Literature: the Nobel Prize, The Lord of the Rings and the Man Booker
Britain's literature has a long and highly respected history. Several British writers have won the Nobel Prize in Literature, among them the novelist Sir William Golding, the poet Seamus Heaney and the playwright Harold Pinter.
Other writers are loved for popular fiction. People all over the world read Agatha Christie's detective stories, and Ian Fleming created James Bond in his novels. In 2003, JRR Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings was voted the country's favourite novel.
The Man Booker Prize for Fiction has been given every year since 1968 to the best novel by a writer from the Commonwealth, Ireland or Zimbabwe. Winners include Ian McEwan, Hilary Mantel and Julian Barnes.
Quiz
Which of the following statements is correct?
Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings came top in the 2003 vote for the nation's favourite novel. Rowling's Harry Potter books are children's books that became popular all over the world.
Quiz
What kind of work wins the Man Booker Prize for Fiction?
Each year the Man Booker Prize for Fiction picks one novel; the author can be British, Irish, Zimbabwean or from another Commonwealth country. Hilary Mantel, Julian Barnes and Ian McEwan have all won it. Contemporary art has the Turner Prize, theatre has the Laurence Olivier Awards, and film has the BAFTA awards.