British author Joe Ransom has won the 2024 Polari Prize for his novel The Gallopers.
Ransom was also a winner at the award last year, taking out the Best First Novel award for his work The Whale Tattoo. This year’s accolade makes him the first person to win back to back awards.
The Polari Prize was first established in 2011 to recognise works that “push the boundaries of LGBTQ fiction.” It now contains three awards, overall best book, best first novel, and best Young Adult work. The third award is only given out every two years.
The Gallopers is an emotional thriller that follows the lives of three men across three decades, taking in the homophobia they experience and their relationships.
Nicola Dinan won the Polari First Book prize for her work Bellies which is described as a tale of young love and transformation. Sarah Hagger-Holt was the winner of the Children and Young Adult Prize for her book The Fights That Make Us.
Other previous winners of the First Book Prize include Fiona Mozley, Saleem Haddad, Paul McVeigh, Kirsty Logan, Diriye Osman, John McCullough, Mari Hannah, James Maker, Angela Chadwick, Amrou Al-Kadhi, Mohsin Zaidi and Adam Zmith.
The Polari Prize was founded in 2019 and awarded to Andrew McMillan in its inaugural year, to Kate Davies in 2020, Diana Souhami in 2021, Joelle Taylor in 2022 and Julia Armfield in 2023. The Children’s & YA Book Prize was established in 2022 and won by Terry Eagleton and James Mayhew.
