London, Jul 10 : English actress Kate Beckinsale has been awarded 20,000 pounds as libel damages over a newspaper claim that she had been dropped from a remake of `Barbarella'.

Beckinsale, 35, was not at the High Court in London for the settlement, but her solicitor Graham Atkins has said that the story in the Daily Express was entirely false and had caused considerable embarrassment.

He said that by claiming that Beckinsale was dropped from the film, it wrongly suggested that her career "was in decline".

Atkins told Justice Eady that Beckinsale was never in discussions about the role, originally played by Jane Fonda, and that there was never a possibility she would be part of the project.

It followed that she had not been passed over in favour of rival Hollywood actress Rose McGowan.

The article, which was also published on the newspaper's website, stated that the `Barbarella' remake was "expected to be a big commercial hit so it will be a real blow to Kate."

"This article wrongly gave the impression that the claimant''s career is in decline," the BBC quoted Atkins as saying.

The newspaper's counsel, Ian Helme, offered its sincere apology, and said that it was happy to pay damages and Beckinsale's legal fees. (ANI)