The Bookseller.com

17th May 2008

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'Terrible cock-up' by Booker

08.05.08 Benedicte Page

Man Booker Prize organisers will screen this year's award ceremony live at the Frankfurt Book Fair after realising that the two events clash.

This year's prize-giving will take place at the Guildhall in London on the evening of Tuesday 14th October, while the fair in Frankfurt opens the following morning. A senior publisher described the clash as "a terrible cock-up".

Prize administrator Ion Trewin acknowledged the date clash was "not satisfactory", saying that for publishers with shortlisted titles, "somebody will have to decide who goes to the dinner and who goes to Frankfurt".

He added: "Booking the Guildhall is a tough call anyway—you book more than a year ahead—and that was the only date available. We are arranging the screening of the award ceremony at Frankfurt so that nobody will be deprived of seeing it live. The BBC has been most helpful in providing a feed."

The Frankfurt screening will take place at the Berlin Verlag Bloomsbury party at the Frankfurter Hof Hotel.

Benedicte Page Booker Prize Frankfurt Book Fair