London, Ep. 37

March 6, 2014 — A celebration 8 years in the make, Literary Death Match teamed with Picador to celebrate our 8th birthday at Concrete, a night that ended in sudden death as Jonathan Gibbs outdueled co-finalist Naomi Wood in a Rock vs. Paper vs. Literature finale by a score of 11-4 to win Gibbs the LDM London, Ep. 37 crown. 

 But before the finale was even a thought, the night began with David Adam, writer and editor of Nature, reading from The Man Who Couldn't Stop — a fantastic piece about a girl with OCD who ate an entire wall. Next, Naomi Wood, Eccles Centre British Library Award winner & author of Mrs. Hemingway and The Godless Boys read from her story Movie Night which titillated the awed audience. 

The mic was then handed over to the trio of all-star judges: Natalie Haynes, author of The Amber Fury, broadcaster, reviewer, classicist, judge of many literary prizes; Rosie Wilby, award winning comedian, broadcaster (Radio 4 Loose Ends, Midweek, Summer Nights & Woman’s Hour) and writer; Peter Rosengard, Author of Talking to Strangers; the Adventures of a Life Insurance Salesman, Godfather of The Comedy Store and the Guinness world-record holder for the biggest Life Insurance policy ever sold. The three praised both writers with a high-wire act of hilarities and sharply-worded responses before huddling and making the night's first impossible decision by advancing Wood as the night's first finalist. 

Then it was on to Round 2 — with the lights off! (Not on purpose.) By iPhone flashlight, Emma Jane Unsworth, the Betty Trask Award winning author of Hungry, The Stars and Everything, read from her new book Animals, a rousing excerpt in which the main character lays awake, severely hungover, not knowing why she's tied to her bed. Finally it was Jonathan Gibbs, book review for The Independent, who read from his forthcoming gem Randall, or The Painted Grape (June 2014), an stellar excerpt about conceptual art. 

Again the mics were handed over to the judges, who thrilled. After a series of wise-cracks and compliments, the three huddled and made the night's second impossible decision, naming Gibbs as the night's second finalist. 

Then host and LDM creator Adrian Todd Zuniga took center stage, announcing the finale: Rock vs. Paper vs. Literature. The two finalists — Wood and Gibbs — were tasked with opening battling birthday gifts — the first of which was a box with one sheet of paper. The other a box with only a rock. One point for Wood! It went on and on with strange delights in each box, with Wood taking it all in the end, winning her the LDM London, Ep. 37 medal, and literary immortality to go with it.

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