Ferdia Lennon
Ferdia Lennon (born 1988) is an Irish author.
Biography
Lennon was born in Dublin and holds a BA in history and classics from University College Dublin and an MA in prose fiction from the University of East Anglia.[1] He lives in Norwich with his wife and son.[2]
Career
His debut novel, Glorious Exploits was a Sunday Times bestseller. It has been adapted for BBC Radio 4 and was the winner of the Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize 2024, the Authors' Club Best First Novel Award, the Premio Gregor von Rezzori and the Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize for Comic Fiction.[3][4] It was also shortlisted for several other awards, including the Nero Debut Fiction Award, formerly known as the Costa Awards.[5] the 2025 Swansea University Dylan Thomas Prize.[6] and the Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction.
Awards and honours
Literary awards
| Year | Work | Award | Category | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Glorious Exploits | Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize for Comic Fiction | — | Won | |
| 2024 | Glorious Exploits | Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize | — | Won | |
| 2024 | Glorious Exploits | Waterstones Book of the Year | — | Shortlisted | |
| 2024 | Glorious Exploits | Nero Debut Fiction Award | — | Shortlisted | |
| 2024 | Glorious Exploits | Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction | — | Longlisted | |
| 2025 | Glorious Exploits | Dylan Thomas Prize | — | Shortlisted | |
| 2025 | Glorious Exploits | British Book Awards | — | Shortlisted | |
| 2025 | Glorious Exploits | Runciman Award | — | Shortlisted | |
| 2025 | Glorious Exploits | Authors’ Club First Novel Award | — | Won | |
| 2025 | Glorious Exploits | Premio Gregor von Rezzori | — | Won | |
| 2025 | Glorious Exploits | Walter Scott Prize | — | Shortlisted | [7] |
References
- ^ Cummins, Anthony (31 August 2024). "Ferdia Lennon: 'I was tired of Merchant Ivory accents'". The Guardian.
- ^ Lennon, Ferdia (3 January 2025). "Ferdia Lennon: 'Tolstoy made me more forgiving of myself and other people'". The Guardian.
- ^ "UK: PRH's Ferdia Lennon is the 24th Bollinger Prize Winner". 2 December 2024.
- ^ "Ferdia Lennon: 'I couldn't finish Finnegans Wake, I wonder if Joyce made it impenetrable because he knew he couldn't outdo Ulysses'". 22 January 2025.
- ^ "Ferdia Lennon wins Wodehouse Prize and is one of several Irish authors on Nero Awards shortlists". The Irish Times.
- ^ "Ferdia Lennon and Yael van der Wouden shortlisted for several awards including the £20k Swansea University Dylan Thomas Prize".
- ^ "2025 Shortlist announced from Abbotsford". Walter Scott Prize. 15 April 2025. Retrieved 19 April 2025.