The 2011 Scotiabank Giller Prize will be broadcast live on CBC’s bold TV at 9:00 p.m. ET and CBC Television at 11:05 p.m.
CBC announced today the roster of acclaimed presenters that will participate in the 2011 Scotiabank Giller Prize gala on Tuesday, November 8, 2011. The six finalists - David Bezmozgis, Lynn Coady, Patrick deWitt, Esi Edugyan, Zsuzsi Gartner and Michael Ondaatje - will be introduced by the following special presenters: multi-platinum award-winning singer-songwriter Nelly Furtado; singer-songwriter and frontman of multiplatinum Vancouver band Hedley, Jacob Hoggard; broadcaster and host of CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada, Ron MacLean; actor (Canadian Oscar-nominated film, Water) Lisa Ray; legendary singer-songwriter and guitarist Robbie Robertson; and actor, director and producer Zaib Shaikh.
Broadcast live at 9:00 p.m. ET on CBC’s bold TV, and CBC Television 11:05 p.m. (11:35 p.m. NT), the 2011 Scotiabank Giller Prize gala will also be live-streamed on CBC Books with a concurrent live chat (www.cbc.ca/books). The six presenters will join the top authors and publishers in Canada, as well as host Jian Ghomeshi and renowned pianist Lang Lang, to help celebrate the year’s biggest achievements in Canadian literature and culture.
“CBC has done a tremendous job of amassing some truly wonderful Canadian talent to introduce this year’s field of top Canadian writers,” said Jack Rabinovitch, founder of the Scotiabank Giller Prize. “The 18th anniversary of the prize is shaping up to be an outstanding event.”
“Culture and the arts should always be celebrated,” said Nelly Furtado. “I look forward to being a part of this celebration.”
“The art of storytelling - whether through music, film, or literature - is incredibly important and I’m honoured to help pay homage to the work of our country’s finest literary talent at the Scotiabank Giller Prize gala on November 8,” said Robbie Robertson.
The six presenters will introduce:
* Lisa Ray will introduce David Bezmozgis and his novel, THE FREE WORLD
* Ron MacLean will introduce Lynn Coady and her novel, THE ANTAGONIST
* Robbie Robertson will introduce Patrick deWitt and his novel, THE SISTERS BROTHERS
* Nelly Furtado will introduce Esi Edugyan and her novel, HALF-BLOOD BLUES
* Jacob Hoggard will introduce Zsuzsi Gartner and her collection of short stories, BETTER LIVING THROUGH PLASTIC EXPLOSIVES
* Zaib Shaikh will introduce finalist Michael Ondaatje and his novel, THE CAT’S TABLE
With a chance to win the $50,000 Scotiabank Giller Prize, the six authors were selected by an esteemed jury made up of some of the finest writers in Europe and North America including: award-winning Canadian writer and 2009 Scotiabank Giller Prize finalist Annabel Lyon, American author, memoirist and Guggenheim fellow Howard Norman, and acclaimed UK playwright and prize-winning novelist, Andrew O’Hagan.
Jian Ghomeshi, host of CBC’s arts and culture program Q, will preside over the Scotiabank Giller Prize gala on November 8th at the Four Seasons Hotel in downtown Toronto where a winner will be announced. The gala will air live on CBC’s bold TV at 9:00 p.m. ET during the channel’s free preview, making the broadcast accessible to digital TV subscribers across the country, and will be rebroadcast at 11:05 p.m. (11:35 p.m. NT) on CBC Television. It will also be live-streamed on CBC Books with a concurrent live chat, so that many more Canadians can be part of the Giller experience (www.cbc.ca/books)
About CBC/Radio-Canada
CBC/Radio-Canada is Canada’s national public broadcaster and one of its largest cultural institutions. The Corporation is a leader in reaching Canadians on new platforms and delivers a comprehensive range of radio, television, Internet, and satellite-based services. Deeply rooted in the regions, CBC/Radio-Canada is the only domestic broadcaster to offer diverse regional and cultural perspectives in English, French and eight Aboriginal languages, plus seven languages for international audiences. In 2011, CBC/Radio-Canada is celebrating 75 years of serving Canadians and being at the centre of the democratic, social and cultural life of Canada.
About bold
bold is a digital television channel dedicated to showcasing the very best programming from around the world. bold pushes the boundaries of conventional television with exclusive live sporting events, daring comedy and intelligent adult drama. Visit us at www.cbc.ca/bold
About CBC Books
CBC Books features all of CBC’s rich literary content across all platforms - audio, video and digital. This one-stop destination for book lovers includes in-depth information on books, exclusive interviews with authors, the latest news stories from the publishing world, book reviews, best-seller lists, discussions and blogs. It’s an online meeting place where literary enthusiasts can find the books they want to read, connect with other Canadians who love to read as much as they do, and keep up on all of CBC’s major literary events and programs such as Canada Reads, the Massey Lectures and Canada Writes. Visit us at www.cbc.ca/books.
Scotiabank
Scotiabank is committed to supporting the communities in which we live and work, both in Canada and abroad, through our global philanthropic program, ‘Bright Future’. Recognized as a leader internationally and among Canadian corporations for our charitable donations and philanthropic activities, Scotiabank has provided on average approximately $44 million annually to community causes around the world over each of the last five years. Visit us at www.scotiabank.com.
The Scotiabank Giller Prize awards $50,000 annually to the author of the best Canadian novel or short story collection published in English and $5,000 to each of the finalists. The Scotiabank Giller Prize is named in honour of the late literary journalist Doris Giller and was founded in 1994 by her husband Toronto businessman Jack Rabinovitch.
Please visit us at:
www.scotiabankgillerprize.ca
www.facebook.com/gillerprize
For more information, please contact:
Elana Rabinovitch
O: 416-934-0755
C: 416-275-5418
Veritas Canada
Nell Crichton
O: 416-482-0864
C: 416-305-5942
[email protected]
