March is the month of the Oscars. And English movie channel HBO is set to ring in the awards season with a month-long telecast of eight of the best Oscar-winning flicks including classics such as Ben-Hur and Lawrence of Arabia over weekends next month. Titled 'Simply the best ever Oscar weekends', the line-up begins with the screening of the $ 413 million grosser Batman on March 1 at 11.30 pm. This will be followed by the movie with the maximum number of trophies, Ben-Hur at 11.00 pm on March 2.

March 8 and 9 will see the David Lean classic Lawrence of Arabia and the Eddie Murphy-starrer Nutty Professor at 11.45 pm and 11.15 pm respectively. Bridge on the River Kwai and Exorcist will be telecasted on the third weekend at 12.30 pm and 11.15 pm respectively while the Tom Hanks-starrer Saving Private Ryan and the Roman epic Gladiator featuring an Oscar-winning performance from Russell Crowe will follow on the fourth weekend of March.

To add a new dimension to its programming initiatives in the run-up to the Oscars, HBO is also organizing a contest on its website titled 'Pick the Winners'. In this contest, participants will have to nominate a winner from four of the most prestigious categories of the Academy Awards - Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor and Best Actress.

Contestants whose nominations are equivalent to the final results will win attractive prizes.