Author Helen Fielding launches award to find the next Bridget Jones's Diary
Author Helen Fielding has launched the Bridget Jones Prize to discover new comedic diary writers from the north of England. The initiative aims to address the regional imbalance in writing opportunities across the UK by supporting unpublished authors.
Why it matters
This prize highlights efforts to democratize the literary industry and promote regional voices that are often underrepresented in mainstream media.
Share Save Add as preferred on Google Paul Glynn Culture reporter Getty Images Bridget Jones author Helen Fielding (right) alongside film star Renée Zellweger Bridget Jones author Helen Fielding has launched a new prize aimed at discovering funny diary writers from the north of England, saying opportunities across the UK are "very uneven".
West Yorkshire-born Fielding, who penned Bridget's famous diary as well co-writing the film adaptations, has set up the Bridget Jones Prize with charity New Writing North.
The award will go to the person who submits the funniest 1,000-word piece of first-person writing.
Speaking at an event for the Independent, which first published Bridget's diary in 1995, Fielding said the spread of opportunity for writing in the UK is "very uneven", adding: "There's much more opportunity in the south than in the north, where I grew up."
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