International Booker Prize 2026 judge Marcus du Sautoy reflects on the privilege of being a judge, and reveals how a commitment to read more has cured his social media addiction
Marcus du Sautoy
International Booker Prize 2026 judge
- Prizes judged
Marcus du Sautoy is the Simonyi Professor for the Public Understanding of Science and Professor of Mathematics at the University of Oxford and a Fellow of New College
In 2016 he was made a Fellow of the Royal Society. He is author of nine books including his most recent, Blueprints: How Mathematics Shapes Creativity (2025). He has presented numerous radio and TV series including a four-part landmark TV series for the BBC, The Story of Maths, a three-part series, The Code, and programmes with comedians Alan Davies and Dara O’Briain.
He wrote and performed the play I is a Strange Loop, which has been staged at numerous venues, including the Barbican in London. His second play, The Axiom of Choice, toured India in 2024. He works extensively with a range of arts organisations, from The Royal Opera House to the Glastonbury Festival, bringing science alive for the public.
His mathematical research uses classical tools from number theory to explore the mathematics of symmetry. In 2001 he was awarded the Berwick Prize by the London Mathematical Society and in 2009 he was awarded the Royal Society’s Faraday Prize, the UK’s premier award for excellence in communicating science. He received an OBE for services to science in the 2010 New Year’s Honours List.
He is a judge for the International Booker Prize 2026, which this year is supported by Bukhman Philanthropies.