The Kenneth Branagh International Award for New Drama Writing​

 

Eligibility guidelines 2026 - 2027​ 

 

Are you eligible?

We are looking for original unpublished/unstaged one-act plays up to 30 minutes long by amateur playwrights 18 years of age or older in the UK or abroad. Only one script per writer, please. 

 

What do we mean by ‘amateur playwright’?

For the purpose of this competition, amateur status means you do not make a living from writing fiction (plays, short stories or novels). For example, you may be

• someone who enters many playwriting competitions, but if script writing is not your main source of income, you are eligible, or

• someone who writes non-fiction for a living, for example as a reporter or reviewer, but if you do not earn a living from writing fiction as well, you are eligible.

 

Is your script eligible?

The script you submit must be your own original work, suitable for staging in a studio theatre, up to 30 minutes long, and must not have been previously published or staged with a director. Your play must not have won an award in another competition. 

 

Your play must be suitable for minimalist black box production, with a cast of no more than six actors, though more characters are permitted if actors double up.

 

Was a director involved?

A staged reading without a director is allowed. But if a director has been involved in any way with a performance of your play, whether it’s a staged reading or a full production with props, costumes and memorised scripts, we regard this as an unfair advantage and this disqualifies your script. The size of the audience, or whether or not they have paid to see the play, does not matter.

 

The 30-minute limit

The time limit is important. To check your script, you might organise a reading with friends or family, allowing time for long pauses and any stage directions. A good benchmark is a reading speed of one minute per page.

 

Simultaneous submissions

We recognise that writers often submit plays to more than one competition at a time. If by the time we receive your script it has not won an award or been published or staged with a director, it is eligible.

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KBDA Drama Team 7 May 2026