Doc Weir Award
The Doc Weir Award is a British fan award for general services to fandom. It is named for Arthur "Doc" Weir and has been presented at Eastercon most years since 1963. It is sometimes seen as a British version of the Big Heart Award.
Contents
Origins[edit]
Arthur "Doc" Weir died in 1961. He was a relative newcomer to fandom who had only discovered it late in life. A fund was launched, initially with a view of purchasing his library, which was rumoured to be extensive, for the BSFA. However, that scheme fell through and the money (£14-£15, equivalent to about £250 in 2024) was repurposed to an award after a vote at the 1962 Eastercon. BSFA treasurer Jill Adams purchased a communion cup as its physical manifestation.
The award[edit]
The award takes the form of a silver cup approximately 22cm high. Names of the winners up to 2002 are engraved on its base and from 2003 onward on metal plates attached to its wooden box. Eddie Jones created a certificate for winners. The artwork has long been lost, but the certificate was rediscovered by Greg Pickersgill and Bill Burns and copies can be made for contemporary winners.
Administration[edit]
Since 1967 each winner of the award has become the administrator for the next year, arranging the ballot, counting the votes and making the presentation. Voting is open to all members of the Eastercon and is by write-in. Until recently it was by paper ballot at the convention, effectively limiting voting to attending members. An online voting process was introduced in 2021. In 2024 voting was by both an online form and paper ballot and was open to attending and non-attending Eastercon members. Lobbying is not discouraged and is arguably necessary to ensure some kind of consensus.
To the extent that it's ever necessary to decide any wider matter beyond the next winner, there's a presumption that this falls to whichever past winners can be consulted.
There are no real rules; every Eastercon member who wishes to do so simply votes for the person they'd like to see receive it. The award is generally seen as being for backroom work, the 'unsung heroes'. It is usually presented to a British fan, although past winners have included Bill Burns (long-term resident in the United States), Jan van 't Ent (from the Netherlands), and James Shields (from Ireland). It is also usually presented to an individual although in 2017 it was presented jointly to Serena Culfeather and John Wilson. It is sometimes said that nobody can win it twice but there is no rule to this effect and it's rather that it's never happened and if it were to happen it might be perceived as a failure of imagination.
History[edit]
The first presentation was to Peter Mabey in 1963 for work with the BSFA library. Later awards didn't give a particular reason and so why any given person was honoured is a matter of speculation.
The award was initially owned by the BSFA, at a time when the BSFA also ran the Eastercon. In 1967, Ken Slater as BSFA vice chairman ruled that it wasn't a BSFA responsibility and at the suggestion of Archie Mercer the award was subsequently administered by the previous year's winner.
In the 1980s there were moves to retire the award and so it was not presented in 1982-3, 1986 and 1988. However, the award was revived and has been presented at every Eastercon since 1989.
There was no presentation in 2020 as the Eastercon was cancelled due to pandemic restrictions.
- Short history with bios, originally produced by Flick and later expanded by Claire Brialey
| Award | Website | 1963— |
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