Sam and Natalia visit the Southbank Centre in London as the 2026 Booker Prize shortlist is revealed.
The Booker Prize is a literary award given to the best English-language novel published each year. After attending the 2026 shortlist announcement on September 22nd, Sam and Natalia go through their thoughts on each book.
Intro: 00:00 - 05:50
THE END OF EVERYTHING by M. John Harrison: 05:50 - 08:04
THE DISAPPEARERS by Marlon James: 08:04 - 13:23
BLACK BAG by Luke Kennard: 13:23 - 17:12
MAY WE FEED THE KING by Rebecca Perry: 17:12 - 21:08
THE THINGS WE NEVER SAY by Elizabeth Strout: 21:08 - 23:45
JOHN OF JOHN by Douglas Stuart: 23:45 - 28:14
Conclusion: 28:14 - 36:20
Topics of conversation include FLESH by David Szalay, pronouncing Québec, The National Book Award, Natalia's cough, insiders, DOCTOR WHO, Asimov and Vonnegut, THE NEW YORKER, expensive books, The Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, books that are over 600 pages long, A BRIEF HISTORY OF SEVEN KILLINGS, Raymond Antrobus, Russell T Davies and TIP TOE, cringe, campus novels, Michael Fassbender's BLACK BAG, trampolinists, judging books by their covers, divisive American politics, remote Scottish islands, SHUGGIE BAIN, and this week's episode of LEARNING BRITISH.
Here's the article we used to guide our conversation: "Booker Prize judges reveal shortlisted novels after selection 'tussle'", written by Ian Youngs for the BBC.
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Learning British is a weekly show hosted by Sam Brown, a born-and-bred Brit, and Natalia Brammen, a Polish immigrant living in the UK. In each episode, Sam introduces Natalia to a new piece of British culture, media, or history, from badly aged sitcoms to cancelled celebrities.
You can keep up with the podcast on Instagram, YouTube, and Reddit.
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