Dublin WorldCon to present 1944 Retro Hugo Awards.

Dublin 2019 – the Irish Worldcon – has announced that it will present Retro Hugo Awards for 1944, honouring genre work created in 1943, as well as the 2019 Hugo Awards for work created in 2018.

The Hugo Awards are an award for the science fiction genre, honoring science fiction literature and media as well as the genre’s fans.

Worldcon committees have for some time had the option of awarding Retrospective Hugo Awards for past Worldcon years where they had not been presented 25, 50, or 100 years prior to the contemporary convention. Under a recent change, however, Retro Hugos can also be presented for the World War II years when the convention was on hiatus, by a convention held some multiple of 25 years later. Dublin 2019 will be taking advantage of this unique opportunity. The 2018 Worldcon (Worldcon 76, to be held in San Jose, California) has simultaneously announced that it will similarly be presenting the Retro Hugos for 1943, honouring work from 1942.

Dublin 2019 will present the Retro Hugos as part of its First Night featuring the event’s official Opening Ceremonies, on the evening of Thursday, August 15, 2019. This highlight event will celebrate the past, present and future of both Worldcon and the science fiction genre.

According to Dublin 2019 chair James Bacon, “despite the tumultuous events unfolding around the world, there was no shortage of speculative fiction being published during the war years – including the introductory versions of works destined to become classics. Similarly, both live and animated cinematic works offered a popular option for people seeking to escape the reality of everyday life.”