John Harris and John Domokos ('Anywhere But Westminster') win The Orwell Prize for Journalism 2021

The winners of The Orwell Prize for Journalism 2021 were announced today, Friday 25th June 2021. The prize, for the commentary and/or reportage which best meets Orwell’s own stated ambition, “to make political writing into an art”, was awarded to John Harris and John Domokos, for their Guardian video series ‘Anywhere But Westminster’ and associated writing.
In a short film released to mark the award, chair of the judging panel Carrie Gracie commented that the pair’s winning entry “rose to the Orwell challenge” by “getting up and down the country, talking to ordinary people, listening so hard to their stories and putting those stories at the heart of our understanding of contemporary Britain.”
In their acceptance speech, the winners paid tribute to the quality of the year’s shortlist, and also dedicated the award to the people who had taken part in their videos. “It’s a great honour and thrill to receive this prize,” Harris commented, “particularly because of George Orwell who has always been a great influence and lodestar for us both.” The team had previously been shortlisted for the prize in 2020.
Award-winning reporter and broadcaster Clive Myrie commented: "The winning entry encapsulated the very best of what the Orwell Prize is all about. Giving voice to their subjects in their own words, the two Johns revealed deeper truths about the inequalities of society, so graphically exposed by the coronavirus pandemic. This was a fascinating, curated journey along roads journalists don’t travel as often as perhaps they should around Britain. It was a deeply affecting series of reports, respectful of those so often disrespected, simply by virtue of the fact that they are poor.”
John Harris and John Domokos will be special guest’s on tomorrow’s BBC4’s The Week in Westminster, discussing their journey to the prize (11.00AM, Saturday 26th June).

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Thank you guys for the great work