Rowling honoured at London book ceremony

Harry Potter author JK Rowling was among celebrity authors honoured at the Galaxy British Book Awards.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown heaped praise on Rowling as she received an outstanding achievement award.

The competition included authors as diverse as Nobel Prize for Literature recipient Doris Lessing to celebrity Katie Price, aka Jordan.

Ian McEwan was given two awards - the Galaxy Book of the Year and the Readers Digest Author of the Year award for On Chesil Beach.

US-based Afghan writer Khaled Hosseini appeared on three shortlists - the only author to do so.

He won Richard and Judy's Best Read of the Year for A Thousand Splendid Suns.

Rowling, dressed in a purple gown, took to the stage at the ceremony at the Grosvenor House Hotel in central London to accept her award.

Rowling told the audience: "These days I've loosened up a little.These days just put a camera on me and I will bawl to order."

She continued: "I would like to thank my husband - the word 'rock' has been much debased of late so I will call him a brick."

The celebrity books battles saw Russell Brand beat the likes of Richard Hammond, Clarissa Dickson-Wright and Alastair Campbell for Tesco Biography of the Year.

Brand, who wrote My Booky Wook, has been visiting the US and was handed the accolade by chat-show host Jay Leno on video.

Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman beat Jeremy Clarkson, Andrew Marr and Nigella Lawson to win the Play.com Popular Non-fiction Award for A Long Way Down.

The publishing industry honoured Lessing, who has written more than 40 novels, with a standing ovation.

Geri Halliwell, dressed in a white strapless gown, presented best-selling children's author Francesca Simon with the W H Smith's Children's Book of the Year for Horrid Henry and the Abominable Snowman.

She beat Price whose My Pony Care Book was up for an award in the same category.

The awards take votes from both the book-buying public and the Academy of the British Book Industry made up of publishers.

The ceremony is in its 19th year. It was hosted last night by Channel 4 Book Club presenters Richard and Judy.

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