James Fenton wins 2015 PEN Pinter Prize

Congratulations to James Fenton who has been awarded the 2015 PEN Pinter Prize. Established in 2009 in memory of Harold Pinter, the Prize is awarded annually to a British writer of outstanding literary merit, who, in the words of Harold Pinter's Nobel Prize in Literature speech,casts an "unflinching, unswerving" gaze upon the world and show a "fierce intellectual determination... to define the real truth of our lives and our societies." 

President of English PEN, Maureen Freely, who charied the judges, said that: "throughout his long and distinguished career, James Fenton has spoken truth to power - forcefully, fearlessly, and beautifully. In this age of privatised art, it is increasingly rare for writers to retain this degree of public commitment, and that is one reason why we are so pleased to be awarding him this prize. But the main reason, of course, is that James Fenton is one of the finest poets of his generation."

James will receive the award at a public event at the British Library on 6 October where he will deliver an address.