Michael Booth

British Travel Press Awards - Hooray!

Huzzah, Hurrah and Hooray! Eat, Pray, Eat has been nominated for a massively prestigious and sexy British Travel Press Award - in the category of 'Narrative Travel Book of the Year'.

Here's a list of last year's winners - some pretty impressive names up there, I see. This year's nominees list isn't up yet, but will be on Monday (if I am not on it I will feel a tad foolish, I have to say).

It's wrong to boast, but this is my blog so I'll burnish my escutcheon as much as I blimmin' well please.

Did I already say, 'Hooray!'?

 

Top 50 Food Writers - UK Press Gazette

A kind soul at the Guild of Food Writers just emailed to say that, apparently, I have been named as one of the top 50 food writers* by the UK Press Gazette. Which was quite a shock, not least because I don't really think of myself as a food writer.

Jay Rayner of the Observer tops the list, and all the usual suspects are elsewhere - Jamie Oliver, Hugh F-W, Nigel Slater, AA Gill and so on. 

I hardly think I am worth a higher ranking than the great Simon Hopkinson or the even greater - in my eyes - Jeffrey Steingarten, and suspect an administrative error, but you've got to take your plaudits where you can find them, and this has definitely made my weekend.

I have to admit having bad-mouthed the UK Press Gazette to anyone who would listen (and many who didn't want to) for many years since they nominated me as motoring writer of the year many years ago, but then went and gave the prize to Jeremy Clarkson. But I take it all back. Their judgement is faultless. 

*And not at 50, in case you were wondering. Number 39, if you please.

Guild of Food Writers Award - A win, would you believe?

On Thursday night Lissen and I trundled along to the Design Museum in Shad Thames for the annual Guild of Food Writers awards, along with most of the country's leading food writers and journalists (including the legendary Margeurite Patten, and TV stars such as Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall and Rick Stein). 

I'd been nominated for the Kate Whiteman award for work in food and travel (for Sushi and Beyond), but having been nominated for things in the past and endured the bitter pill of hearing some other guy's name being read out (on one occasion it was Jeremy Clarkson's, which was especially galling as you might imagine), I had successfully convinced myself I had absolutely no chance of winning.

Even as the host read out the names of the nominees, I was preparing to pull a dignified face, which I think is why I am still in a bit of a state of shock two days later having actually won the thing.

 (Look, I won for writing, not taking photographs, ok?)

A huge thank you, then, to all the judges who voted for me and to all those who congratulated me afterwards, not least the inestimable Shirley Booth (no relation), a world renowned expert in Japanese cuisine and a most generous soul indeed. Thanks are due too to my publisher Dan Franklin at Random House and my sadly soon-to-be ex-agent, Camilla Hornby at Curtis Brown (only 'soon to be ex- because she is leaving to be a mum for a bit), for supporting me so unstintingly over these last few years.

I now plan to change my name officially by Deed Poll to Award Winning Writer Michael Booth.

You think I'm joking...