I like December very much. It’s the month in which I got my first bike, saw my first football match*, met my first girlfriend, got together with a very lovely girlfriend who became an even lovelier friend, it’s open season on mince pies, there’s a few Bond films and It’s A Wonderful Life is on. What’s not to like?
Last December was made very pleasant by having my vanity delightfully fanned at the Garden Media Awards in London. I won two awards. This year’s is looking equally pleasant** due to another double: making the best mincemeat*** I’ve ever had, and (yesterday) winning the Garden Columnist of the Year Award at the Garden Media Awards.
Winning awards is a good way of getting people not to like you, so I will attempt to make the next book properly shit.
I was shortlisted for the blog award too this year – but (and I’m not saying this through ‘Oscars Im-so-pleased-for-you-to-have-beaten-me face’) Lia Leendertz took the gong, as she really should have. It was the one shortlist that I would be able to have any opinion about that looked to be almost exactly as I (and many others) would’ve had it. I would’ve substituted Laetitia’s in for one of them for sure, but that’s it.
Every year there seems to be an award that gets people cheering loudest – this year’s was Matthew Wilson’s for the brilliant Landscape Man series.
Every year there seems to be an award that gets people grumbling – the best magazine one, with no Gardener’s World and no English Garden, was this years. It’s got to be an awfully strong field to keep either of those two out, never mind both.
Our table did pretty well – both in tackling the posh pasty for lunch and in the awards. Marc Rosenberg picked up News Story of the Year, Victoria Summerley pouched Journalist of the Year (scroll down), and Dawn Isaac jumped around like a giddy goblin to be handed the New Talent award. We were certainly the most lively table – some had taken generously of the refreshments it should be said. I think Martyn Cox may have stood on his chair when Thinking Gardens won…but I could probably say he had intimate relations with a Bob the Builder pencil case and he’d be pushed to be sure he didn’t.
Anyway, enough about other people. The judges said: Diacono’s writing is second to none, by turns moving, epic and comic yet dripping in pathos and wisdom. To call his camerawork ‘photography’ is like calling Picasso as a painter and decorator – this is art with a big ‘A’. Or something like that.
I stop writing the column for English Garden in Jan. I’ll be fronting the edible section with a window into what’s going on each month…but I want to be writing a regular column too. I’ve got one offer in and another pondering…so we’ll see how that goes.
And still another 29 days left to enjoy…
And for anyone who could care less, I played this a few times while writing this.
* The match was rubbish – the only thing memorable about it was Bryan Flynn being tackled as he ran down the wing, his boot came off and the bloke who tackled him sneakily threw it into the crowd
** After a less than encouraging start in a nearby coffee shop with James Alexander-Sinclair – in which we were overheard by the Gardener’s World’s production team laughing like drains at the tribulations caused by my oldest friend’s newly diagnosed (and deeply painful) piles…and where we also bumped into Alys Fowler and James spent ten minutes convincing her that I was a pencil-necked rag and bone man, unable to dress himself
*** Medlars, quince and apples plus the usual dried vine fruit – with cognac added after cooking but before jarring. I may well blog the recipe soon
CONGRATULATIONS on well deserved award, read from afar with awe your writing and well crafted tweets. Thanks also for run down of who won what for those that couldn't be there.
Well done Mark!
It seems as though there were many well deserving winners at this years awards. I look forward to the banter between you and Lia, oh . . . how does it feel to be beaten by a girl anyway? 😉
Ryan
you obviously had a very lucky table. Well done on the award
You did the i'm-so-pleased-you've-beaten-me-face beautifully, almost as if you'd been practicing for the inevitable… Thanks for being so lovely about my award and I am delighted you got yours. So, so well deserved.
Going to be a bit of a come-down if you ever dont win one… Sure it'll never happen.
x
Congratulations Mark.
As a mere bystander I must say I was bemused by the results & more particularly what was (or wasn't) shortlisted. I felt certain your latest book would have been included.
It did appear that some of the awards appeared to have only a tenuous link to "gardening"
I blame Sepp Blatter
Thanks for the mention, Mark and many congratulations on your award
Victoria xx
Oh I think I forgot to tweet my congratulations so I'll say them here, big congrats!!
Sounds like it was a fun event, with or without gongs!
Congratulations, Mark. I love your modesty – so refreshing.
Also amazed to see that Sigourney Weaver has grown a beard – didn't like the piano, so didn't wait to see the other geezer.
Nigel
EWG, Deb, Victoria and PG – thank you x
Ryan – It's hideous being beaten by a girl, but as you can see, I'm trying to pretend I don't mind. I'm not sure it's very convincing though
Lia – *remembers to smile* thank you thank you
Simon S – You are of course spot on, I should've won all the awards. I wonder what 'Sepp' is short for?
PMN – I think Sigourney was imspired to make with the facial fuzz after Gorillas In the Mist…and it's less well-known follow up http://www.otterfarmblog.co.uk/2007/02/sigourney.html
A 'giddy goblin'? Seriously, if you had to liken me to an alliterative mythical creature could I not have been an 'excited elf' or even a 'bouncing brownie'?
I will forgive you though as you were a delightful dining companion (anecdotes about piles aside).
Congratulations.
Dx
I once had to have a 'bottom inspection' due to painful IBS. The young Chinese student doctor had a quick browse and then mumbled something (not being racist but I actually didn't understand a word he said which is not good under those delicate kind of circumstances). Next thing I knew he was coming at my backside (without so much as a by your leave) with a bloody great syringe in his hand! "What are you doing?" I screeched. I understood his reply to be "Inject velly big pile!". He wasn't even going to tell me! I had my pants up and out of there before he got a step further. A friend had told me that having her piles injected was twice as painful as giving birth!
I do understand that having related this anecdote there is even less chance of me being nominated for next year's "Most Snoggable Female" award. Hey ho…
Congratulations on your courageously upstanding column.
I thought I had better break the awkward silence caused by Madam Sock telling us things that none of really needed to know.
Hi Rebecca! Yes, as the contest just closed a few days ago, we will probably be reviewing the Cruise in Chartreuse pins soon! So glad you had fun pinning 🙂 We will definitely let everyone know when we decide on a winner.