of the evening as when Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert, the presenters, joked: "Ricky Gervais could not be here tonight. Instead we're going to give this to our friend, Steve Carell," prompting Carell to bound on stage, arms held aloft in a victory celebration, to share a group hug.

The mob drama The Sopranos won the top honour of the night - outstanding drama - as well as the best writing and best directing gongs.

The prizes were a farewell to the groundbreaking HBO series, which ended in June after an eight year run.

"This is really great," said David Chase, the creator of the show. "I've said it many times and I'll say it again, but maybe the best thing about this has been working with this cast. They are great."

James Gandolfini, who played mob boss Tony Soprano, and Edie Falco, who played his long-suffering wife Carmela, nonetheless both missed out on awards for best actor in a drama.

"I feel like I just stole a pile of money from the mob and they're all sitting right over there," said James Spader, who pipped Gandolfini to the award for best lead actor in a drama for his performance as a quirky attorney in Boston Legal.

Hugh Laurie, another Brit, had also been nominated in the same category for his cranky doctor in the medical series House.

In other categories America Ferrara won the Emmy for best female comedy performance for her role in Ugly Betty, while Sally Field scooped her third Emmy for the series Brothers And Sisters, beating Edie Falco to be named the best female actor in a drama.

"It is truly an amazing, wonderful thing that happens when your dreams come true," gushed Ferrara, at the star-studded ceremony in the Los Angeles Shrine Auditorium.

The best comedy series award went to 30 Rock, beating Entourage, which is set on the Hollywood celebrity circuit, and Two And A Half Men, starring Charlie Sheen.

But on a night when the awards went largely according to the favourites, the largest cheer was reserved for Al Gore, the politician turned celebrity environmental campaigner, who accepted an award for Current TV - his project to run a television channel based on content supplied by its own viewers.

"We are trying to open up the television medium so that viewers can help to make television, and join the conversation of democracy and reclaim American democracy by talking about the choices we have to make," intoned Gore, to rapturous screams from the audience and a standing ovation.

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