The Arthur C. Clarke Award

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The Arthur C. Clarke Award

The Arthur C. Clarke Award science fiction book of the year The award was originally established by a generous grant from Sir Arthur C.

Clarke Award is presented for the best science fiction novel of the year, and selected from a list of novels whose UK first edition was published in the previous calendar year. Clarke with the aim of promoting science fiction in Britain, and is currently administered by the Serendip Foundation, a voluntary organisation created to oversee the on-going delivery and development of the award. Members

of the judging panel are nominated by supporting organisations, currently the British Science Fiction Association, the Science Fiction Foundation and the SCI-FI-LONDON film festival.

18/02/2026

Clarke Award winner Namwali Serpell interviewed about her new non-fiction book on the works of Toni Morrison.

Namwali Serpell is one of the most evocative, erudite, and original writers at work today. She mixes Gothic and Afrofuturist styles in The Old Drift, her first novel, a three-family saga that spans…

30/01/2026

The New Scientist Book Club takes on Annie Bot

Members of the New Scientist Book Club give their take on Sierra Greer's award-winning science-fiction novel Annie Bot, our read for February – and the needle swings wildly from positive to negative

28/01/2026

We love this cover 😍

Coming in February, LOSS PROTOCOL is the new novel from Paul McAuley, the Clarke Award wining author of Fairyland.

Available for pre-order now! https://uk.bookshop.org/a/14057/9781399635561

25/09/2025

Greetings, Carbon-Based Bipeds! The latest edition of the Clarke Award newsletter is out now.

📡Our latest broadcast signal includes upcoming events, quantum micro-fiction competitions, and The Handmaid's Tale turns 40.

Events, quantum fiction competitions, and happy 40th birthday Offred

05/09/2025

Now booking! Annie Bot vs The Tech Bros: science fiction and AI origin stories.

Join Sierra Greer, award-winning author of Annie Bot, and our expert panel of speakers to explore science fiction’s influence on modern tech culture and the role of science communication in bridging the gap between STEM and society.

Award-winning author Sierra Greer and an expert panel of speakers explore science fiction’s influence on modern tech culture.

26/06/2025

We're delighted to announce that ANNIE BOT by Sierra Greer is the 39th winner of the Arthur C. Clarke Award science fiction book of the year!

Annie Bot by Sierra Greer wins £2,025 for ‘compelling tale that, like all good stories about robots, is ultimately about the human condition’

23/06/2025

Chair of Judges, Dr Andrew M. Butler, talks to fivebooks.com about this year's Clarke Award shortlist.

The Arthur C Clarke award highlights six outstanding science fiction books every year. The judges look for books that reward re-reading and make them think, says chair of judges Andrew M. Butler. He introduces this year’s shortlist, taking in everything from time travel to heist novels: books that...

17/06/2025

Join us as we announce the winner of this year's Arthur C. Clarke Award 🚀

Public tickets to the award ceremony event now available 👇

Award presentation and drinks reception for the 39th annual Arthur C. Clarke Award science fiction book of the year.

12/05/2025

We’re delighted to reveal the shortlist for the 39th Arthur C. Clarke Award for science fiction book of the year.

The six shortlisted books are:

Private Rites by Julia Armfield
The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley
Extremophile by Ian Green
Annie Bot by Sierra Greer
Service Model by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Thirteen Ways to Kill Lulabelle Rock by Maud Woolf

Our Chair of Judges, Dr Andrew M. Butler, said:
“Clarke judges always bring passion and expertise to their deliberations and this year’s jury is no exception. Adrian Tchaikovsky might win for the second time, but he’s up against the debuts of Kaliane Bradley and Maud Woolf, as well as Julia Armfield, Ian Green and Sierra Greer’s first adult sf novels. I can’t even begin to guess whose name will be in the envelope.”

Award Director Tom Hunter added:
“As the award nears its 40th anniversary, the many ways of defining, interpreting, and judging science fiction remain as intriguingly complex as ever. This shortlist rewards close reading, revealing both striking parallels and surprising juxtapositions across the six nominated books.”

This year’s winner will be announced on Wednesday 25th June 2025.

The winner will receive a trophy in the form of a commemorative engraved bookend and prize money to the value of £2025.00; a tradition that sees the annual prize money rise incrementally by year from the year 2001 in memory of Sir Arthur C. Clarke.

The judging panel for the Arthur C. Clarke Award 2025 are:

Dolly Garland and Gene Rowe for the British Science Fiction Association.

Nic Clarke and John Coxon for the Science Fiction Foundation.

Glyn Morgan for the SCI-FI-LONDON film festival.

Dr Andrew M. Butler represented the Arthur C. Clarke Award directors in a non-voting role as the Chair of the Judges.

02/05/2025

📣 Out now! The latest edition of Carbon-Based Bipeds, the Clarke Award newsletter👉 https://clarkeaward.substack.com/p/carbon-based-bipeds-may-2025?r=1iuqlv&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&triedRedirect=true
Contains:
➡️ The complete judges reading list of submitted books
➡️ AI Dreams and Sci-Fi Nightmares panel event at King's College London
➡️ SCI-FI-LONDON film festival 2025

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http://www.clarkeaward.com/

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Our Story

The Arthur C. Clarke Award is the most prestigious award for science fiction in Britain.

The annual award is given for the best science fiction novel first published in the United Kingdom during the previous year. The award was established with a generous grant given by Sir Arthur C. Clarke and the first prize was awarded in 1987 to Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale .

The winner is judged by a jury panel and selected from an initial shortlist of six eligible novels. The panel of judges is made up of a voluntary body of distinguished writers, critics and fans with the panel line-up changing every year. The juries are drawn from such organisations as the British Science Fiction Association, the Science Fiction Foundation and the SCI-FI-LONDON film festival.