Oxford Brookes University and Wells and Young’s have come together to offer £2000 Bombardier Beer prize for writing on “the joys and jolliness of beer”
Bombardier Beer and Oxford Brookes University today announce the launch of a new competition with a £2000 cash prize offered for the best piece of writing about beer and its role in society.
The competition is open to anyone who writes about beer – or aspires to do so – from mainstream journalists and the top names of the beer-writing world, to young bloggers and as-yet-unpublished enthusiasts.
The judges are asking for a piece of up to 1500 words on the subject of beer’s role in society, or as writer, food critic and competition judge Charles Campion puts it, “the joys and jolliness of beer”, and beer’s role as a social lubricant.
“We’re not looking for technical writing, campaigning tracts or extracts form guidebooks,” continues Campion, “beer is the most sociable drink in the world and doesn’t get fair recognition. This prize is an attempt to help change that.”
As well as Campion, judges will include Paul Wells from Wells and Young’s who are sponsoring the prize, Donald Sloan, the Chair of Oxford Gastronomica at Oxford Brookes University, and Pete Brown, writer and winner of the Michael Jackson Gold Tankard Award for Beer Writer of the Year in 2009.
The closing date for entries will be Friday 1st April 2011. The winner will then be announced at the 2011 Sunday Times Oxford Literary Festival on the evening of Friday 8th April, during a dinner and reception at the Oxford Malmaison Hotel
For full details on format of entries and submission process contact Razia Nabi (rnabi@brookes.ac.uk)
You're one of the judges, eh? I that case I would like to retract an negative comments I may have mistakenly made about the SIBA video and say how absolutely wonderful I think it is.
Tell you what Pete. I'll be a judge instead and we'll split the two grand when you win.
I fear, Pete, that the reaction in the beer writing community to the news that you're a judge and thus ineligible to enter is likely to be: "Good – some other fecker stands a chance of winning, then …"
You couldn't co-opt Mark Dredge onto the judging panel as well, could you?
Are US Beer writers allowed to enter?
Brits only or open to international participation?
Do you suppose they'll want the winner to turn up in Oxford? I'd quite like to see Eoin Colfer and Terry Jones on the 10th.
Guys – we hadn't thought about the international dimension, but after a brief chat I can confirm that it's open to writers from anywhere!
Since the winner was to be announced last Friday, will you be posting who took the prize? I can't seem to find the information anywhere on-line.
Thanks.