Congratulations to Julian Jackson, the author of France on Trial: The Case of Marshal Petain, on winning the 2023 Pol Roger Duff Cooper Prize.

Our editor and part of our board attended an elegant and enjoyable event at the Travellers Club in Pall Mall. The champagne and conversation flowed. One wonders how many glasses of Pol Roger Winston Churchill and Duff Cooper would have shared over the years. The two orators would have never put a cork in it, so to speak. Attendees at the prize included Robert Harris, Jenni Russell, Ian Hislop, Adam Sisman and Paul Lay.

Unfortunately the winner could not be present, as Julian Jackson was committed to attending an event in Australia. Thankfully, he was able to join proceedings through a video message.

Thanks should be given to Artemis Cooper for being such an amiable and generous host. The award was founded in 1956 – after Duff Cooper’s passing (I can strongly recommend his biography of Talleyrand). Artemis Cooper’s stewardship of the event, which has now lasted for over thirty years, has seen the prize go from strength to strength. Past winners include Margaret Macmillan, John Keegan, Robin Lane Fox and Patrick Leigh Fermor. Quite a roll call.

The Duff Cooper Prize has now been making and promoting history for nearly seventy years. We should all raise a glass of Pol Roger, or whatever’s to hand, to toast Julian Jackson, Artemis Cooper and one of the most prestigious non-fiction prizes in the literary calendar.

Artemis Cooper and Julian Jackson will be discussing Julian’s prize-winning book at the Oxford Literary Festival on Weds. 20th March. Tickets here.