HBO fantasy drama Game of Thrones has broken the record for the highest number of Emmy Awards won by any fictional series.

Game of Thrones triumphed in three categories at September 18 ceremony, including outstanding drama series.

Its total number of awards now stands at 38, which means it has beaten Frasier’s previous record of 37.

Maggie Smith won outstanding supporting actress in a drama series for her role in Downton Abbey.

It is the third time Maggie Smith has won an Emmy for her portrayal of Violet Crawley, but she has never attended the ceremony in person.

Host Jimmy Kimmel joked: “We’re not mailing this to her. Maggie, if you want this, it will be in the lost and found.”

Sherlock was named best made for TV movie for its special episode The Abominable Bride.

Susanne Bier won for best directing in a limited series.

John Oliver won best variety talk series for his HBO series Last Week Tonight, beating James Corden, who was nominated for The Late Late Show.

Veep won the outstanding comedy series award for the second year in a row, while its star Julia Louis-Dreyfus won outstanding lead comedy actress for the fifth time.

In her acceptance speech, Louis-Dreyfus said: “Our show started out as political satire but now feels like a sobering documentary.”

She dedicated her award to her father, who died on September 16.

The outstanding comedy actor gong went to Jeffrey Tambor, who plays a transgender woman in the Amazon series Transparent, for the second year in a row.

Accepting the award, Jeffrey Tambor encouraged the industry to offer more opportunities to the trans community.

Rami Malek won outstanding lead actor in a drama series for his role in Mr. Robot – the first time an actor from an ethnic minority has won the award since 1998.

Tatiana Maslany from Orphan Black won the outstanding leading actress in a drama prize.

Other big winners of the night included The People vs. OJ Simpson – a dramatization of the OJ Simpson trial of the 1990s.

Elsewhere, The Voice took home the award for outstanding reality competition series, beating Project Runway and Dancing With The Stars.

The 38 Emmys won by Game of Thrones includes the nine trophies the series picked up at last weekend’s Creative Arts Emmys.

Game of Thrones is now the most decorated drama series in Emmy awards’ history – the overall record is held by Saturday Night Live, which has won 44.