Queen Camilla had a spirited response to the idea that growing older meant slowing down. As her 80th birthday approached, she shared an upbeat message with Booker Prize winner M. John Harrison.
The Queen, 79, welcomed the 81-year-old novelist to Clarence House on Thursday. The reception celebrated the 2026 Booker Prize and inaugural Children’s Booker Prize, but their conversation about age stole the spotlight.
Queen Camilla tells Booker Prize winner M. John Harrison that age is no barrier to success
Harrison won Monday’s Booker Prize for The End of Everything, a dystopian novel set on the Kent coast. It explored societal collapse and mysterious shapeshifting entities. He called it “Seaside Gothic” and said its 15-year journey involved “lots of stops and starts,” HELLO! reported. Camilla congratulated him: “And here you are, bingo.” She noted he had “been writing for a long time.” Harrison published his first novel in 1971, after a decade of writing. “It is really exciting later on in life,” he told the Queen.
After the reception, Harrison recalled their discussion about ageing. “We were talking about how age is automatically considered a limitation, and we were saying the great thing about what has happened to me proves that you can start late, and we were laughing about that,” he told the publication. Camilla agreed: “I couldn’t agree more. We are definitely not finished!”
Harrison became the oldest Booker recipient, surpassing Margaret Atwood, who won aged 79 in 2019 for The Testaments. The Children’s Booker shortlist was due November 24.
Camilla’s love of literature shaped her public work. In October’s documentary The Book That Changed My Life, she called reading “like the best tonic in the world.” She added, “I think it would be a complete and utter tragedy if books went forever”. In the documentary, she also said, “I left school quite young… so I think reading has been most of my education.” She founded The Queen’s Reading Room, a registered charity promoting reading. She also said Charles enjoyed biographies and would “roar” with laughter when they read before dinner. Camilla recently joined him on a trip to Antigua and Barbuda.
