Lily Allen drops out as Orange prize judge
Sean Michaels
Monday April 7, 2008
guardian.co.uk
Lily Allen was never the most obvious pick to judge a major literary prize. She’s famous not for her views on novels but for a song about London that doesn’t even spell out the city’s whole name.
That didn’t stop the organisers of the Orange Broadband prize (awarded for the best novel in English by a woman). In December, they added Allen’s name to a judging panel alongside broadcaster Kirsty Lang, journalist Bel Mooney, novelist Philippa Gregory and the Guardian’s Lisa Allardice.
Many lit snobs squawked, wondering what a 22-year-old pop singer would bring to the table – other than chewing gum and photographers’ flash-bulbs. And now, well, they can stop squawking. Because Lily Allen’s out.
“It is with deep regret that Lily Allen has withdrawn from the judging panel,” Allen’s manager told the Daily Mail this weekend. “Lily had read extensively for the first stage of the judging process and was looking forward to the shortlist meeting but recently found that she was unable to commit 100% to the role due to ill-health.”
Allen did not attend a judges’ meeting last month to discuss the 20-book longlist, according to the Daily Mail. Instead she participated by telephone. Allen also missed a debate last week to decide the shortlist.
“Lily hopes that her withdrawal will not detract from the huge importance of the Orange prize and sends her sincere apologies to her fellow judges and to the individual authors,” her manager added.