A grateful Noah received the award from the king of the Netherlands, Willem-Alexander, at the Royal Palace in Amsterdam on November 28. The South African comedian is the first comic to receive the award since Charlie Chaplin in 1965.
Taking to Instagram Noah said: "Thank you for the warm welcome, Netherlands! It was truly an honour to be awarded the 2023 Erasmus Prize!"
"Special thanks to the Praemium Erasmianum Foundation, His Majesty the King Willem-Alexander, and The Royal Family."
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According to the official royal website, “The jury awarded the prize to Mr Noah for his inspired contribution to the theme of this year’s prize ‘In Praise of Folly.’ The theme is taken from the title of Erasmus’s most famous book, which is filled with humor, social criticism, and political satire. With his talent for sharp, linguistic, and inclusive political comedy, the jury found that Mr Noah upholds the ‘Erasmian Spirit.”
“The Erasmus Prize, which comes with a cash award of €150,000,(that's just over R3m) is awarded annually to a person or institution that has made an exceptional contribution to the humanities, the social sciences, or the arts in the framework of European cultural traditions. The Praemium Erasmianum Foundation sets a different theme each year. The only other time in its 65-year history it was awarded to a comedian was in 1965 when the late Prince Bernhard presented it to Charlie Chaplin.”
