Himesh Patel and Maxine Peake are among the actors appearing in short films for the 2026 Booker Prize shortlist.
Patel, known for The Odyssey and The Franchise, reads extracts from Black Bag by Luke Kennard, while Peake, who starred in The Theory Of Everything and Silk, reads The Things We Never Say by Elizabeth Strout.
Actors and Books
Black Mirror star Lewis Gribben reads John Of John by Douglas Stuart, who won the Booker for Shuggie Bain in 2020. Olivier-Award winning actress Kathryn Hunter reads The End Of Everything by M John Harrison, and Savannah Steyn reads May We Feed The King by Rebecca Perry.
Wonka star Paterson Joseph reads The Disappearers by Marlon James, who won the Booker Prize in 2015 for A Brief History Of Seven Killings.
Director's Vision
The films will be directed by Holly Blakey, who said: “This year we wanted to push the visual language somewhere new, shooting much of it outside and finding something looser, more textural and alive in the process.
“It was less about narrativising the books for me, more about searching for the feelings they leave you with – fear, humour, the great voids between us, or something altogether more existential.
“Each film had its own distinct world, shaped by the book and the performer, and it was a real joy finding those different notes with such an extraordinary group of actors.”
Viewing and Previous Stars
The films can be viewed on the Booker Prize website and social channels. Previous featured performers include Stormzy, Dua Lipa, Toby Jones, David Harewood and Will Poulter.
The winning title and author will be announced on November 9 at a ceremony in London and livestreamed on the Booker Prize’s channels. The winner will receive £50,000 and a trophy named Iris. Last year’s winner was British-Hungarian author David Szalay and his novel Flesh.
