Tolu Okanlawon won the Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting 2025 for his debut play SHOOTERS, receiving £20,000. Based on real events, SHOOTERS follows African American photojournalist Gordon Parks as he documents the lives of a group of teenage boys in 1940s Harlem for Life Magazine. Seen through Parks’ lens, the play delves into themes of power, vulnerability and accurate representation.
Silva Semerciyan won the Judges Award for her play PRZEWALSKI’S HORSES, receiving £10,000. The play follows a woman fleeing war-torn Kyiv as she seeks refuge with her estranged grandmother in the radioactive wilderness of the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone. Semerciyan, a playwright and lecturer, was previously shortlisted for the Bruntwood Prize in 2011 with I AND THE VILLAGE, which went on to be shortlisted for an Off West End Award in 2016.
Jesús I. Valles won the International Award for their play SPREAD, receiving £10,000. SPREAD follows a group of boys in 9th grade as they navigate the balance of childhood and the ever-present push of adult pressures. Valles’ work often explores themes of immigration, sex, citizenship, desire, mourning, friendship, food, fat and Mexicans.
Daisy Miles won the North-West Original New Voice Award and Residency for her debut play R LADY’S, gaining a year-long residency at the Royal Exchange Theatre. R LADY’S is a disturbing examination of innocence and power in the lives of three primary school girls. Miles is a playwright, producer, graphic designer and journalist from Stockport, and is currently training with the Royal Exchange Theatre’s Young Company of Writers.
For the first time, a special commendation has also been awarded as part of the North-West Original New Voice Award. Terri Jade Donovan was recognised for their play DOG DOG DOG – an unpredictable exploration of the impact of childhood trauma and neglect – with a £5,000 grant. Donovan is a disabled, hard of hearing, neurodivergent writer and actor, and a passionate advocate for Deaf, Disabled, and Neurodivergent (DDN) voices. They were mentored by 2017 Bruntwood Prize winner Tim Foley as part of the Royal Exchange Theatre’s Young Company of Writers.
The ceremony was hosted by actor Julie Hesmondhalgh, and featured extract performances from each shortlisted play, as well as a special 20th anniversary commission performed by 2022 winner Nathan Queeley-Dennis and written by 2013 winner Anna Jordan.
A huge congratulations to each of this year’s shortlisted writers: T. Adamson, Natasha Collie, Yasmine Dankwah, Terri Jade Donovan, Abbi Greenland, Daniel Grimston, Mary Elizabeth Hamilton, Julia Jarcho, Daisy Miles, Courttia Newland, Tolu Okanlawon, Silva Semerciyan, Jesús I. Valles, Ava Wong Davies and Seayoung Yim.