The Women’s Prize for Playwriting has revealed the winners of its 2025 award.
The winners were announced last night, 9 February 2026, at a ceremony at @SohoPlace Theatre in London.
Georgina Duncan has won the main prize, for her play Sapling.
Georgina Duncan wins £20,000 alongside an option for Ellie Keel Productions, Paines Plough, and Sheffield Theatres to co-produce the play. The prize is sponsored by Samuel French Ltd, a Concord Theatricals company, the official publishing partner of the prize.
Georgina is a writer and actor from East Lancashire, now based in London. As a playwright, her work has been nominated for playwriting competitions including BOLD Theatre, Theatre Royal Haymarket, Papatango, Theatre503 International Prize and Druid Theatre.
Also announced last night, award-winning actress Kristin Scott Thomas has won the inaugural Leading Light Award, a lifetime achievement prize recognising, “a leading female in the arts industry for their enduring influence, distinguished body of work, and outstanding contribution to culture”.
The ceremony also featured a special monologue by Abi Morgan and contributions from the long-listed writers, performed by Dame Meera Syal.
“Sapling is the rare kind of play that producers dream of discovering and audiences yearn to watch: gripping, fearless, and profoundly moving. Georgie’s writing is full of heart and vivid energy, matching its extraordinary craft in every scene.” – Ellie Keel, Founder & Director of the Women’s Prize for Playwriting
20 plays shortlisted for the Prize were announced in December, from a total of 1,275 submissions.
This year’s judging panel is chaired by Indhu Rubasingham, Director and Co-Chief Executive of the National Theatre, and includes Literary & Development Associate at Wessex Grove, Kat Pierce; directors Milli Bhatia and Alice Hamilton; actress Romola Garai; Literary Agent Mel Kenyon; playwright Morgan Lloyd Malcolm; Artistic Director of Bristol Old Vic, Nancy Medina; the National Theatre’s Director of New Work, Nina Steiger; and Guardian Editor-in-Chief, Katharine Viner.
The Women’s Prize for Playwriting started in 2019, recognising female and non-binary playwrights, and campaigns for their plays to be presented on national stages in the UK and Ireland.
Previous winners of the Prize include Amy Trigg (Reasons You Should(n’t) Love Me), Ahlam (You Bury Me), and Karis Kelly (Consumed).
More about Sapling
Sapling is a tender and darkly funny story about what grows when deep-rooted pain is left untended.
Conor Flynn’s murder at the hands of another child sends shockwaves through a community already scarred by years of violence.
A decade later, 16 year old Gerry Flynn is striving for normality in Belfast during the last gasps of The Troubles. Despite a deteriorating home-life, the pains of adolescence, and the lingering shadow of a brother who never grew up, he’s just about keeping it together – until the events of one day shatter everything.
His brother’s memorial garden is destroyed, his killer released from prison, and the arrival of a charismatic stranger, Ryan, forces Gerry to confront the haunting dilemma: is Ryan the solution to his problems or the reason they exist in the first place?
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