International Booker winner announced May 19

The Booker Prize Foundation said the 2026 International Booker Prize winner will be announced on Tuesday, May 19, at Tate Modern in London. The award honors a work of translated fiction published in the U.K. or Ireland, with the £50,000 prize split equally between author and translator, according to the prize website. The foundation said the announcement will be livestreamed from 10.05 p.m. BST on its YouTube, Instagram and TikTok accounts. The 2026 award is supported by Bukhman Philanthropies. ### When exactly is the winner being announced? Tuesday, May 19, is the date set for the 2026 winner announcement, according to the Booker Prize Foundation’s 2026 prize page and media materials. The ceremony and dinner are scheduled for Tate Modern in London, with the public announcement due in the evening London time. (thebookerprizes.com) The Booker Prize Foundation said the livestream will begin at 10.05 p.m. BST. For readers in the United States, that places the announcement late Tuesday afternoon or early evening, depending on time zone. ### How was this year’s field narrowed down? The 2026 judging panel read 128 submitted novels and short-story collections over eight months, according to the foundation’s shortlist materials. (thebookerprizes.com) That process produced a 13-book longlist and then a six-book shortlist announced on March 31. The eligible books were translated into English and published in the U.K. and/or Ireland between May 1, 2025 and April 30, 2026, according to the prize’s official background materials. The foundation said the longlist included books translated from 11 original languages by authors and translators representing 14 nationalities across four continents. (thebookerprizes.com) ### Which books and translators are still in contention? The six shortlisted books are *The Nights Are Quiet in Tehran* by Shida Bazyar, translated by Ruth Martin; *She Who Remains* by Rene Karabash, translated by Izidora Angel; *The Director* by Daniel Kehlmann, translated by Ross Benjamin; *On Earth As It Is Beneath* by Ana Paula Maia, translated by Padma Viswanathan; *The Witch* by Marie NDiaye, translated by Jordan Stump; and *Taiwan Travelogue* by Yáng Shuāng-zǐ, translated by Lin King. (thebookerprizes.com) The Booker Prize website lists the finalists on its 2026 prize page and homepage. The shortlist represents five original languages and writers and translators of eight nationalities, according to the foundation’s March 31 announcement. Natasha Brown, chair of the 2026 judges, said in the shortlist release that the books “reverberate with history.” ### How does the prize money work? (thebookerprizes.com) The International Booker Prize awards £50,000 to the winning title, divided equally between the author and translator, according to the prize’s official rules and background pages. That structure has become a defining feature of the award, which recognizes translation alongside authorship. Each shortlisted title also receives £5,000, split equally between author and translator, the foundation said. (thebookerprizes.com) That means all six finalist pairs receive prize money whether or not they win on May 19. ### Why is this year notable for the prize itself? The 2026 shortlist is the 10th annual iteration of the International Booker Prize in its current annual form, according to trade coverage and the Booker Prize site’s anniversary materials. (thebookerprizes.com) The foundation marked the anniversary this month with a separate event at London’s Southbank Centre featuring Dua Lipa. (thebookerprizes.com) Independent publishers remain prominent in the prize pipeline. The foundation said more than half of the longlisted books came from independent presses, including a first longlisting for Foundry Editions and a 17th nomination for Fitzcarraldo Editions. ### Where can readers follow the result? (publishersweekly.com) The Booker Prize Foundation said readers can watch the winner announcement on its YouTube, Instagram and TikTok channels from 10.05 p.m. BST on Tuesday, May 19. The official 2026 prize page and the foundation’s homepage list the shortlisted books, authors, translators and livestream details ahead of the Tate Modern ceremony. (thebookerprizes.com 1) (thebookerprizes.com 2)