The actress, singer, and director Ana Belén has been recognized with the Café Varela Prize 2026. The award will be presented on November 19 during a cultural supper. The jury for this edition was composed of Arturo Pérez-Reverte, José María García, Maurizio Carlotti, Belén Sierra, Marta Flich, Edu Galán, and Juanma Lamet.
María del Pilar Cuesta Acosta, better known by her stage name Ana Belén, was born in Madrid on May 27, 1951, and stands as one of the most renowned singers and actresses in the Spanish scene. Throughout her long career she has appeared in films and television series such as Fortunata y Jacinta, La colmena, La pasión turca, Sé infiel y no mires con quién, and El amor perjudica seriamente la salud. For all of these her work she received the Goya Honor Award in 2017. Regarding her musical career, she has been nominated twice for the Latin Grammy and won the Latin Grammy Award for Musical Excellence in 2015. She is married to the Asturian singer Víctor Manuel, who has been her artistic partner on many occasions. After more than forty years in the profession, she continues her prolific artistic trajectory with more than forty films, about twenty theatre productions, and more than thirty-five albums, which have turned her into a generational female artistic icon. It is estimated that over the course of her career she has sold more than three million albums both nationally and internationally, and her musical shows have toured across Spain and Latin America.