The Brit List Awards 2026: Meet the Judges!
With this year’s Brit List Awards submissions entries on the countdown to deadline, we reveal the line-up for the 2026 judging panel…
The Brit List Awards 2026 might seem a way away in November, but time is drawing to a close for this year’s submissions, with just a few weeks left to enter until the closing date of Friday 31st July.
As the event celebrates its tenth outing, the team earlier this year announced a special theme to celebrate the milestone: A Grand Masquerade Ball! Which will be held for one final time at London’s favourite music venue, Ministry of Sound on Thursday 5th November.
This year, we’re rolling out the big guns, and are delighted to announce our really rather impressive judging panel – meet your 2026 Brit List Awards judging panel:
Your 2026 judging panel, from top left to bottom right: Shayne Brady, Franky Rousell, Nick de Klerk, Jo Littlefair, Arun Rana, Paul Brackley, Joanna Knight, Sophie Harper
Paul Brackley, Founder & CEO, Kinsfolk & Co
Paul founded Kinsfolk & Co with the vision to create a new company that delivers enhanced profitability through thoughtful excellence and brings with him many years of hospitality experience. Paul’s award-winning track record includes solid top and bottom-line performance, establishing and maintaining world-class guest experiences, leading diverse luxury assets, including high profile launches, re-brandings and renovations. He is adept at managing complex investor and stakeholder relationships, to deliver projects to time, budget and specification. Paul’s wider experience includes a variety of trustee and non-executive posts across the hospitality industry.
Previously Paul has worked with the Shangri-La Group as General Manager and Director of the company’s flagship London hotel at The Shard. Prior to this as Managing Director, Paul launched The Beaumont, in London’s Mayfair. Other General Manager appointments were with Taj Hotels Palaces & Resorts and InterContinental Hotels Group. Paul’s experience also included senior roles with The Landmark, London, Thistle Hotels plc., Millennium London Plc., and The Savoy Group. In addition, Paul has completed several advisory assignments, including with the Hotel Diplomat, Stockholm.
Last year, Paul won the prestigious Outstanding Contribution Award at The Brit List, and earlier this year, officially opened the doors to Kinsfolk managed hotel, The Newman, in London’s lively Fitzrovia neighbourhood.
Jo Littlefair, Director & Co Founder, Goddard Littlefair
A seasoned FF&E designer, Jo established her studio, Goddard Littlefair, with husband and business partner, Martin Goddard in 2012. Since its inception, the studio has established one of the most covetable portfolios in the industry working with the world’s leading hoteliers and operators, including Waldorf Astoria, Four Seasons, Raffles, Mandarin Oriental and many more.
Jo’s approach to her work infuses a deep curiosity for travel, culture and a profound respect for craft, heritage and artistry. Working with her 80 strong, multidisciplinary team across studios in London and Porto, Goddard Littlefair has been awarded countless industry awards and accolades. In recognition of her outstanding contributions to the industry, Jo was honoured with the ‘Interior Designer of The Year’ award at The Brit List Awards in 2019.
Renowned for her expertise, Jo is frequently called upon to contribute to articles sharing her thoughts on the interior design industry, modern luxury, future forecasting trends, and how design is crucial to creating standout guest experiences.
Arun Rana, Head of Interior Design, Accor ENA Premium, Midscale, Economy
Arun Rana is a Design Director for Premium, Midscale, and Economy brands at Accor ENA (Europe & North Africa). Based in London, he is a prominent hospitality design professional focused on guiding owners through new builds, renovations, and rebrandings, prioritising cross-cultural experiences, sustainability, and long-term operational performance.
Arun has been a key figure in Accor’s Design & Technical Services team for several years, actively helping to align design visions and execute compliance and technical milestones for projects across the region. With a highly innovative and creative approach, he specialises in elevating hotel spaces by blending aesthetics with practical day-to-day operations.
As a thought leader in the hospitality and architecture sectors, Arun is a regular speaker at prominent industry events. He has shared his design philosophies and portfolios at prominent conferences such as the Surface Design Show, HIX Event, and Clerkenwell Design Week.
Shayne Brady, Founder & Creative Director, Studio Shayne Brady
Shayne Brady is a leading interior designer and the Founder of London-based Studio Shayne Brady, renowned for its narrative-driven hospitality interiors. With a creative vision deeply rooted in history and a profound respect for craftsmanship, Shayne’s work is defined by its sense of timelessness and emotional pull.
