The final judging panel is tasked with selecting the 2025 Nero Gold Prize, Book of the Year winner. This year’s panel is led by bestselling author Nick Hornby, best known for his memoir, Fever Pitch and his novel, About a Boy, both of which were adapted into feature films. Hornby will be joined by BBC correspondent Reeta Chakrabarti, a regular presenter on BBC News. Completing the panel is the screenwriter Daisy Goodwin, the New York Times bestselling novelist and creator of the ITV show Victoria.

The trio will select the Nero Gold Prize winner from the winners of the four Nero Book Awards categories: Children’s Fiction, Debut Fiction, Fiction and Non-Fiction. The winner will be announced at an awards ceremony in London on Wednesday 4^th March 2026, presented by host, Sarah Montague. Find out more about the category winners here.