Glitz & Glamour for the CWA Daggers

On October 21, the Crime Writers Assocation will be under a whole different spotlight, thanks to their previously announced association with Cactus TV (aka Amanda Ross’s production company, famously responsible for Richard & Judy’s Book Club) and ITV3 for a televised crime & thriller awards. Now more details have emerged about the event, another sponsor (Specsavers), how long the deal is for (3 years) and the award categories for the night, which include:

• The CWA Gold Dagger for the best Crime Novel of the year.
• The CWA John Creasey (New Blood) Dagger – for first books by previously unpublished writers, awarded in memory of CWA founder John Creasey.
• The CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger – for the year’s best thriller.
• The The ITV3 Bestseller Dagger, sponsored by Specsavers – voted for by ITV3 viewers.
• The Hall of Fame – honouring the achievements of the genre’s greatest exponents, past and present.
• The Film Dagger – for the best big-screen crime thriller story.
• The TV Dagger – for the best small-screen crime thriller drama.
• The International TV Dagger – for the best TV crime thriller drama from around the world.
• The Best Actress Dagger – for the female star of a crime thriller drama.
• The Best Actor Dagger – for the male star of a crime thriller drama.

It does make a person wonder if the MWA or ITW will suddenly strike a deal with, say, Whole Foods or Target or LensCrafters (or DisneyMarvel? MarvelDisney?) for a televised event in the not-too-distant future…

In any event, the shortlists will be announced on Friday, September 4, and the October 21 event will be televised on ITV3 later on that month. And even if Ali Karim will be seriously jet-lagged, he’ll still provide herculean reports after the fact, I daresay.