His design ethos is a confluence of past and present. Drawing inspiration from historical architecture and classical interiors, Shayne reveres the grandeur and storytelling embedded in design from bygone eras. Yet his work is unmistakably modern, grounded in a deep understanding of materiality, people and place. From fashion and fine art to the emotional connections people form with spaces, Shayne finds influence in every human detail.
Shayne grew up in the countryside of County Kildare in Ireland and, from a young age, his imagination was his greatest tool. Shayne studied interior architecture at TU Dublin and, following graduation, trained with Oppermann Associates. He later relocated to London and, after several years in practice, founded his first studio aged 29.
He formed Studio Shayne Brady in 2025 and, with a growing portfolio of projects across the globe – from London to Doha to Macau – Shayne has built lasting relationships with a client base that values his integrity and collaborative spirit.
No stranger to a judging panel, you might have seen Shayne as a guest judge on BBC’s Interior Design Masters. In 2025 he won the Best in Bar & Restaurant Design Award for his project, Gallery at The Savoy.
Joanna Knight, Founder & Managing Director, JK.Interiors Ltd
Joanna Knight is the Founder and Managing Director of Joanna Knight Interiors Ltd, a boutique interior design and procurement consultancy specialising in the hospitality sector. With nearly 30 years of experience in hospitality interiors, Joanna established JK.Interiors in 2009 after identifying a gap in the market for a more integrated, holistic approach to design, FF&E procurement, and design management.
Driven by a lifelong passion for design, architecture, and a fascination with antiques and auction houses, Joanna has built a company that values both creativity and practicality. Under her leadership, the JK.Interiors team has worked on some of Europe’s most prestigious hospitality projects.
Nick de Klerk, Associate Partner & Head of Hotels, Purcell
Nick de Klerk is a RIBA-chartered architect, associate partner and Head of Hotels at Purcell. He has extensive experience in hospitality, workplace, retail and cultural projects in the UK, the Middle East and South Africa. He has worked with many of the major hotel operators, including Marriott, Radisson, IHG, UMusic Hotels, Roseate, Capella, Miramar, Mövenpick and Four Seasons as well as with smaller boutique brands such as The Relais Retreats.
Nicholas brings a holistic design approach to his projects, integrating design quality with operational and commercial concerns. He is particularly skilled at working in challenging and sensitive planning contexts.
With an established reputation as a design and hospitality writer and critic, Nick is also a regular contributor to the hospitality conference circuit as a public speaker and panellist.
Franky Rousell, Founder & CEO, Jolie
Franky Rousell is the Founder and CEO of Jolie, a studio rooted in her own story. Born with profound hearing loss, she grew up learning to interpret the world differently. Her hearing has since been restored, but those early experiences shaped an acute awareness of the power of sound, vibration, and sensory connection – an ethos that underpins Jolie’s philosophy of design. Today, with teams across Manchester, London, and, most recently, New York, Jolie pioneers a sensory-first approach that reimagines residential and commercial interiors as immersive experiences – using soundscaping, fragrance, materiality, and colour to create environments that engage all five senses and transform how people live, work, and gather.
Sophie Harper, Editor, Hotel Designs
Sophie Harper is the Editor of award-winning digital publication Hotel Designs. An established travel and design journalist, she has worked on some of the UK’s most reputable publications and acclaimed media campaigns in the last 15 years. As both a writer and editor, Sophie has specialised in hospitality design over the last decade and has interviewed and hosted events with some of the industry’s most influential personalities.
Sophie’s experience and knowledge have placed her in high demand as a consultant and speaker for a number of design events. She has recently launched a series of public talks concerning the standards of accessible design in the hospitality industry, regularly speaks at international events, and currently sits on the judging panels for NEWH UK Interior Design Scholarship, 50 Best Hotels, Independent Hotel Show Awards, and of course The Brit List Awards.
As well as taking every opportunity to discuss all aspects of hotel design with leading experts across the industry, Sophie is passionate about shedding light on topics concerning ESG, technology, and inclusivity – and actively shines the spotlight on new and upcoming design talent.
Main image credit: Hotel Designs
