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Popular clickbait site ‘The Canary’ has been awarded the 2017 Booker Prize for Fiction.
The site was held up by judges for their dedication to inventive content and creative presentation, which were described as rivalling the work of JRR Tolkien in creating an entire fantasy reality.
However, judge Simon Williams said that the quality of the content was not the only factor when it came to awarding them first prize.
“We considered several sites which publish fiction; The Daily Mash, NewsThump and others. All were very good.
“But what swung it for The Canary was their claim that it was all true.
“That was the most magnificent fabrication of all.
“Although their style seems broad and crude, they cleverly shine a light on the willingness of people to believe anyone who agrees with them, no matter how unlikely the original source. The judges were particularly struck by use of magical realism throughout the work.”
Canary editor Wilhelmina Simons accepted the prize, saying that she was delighted and felt it outshone the Daily Mail winning the Waterstone’s award for Children’s Literature.
“The Canary is delighted that our collective imaginations have been recognised like this,” she said.
“But you won’t read about it in the media!” she added with a chuckle.
