Howe Steps Down as BFS Chair

Following the controversy over his possible conflict of interest regarding some winners of the British Fantasy Awards, David Howe has resigned his position as Chairman of the British Fantasy Society.

Statements from both BFS President Ramsey Campbell and now-acting BFS Chairman Graham Joyce followed the resignation. Campbell’s statement exonerates Howe of any wrongdoing:

Following the recent public allegations made regarding this year’s British Fantasy Awards, The British Fantasy Society Committee would like to state for the record that it is our firm belief that no corruption or wrongdoing took place during the administration of the British Fantasy Awards, and that in this respect all awards should still stand as presented. We confirm that the summation of the votes cast was performed electronically and once the results were checked they were confirmed and verified by another member of the committee.

Joyce did not comment on the allegations, but promised more transparency in the future.

Speculation over Howe’s involvement with this year’s award winners continues, with a blog post at File 770 pointing out apparent contradictions between Campbell’s assertion that Howe was only involved with the awards in an administrative capacity, and Howe’s own explanation posted on October 5th.