RSL Ondaatje Prize
An annual award of £10,000 for a distinguished work of fiction, non-fiction or poetry, evoking the spirit of a place
The 2026 Prize
The 2026 RSL Ondaatje Prize was awarded to ‘A House for Miss Pauline’ by Diana McCaulay by judges Claire Armitstead, Emma Dabiri and Ekow Eshun.
The 2027 Ondaatje Prize will open for entry in Autumn 2026. Please ensure that you have read the full eligibility and guidelines before submitting your entry.
History
First awarded in 2004, the premise and broad remit of the Prize creates unique lists of outstanding works and authors that you would not usually find sitting side by side. We are grateful to Sir Christopher Ondaatje for sponsoring the Prize.
Past Winners
| 2026 | Diana McCaulay | A House for Miss Pauline |
| 2025 | Carys Davies | Clear |
| 2024 | Ian Penman | Fassbinder Thousands Of Mirrors |
| 2023 | Anthony Anaxagorou | Heritage Aesthetics |
| 2022 | Lea Ypi | Free |
| 2021 | Ruth Gilligan | The Butchers |
| 2020 | Roger Robinson | A Portable Paradise |
| 2019 | Aida Edemariam | The Wife’s Tale: A Personal History |
| 2018 | Pascale Petit | Mama Amazonica |
| 2017 | Francis Spufford | Golden Hill |
| 2016 | Peter Pomerantsev | Nothing Is True and Everything Is Possible |
| 2015 | Justin Marozzi | Baghdad: City of Peace, City of Blood |
| 2014 | Alan Johnson | This Boy |
| 2013 | Philip Hensher | Scenes from Early Life |
| 2012 | Rahul Bhattacharya | The Sly Company of People Who Care |
| 2011 | Edmund de Waal | The Hare with Amber Eyes |
| 2010 | Ian Thomson | The Dead Yard: Tales of Modern Jamaica |
| 2009 | Adam Nicolson | Sissinghurst: An Unfinished History |
| 2008 | Graham Robb | The Discovery of France |
| 2007 | Hisham Matar | In the Country of Men |
| 2006 | James Meek | The People’s Act of Love |
| 2005 | Rory Stewart | The Places In Between |
| 2004 | Louisa Waugh | Hearing Birds Fly |
More from Awards and Prizes
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Our Members are champions of literature. Their support makes our engagement work in schools and prisons possible and they enable us to celebrate literature in all its wonderful diversity. As a thank you, we give them all the joys of a literary festival and book club rolled into one, all year round.