British science fiction and fantasy author M. John Harrison, 81, has won the 2026 Booker Prize for his novel 'The End of Everything.' He is the oldest recipient in the award's history, which began in 1969.
Harrison was announced as the winner at a ceremony held in London on November 9. The prize includes £50,000. According to Australian broadcaster ABC, chair of the judges, classicist Mary Beard, described the work as "politics seen through the lens of the future" and noted that the judges reached a unanimous decision. This marks Harrison's first time as a Booker finalist.
The winning novel tells the story of a man and his increasingly forgetful painter uncle living on the southern coast of England after an unidentified invader causes societal collapse. At 198 pages, it is the shortest among the six finalists. Harrison stated that the book was inspired by the 2008 financial crisis, questioning how life continues amid ongoing disasters that shape our expectations and explanations of the world.
In his acceptance speech, Harrison expressed surprise at being honored, saying, "I really didn't expect to be standing here tonight, at the end of everything. I finally feel like a real writer." He has been writing for 60 years since publishing his first short story in 1966 and served as a Booker judge in 2022.
During a press conference, Harrison criticized genre distinctions, stating that they can "hold writers back" and that winning the Booker Prize allows him to be "true to myself without a label on my forehead." He emphasized that this award demonstrates the possibility of blending multiple genres, declaring, "The concept of viewing genres as barriers is over."
This year's six finalists included previous Booker winners Marlon James ('The Disappearers') and Douglas Stuart ('John of John'), Pulitzer Prize-winning author Elizabeth Strout ('The Things We Never Say'), Luke Kennard ('Black Bag'), and Rebecca Perry ('May We Feed the King'). A total of 163 entries were submitted.
According to the BBC, the judging panel included Beard, poet Raymond Antrobus, author Patricia Lockwood, critic Rebecca Liu, and Jarvis Cocker, lead singer of the band Pulp. Antrobus remarked that the finalists were "very human books that AI cannot replicate."
The Booker Prize is awarded to novels written in English and published in the UK or Ireland, regardless of the author's nationality.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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