Contrarian Prize

The Contrarian Prize is a prize which has been awarded either annually or biennially since its establishment in 2013.[1] The prize promotes the contribution of non-conformist thinking to the British public debate by recognising individuals who have demonstrated independence, courage, and sacrifice through the ideas they have introduced, or stands they have taken.

Nominations for the prize are submitted through an online form by the public each year, with the shortlist and winner selected by a panel of judges. The judging panel is chaired by Ali Miraj, who founded the prize, with other judges including economist Vicky Pryce, businessman and winner of the inaugural prize Michael Woodford, journalist Izabella Kaminska, and politician Gawain Towler.

The prize: "The Three Politicians"

"The Three Politicians" was originally created in 2007[2] by Italian pop art sculptor, Maruro Perucchetti, and donated by him in recognition of the inaugural prize awarded in March 2013.

The pigmented urethane resin sculpture illustrates the "three politicians" in the form of the three wise monkeys – one who does not see, one who does not speak, and one who does not hear.

List of shortlisted candidates and prize winners

2013 Contrarian Prize

The shortlist for the inaugural prize was announced in February 2013,[3] and the prize was presented by Isabel Oakeshott on 18 March 2013.[4][5]

2014 Contrarian Prize

The 2014 prize was awarded on 2 April 2014.[6][7]

Presented by: Will Hutton

2015 Contrarian Prize

The shortlist for the 2015 prize was announced in June 2015,[8] and the prize was presented by Jonathan Dimbleby on 18 June 2015.[9][10][11]

2017 Contrarian Prize

The 2017 prize was presented by Sir Simon Jenkins on 16 May 2017.[12]

2019 Contrarian Prize

The shortlist for the 2019 prize was announced in June 2019,[13] and the prize was presented by Jeremy Paxman on 25 June 2019.[14][15]

2021 Contrarian Prize

The shortlist for the 2021 prize was announced in October 20211,[16] and the prize was presented by Michael Crick on 11 November 2021.[17]

Lectures

Following the prize-giving ceremony, an event is held in conjunction with Cass Business School typically in the form of a lecture or discussion featuring the winner of that year's prize.

Date Speaker(s) Title
20 November 2013 Michael Woodford How do we achieve a more moral capitalism?[19]
19 November 2014 Clive Stafford Smith The long path to injustice[20]
2 December 2015 Simon Danczuk MP Hiding in plain sight: how child sexual abusers get away with it[21]
30 November 2016 Panel debate:

Claire Fox (chair), Ed Husain, Izabella Kaminska, Giesla Stuart, Peter Tatchell, Simon Wessely

Contrarianism in an age of conformity[22][23]
5 December 2018 Professor Patrick Minford Brexit and beyond[24][25]
25 November 2020 Katharine Birbalsingh CBE Against the grain: how a brave headteacher spearheaded an educational revolution
19 October 2022 Panel debate:

Claire Fox (chair), Michael Crick, Sunetra Gupta, André Spicer, Peter Tatchell

Is it becoming impossible to be a contrarian?[26]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Introducing: The Contrarian Prize". The Independent. 2012-09-16. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
  2. ^ "The Three Politicians, 2007". Mauro Perucchetti. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
  3. ^ "The time has come, but who will be the inaugural winner of the Contrarian Prize?". The Independent. 2013-02-21. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
  4. ^ "And the first Contrarian of the Year award goes to..." Evening Standard. 2013-03-19. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
  5. ^ "Olympus whistleblower wins inaugural Contrarian Prize". Amateur Photographer. 2013-03-19. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
  6. ^ "The fine art of being contrarian gets its night out in Mayfair". CityAM. 2014-04-02. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
  7. ^ Griffith, Gabriella (2014-04-03). "The fine art of being contrarian gets its night out in Mayfair". news.yahoo.com. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
  8. ^ "Ali Miraj: Meet the short list for this year's Contrarian Prize". Conservative Home. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
  9. ^ "Simon Danczuk wins Contrarian Prize". www.rochdaleonline.co.uk. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
  10. ^ Agnew, Harriet (2015-06-19). "Simon Danczuk: Courage rewarded". www.ft.com. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
  11. ^ "MUFG straight in at the charity football championships". CityAM. 2015-06-18. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
  12. ^ "Brexit Bulletin: Why May's Manifesto Matters". Bloomberg.com. 2017-05-17. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
  13. ^ "The importance of being a Contrarian". TheArticle. 2019-06-11. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
  14. ^ Jenkins, Patrick (2019-06-28). "Katharine Birbalsingh: Quite Contrary". www.ft.com. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
  15. ^ Dudley Edwards, Ruth (2019-07-01). "Ruth Dudley Edwards: Isn't it about time we paid tribute to the contrarians among us who won't be cowed?". Belfast Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
  16. ^ "From Eton and Oxford to 'The Guardian': the 2021 Contrarian Prize shortlist". The Article. 11 October 2021. Retrieved 7 June 2023.
  17. ^ Young, Toby (20 November 2021). "The day I became a prize contrarian". The Spectator. Retrieved 7 June 2023.
  18. ^ Moore, Suzanne (12 November 2021). "On not winning a prize I did not want". Letters from Suzanne. Retrieved 7 June 2023.
  19. ^ "Whistleblowing should be 'easier'". BBC News. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
  20. ^ Cass Business School (2014-11-20). "Cass Business School: The Contrarian Prize Debate 2014". YouTube. Retrieved 2020-11-25. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  21. ^ Cass Business School (2015-12-07). "Simon Danczuk, MP: The Contrarian Prize Lecture 2015 at Cass". YouTube. Retrieved 2020-11-25. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  22. ^ Cass Business School (2016-12-16). "The Contrarian Prize Debate 2016: Contrarianism in the Age of Conformity". YouTube. Retrieved 2020-11-25. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  23. ^ "Censorship, offence and freedom of speech - has conformity curtailed debate? | Cass Business School". www.cass.city.ac.uk. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
  24. ^ "The Contrarian Prize: Brexit and Beyond". City, University of London. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
  25. ^ Minford, Patrick (2017-05-17). "Being a contrarian is tough, but on Brexit – as on Thatcherism – I'm sure I'm right". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
  26. ^ Armstrong, Hamish (26 October 2022). "Is it becoming impossible to be a contrarian? Bayes hosts debate around freedom of speech". Bayes Business School. Retrieved 7 June 2023.