The inaugural Catholic Herald Book Awards have taken place at Brown’s Hotel in London, with the broadcaster and author Mark Lawson acting as master of ceremonies.
Some last-minute juggling of the order in which the awards were presented was necessary when it was noted that Adam Dant, the winner of the best illustrated book category was not in his seat as the Brown’s Endive Salad was passed around the tables. There was an absent place next to the biographer Leanda de Lisle.
After it was discovered that Dant had been so inspired by a commission he was working on that he had “forgotten the time”, he rushed to Mayfair, and then struggled to find the hotel – arriving only just in time for the award presentation.
