A kids TV favourite will team up with a children’s author to choose the best UK picture book of the year.
CBeebies presenter Ben Cajee will join bestselling Smriti Halls and expert reviewer Imogen Russell Williams on the judging panel for the Oscar’s Book Prize this year.
The panel’s selection from a hand-picked shortlist will become the 12th annual winner of Oscar’s Book Prize and scoop a £10,000 award at a London event on May 6.
The prize is named after Oscar Ashton, who died in 2012 from a heart condition aged three and a half.
The prize is supported by Amazon and the London Standard.
Completing the five-strong panel are Viveka Alvestrand, who co-founded the literary award in memory of her son, and Zak Watts, Amazon’s UK Books Country Manager
Mr Cajee said: “I’ve always loved reading and storytelling. I know that picture books play such an important role in shaping relationships with the people you’ve shared them with and forming core memories. I can think back to my childhood and those special times and now have the privilege of reading lunchtime and bedtime stories for our young audiences on CBeebies and at festivals and events around the country.
“I’m looking forward to helping select the wonderful books that Oscar’s Book Prize will recommend this year - and being captivated by their stories and pictures.”
Ms Halls said: “Oscar’s Book Prize is a hugely important award, shining a brilliant light on the very best in children’s picture books. The shortlist always sparkles with absolute gems and it’s my joy to be on the judging panel this year.”
Ms Russell Williams said: “One of my favourite things about being a children’s critic is the hilarious, touching picture books I read every day. Packed with meaning and made for sharing, they shape loving, joyous memories for children just beginning to enter the world of books.
“The outstanding Oscar’s Book Prize has been raising the profile of this wonderful form of literature for over a decade, championing and celebrating so many brilliant new preschool books, and I’m honoured to be a judge in 2025.”
For more information about Oscar’s Book Prize, please visit www.oscarsbookprize.co.uk, follow @oscarsbookprize on Instagram or X/Twitter, find Oscar’s Book Prize on Facebook or email laura@oscarsbookprize.co.uk or robyn@oscarsbookprize.co.uk.
