The Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting is the UK’s biggest national competition for playwriting. It is the search for great new plays and great writers. We look for scripts that are original and unperformed, by writers of any experience.


Livestream workshop MASTERLIST

There’s loads of brilliant opportunities for writers open to scripts in early 2020- are you writing for the Women’s Prize for Playwriting, or the ETPEP…

Meet the Shortlist- Jacob Kay

Jacob Kay was shortlisted for the Bruntwood Prize in 2019 for his first play GLASS. Since then he has been working with LAMDA students and…

Longlisted Playwright Corey Bovell and director Kwame Asiedu on CHICKEN BURGER N CHIPS

Corey Bovell is an Actor, Playwright & Producer from Lewisham, London with an interest in social commentary. Corey’s short & long plays have been performed…

Meet the Shortlist- Kimber Lee

Kimber Lee won the first Bruntwood Prize International Award for her script untitled f*ck m*ss s**gon play at the Bruntwood Prize 2019 Awards in Nov….
I want to see plays that make you think, that are of our time, that have something to say – they might be witty and entertaining but I also want more. I want my brain to be really engaged. Michael Oglesby
I think it’s amazing that plays can interrogate difficult issues with the safety net of imagination. I want to see big plays that get me to think what the outcomes could be and how the future might be different in these turbulent times. Faith Yianni
I think the human condition wants to resolve or come up with the answer. Theatre is not about offering answers. I want to see plays that don’t know what the answer is so I have to think about it for days and weeks. Shane Zaza
I want to see a story that demands to be told, is told vividly, with strong characters and perspectives all speaking equally. Kate Vokes
Plays need to both explore formal innovation and create emotional fulfillment – not one or the other but both. Kwame Kwei-Armah
A new play can shine a light on the darkest corners of human experience, it can introduce us to new ways of thinking and tell stories that we need to hear. In a world that seems increasingly confusing, fractured and insular, we need the communal experience of theatre and the clamorous voices of playwrights.
 Sarah Frankcom
To write a play is a revolutionary act – you are standing naked in front of someone asking them to love every part of you. This is a brave act and why Art is important to the life blood of the country. Kwame Kwei-Armah
Important does not mean all doom and gloom, humour too is vital. Don’t be scared to make us laugh but make sure what you write makes you laugh too. Whatever it is, the writer has to feel what they are saying is important.

 Jenny Sealey
The written word