Congratulations to Oliver Bingham (Hertford College) who has been awarded this year's Matthew Arnold Memorial Prize for his essay on ‘Magic is the word to insist upon’.
The Tempest has always been one of my favourite texts and to win the Matthew Arnold Memorial Essay prize while using the play, so interwoven with magical memories, as a framework for submission is a true honour. I never foresaw that my style of entry, which I wrote for self-entertainment as much as anything, would even be considered let alone win and I am extremely grateful to English Faculty both for the opportunity and the award itself. The subject was 'Magic is the Word to Insist Upon' and I certainly feel Shakespeare's magic has shown its force once more and I am happy I could merely facilitate.
