Watch Dua Lipa and other stars read from the International Booker Prize 2024 shortlist
David Jonsson, Eleanor Tomlinson, Tobias Menzies, Anya Chalotra, Antonia Thomas and Dua Lipa read extracts from the six books on our shortlist in these extraordinary new films
Our shortlist films, in which we invite well-known actors and performers to read extracts from our shortlisted books, have become a firm fixture in the Booker Prizes calendar in recent years.
Today, we’re delighted to unveil our new films, which showcase the 2024 shortlist for the International Booker Prize, the world’s leading award for fiction translated into English. The performers include multi-award-winning singer songwriter Dua Lipa, alongside actors Eleanor Tomlinson (One Day, Poldark, The Outlaws), David Jonsson (Rye Lane, Industry), Tobias Menzies (The Crown, Game of Thrones, Manhunt), Anya Chalotra (The Witcher, Wanderlust) and Antonia Thomas (Still Up, Lovesick, The Good Doctor).
The new films are once again produced by Sharon Horgan and Clelia Mountford’s production company Merman, and are directed by Charlotte Hamblin, a screenwriter, actor and director known for her performances in Downton Abbey, Call the Midwife and Operation Mincemeat. As well as being published across the Booker Prizes’ social channels, the films will also be shown at the International Booker Prize 2024 ceremony, sponsored by Maison Valentino, which is being held at Tate Modern, London, on Tuesday, 21 May.
Gaby Wood, Chief Executive of the Booker Prize Foundation, says:
‘Over the three years we’ve worked with the exceptional team at Merman, the Booker shortlist films have become a huge hit, reaching over 20 million people on our social channels and taking the work of the world’s best writers to new audiences. It’s been gratifying to see how many of these highly engaged viewers say how excited they are to read the books as a result of watching the films. We’re especially lucky to work with world-class performers with huge fanbases, who have not only brought these stories to life in a matter of minutes but helped to spread them far and wide.
‘We know that the International Booker Prize is of particular interest to younger readers: half of all buyers of translated fiction in the UK are under 35 – a group now dubbed “Generation TF”. This season Anya Chalotra, David Jonsson, Dua Lipa, Tobias Menzies, Antonia Thomas and Eleanor Tomlinson, who have read from the shortlisted books with great poignancy and elegance, will speak to that generation and many more. We couldn’t be more grateful, or more proud of this collaboration.’
An avid reader and host of her own book club at her editorial platform Service95, Dua Lipa has collaborated with the Booker Prizes on two previous occasions. In 2022, she delivered a keynote speech at the Booker Prize ceremony, in which she spoke passionately about her love of fiction and the authors who have inspired her; in 2023, she visited HMP Downview to see the Booker Prizes’ prisons initiative, Books Unlocked, in action. Lipa’s performance in the new films coincides with the launch of her third album, Radical Optimism, which is released on 3 May 2024.
Dua Lipa says:
‘As someone who grew up speaking two languages, I know how inspiring it can be to have access to stories about other worlds. I’m fascinated by lives lived in other countries, whether it’s the imagined lives of the characters or the real lives of the authors. So translation is an art close to my heart – it makes that adventure possible for so many more of us. Translated fiction is a hand extended from one culture to another. It allows us to understand each other better, and to see the world in a new light.’
Lost in translation: A quiz about translated fiction and the International Booker Prize
From Ferrante to Fosse, test your knowledge of the International Booker Prize and all things TF (translated fiction) with our trivia-based quiz, where we celebrate the books, authors, and translators that have shaped the history of our prizes.
Ecstatic 🤩 Such a joy to watch and listen 💎💕📚💕💎