collapsing, we were facing Armageddon, and I understood then that I couldn't make this book right up to the moment[...] I chose that time because then the writing's on the wall, and it should be clear to anyone half-sensible that the game is up, but they're still going on." Other plot threads in the novel concern reality television, and Islamic militancy. While publicising the book, Faulks received some criticism for negative remarks he made about the Koran; he was quick to offer "a simple but unqualified apology to my Muslim friends and readers for anything that has come out sounding crude or intolerant. Happily, there is more to the book than that". Reviews for the novel were mixed. Tibor Fischer, in The Daily Telegraph, praised the novel's "comic élan", but felt it was "uneven" and criticised the character of John Veals as "lifeless". Mark Lawson wrote in The Guardian, "an honest critic must surely conclude that Faulks has correctly identified the novel that needs to be written about these times, but may also have proved that British society is now so various that no single writer can capture all its aspects. However, in honourably failing to depict the entire state of the nation, Faulks has memorably skewered the British literary world." Adaptations of novels In 2001 Charlotte Gray was made into a film starring Cate Blanchett and directed by Gillian Armstrong. In 2010 a stage version of Birdsong, adapted by Rachel Wagstaff (who had previously adapted The Girl at the Lion d'Or for radio) and directed by Trevor Nunn, opened at the Comedy Theatre in London; the production ran for only 4 months. It was subsequently rewritten by Wagstaff and made four successful nationwide tours. In 2012, Birdsong was made into a two-part BBC TV serial, written by Abi Morgan, directed by Philip Martin and starring Eddie Redmayne.<ref>Birdsong Adaptation, 2012, BBC]</ref> This followed several attempts to film the novel."Birdsong Arrives on BBC One", The arts desk 16 January 2012 Honours and awards 1994 British Book Awards Author of the Year. 1994 Franco British Society Award (winner) for Birdsong. 1997 Premio Bancarella Italy (shortlist) for Birdsong. 1998 James Tait Black Memorial Prize for fiction (shortlist) for Charlotte Gray. 2002 Appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE), "For services to Literature". 2006 Honorary doctorate, Tavistock Clinic, University of East London. 2009 British Book Awards Popular Fiction Award (winner)