The inaugural prize-giving ceremony was held on the evening of Monday 18 March 2013 at the highly-acclaimed Philip Mould Gallery in Dover Street, London. The event was attended by a hand-picked eclectic collection of 150 guests from business, politics, the media, dance music and the charitable sector.
It is rare to draw together such a diverse group of people all united by an interest in the important of recognising Contrarians. Members of the House or Lords effortlessly mixed with DJ’s, House music producers and captains of industry, whilst sipping virgin cocktails and munching on exquisite canapés surrounded by paintings by British masters (you can view the picture gallery here). Guests included former head of the CBI, Lord Digby Jones, Lady Barbara Judge, venture capitalist Jon Moulton and FT columnist Janan Ganesh.
Ali Miraj, a 38 year old Chartered accountant, who founded the prize, spoke about his motivations for establishing it and thanked the panel of judges and others who were instrumental in making the venture a success (you can read his speech by clicking here).
The inaugural prize was won by Michael Woodford, the CEO turned whistleblower who exposed a $1.7 billion fraud at the heart of Olympus – the world-renowned electronics giant. The prize was donated by world-famous sculptor Mauro Perucchetti and presented to the winner by Isabel Oakeshott - Political Editor of the Sunday Times and political journalist of the year 2012. The event was featured in the Evening Standard the following day (click here to see article).
Please click on the links below to view the following:
Introduction video -"The state of Britain - the people's view"
