Deadline: 31 March 2011
The biennial International Radio Playwriting Competition is run by the BBC World Service and the British Council and is now in its twelfth year.
It is a competition for anyone resident outside Britain, to write a 60-minute radio drama for up to six characters.
There are two categories: one for writers with English as their first language and one for writers with English as their second language.
The two winners will come to London and see their play made into a full radio production, which will then be broadcast on the BBC World Service. They will also each receive a £2,500 prize and there are also prizes for the runners-up.
The play must be in English, unpublished and must not have been previously produced in any medium. Whether you're experienced, new, or somewhere in between, we want to hear from you.
Just check the Rules and How to Enter sections to find out more about sending us your play.
And the winners get...
Once again, we have two first prizes: for the best play by a writer with English as their first language and for the best play by a writer with English as their second language.
These two winners will each receive £2500 and a trip to London to see their play being recorded for broadcast on BBC World Service in the World Drama slot.
* £2500 sterling for the overall winning playwright of the best play written with English as a first language and a trip to London to see the play being recorded and to attend a prize-giving evening.
* £2500 sterling for the overall winning playwright of the best play written with English as a second language and a trip to London to see the play being recorded and to attend a prizegiving evening.
* A prize of a digital or short wave radio for the best radio play to be written from each of the following geographical areas: The Americas; Europe; Africa and the Middle East; South Asia; Russia and the Caucasus; Asia and Pacific.
* BBC goodie bags for all writers whose plays reach the judges' final shortlist.
Rules
These are the rules and terms and conditions for entering the BBC World Service International Playwriting competition. Please ensure that you read and understand them as failure to follow will result in your entry not being considered.
1. Entry is only open to anyone who is over the age of 16 as at 31 March 2011 who is not normally a resident of the UK. This may include anyone living/working in the UK on a temporary basis (up to 12 months) at the time of entering the competition. Professional and previously published writers are eligible to enter, but this is not a requirement of entry.
2. Entrants must not be BBC or British Council employees and their close relatives or any person connected to the competition. Proof of age, identity and eligibility may be requested.
3. Entrants should write a radio play of approximately 60 minutes in length on any subject of their choice. Adaptations of novels are not eligible.
4. Plays entered must not have been professionally produced in any medium (an informal play-reading is acceptable; a play-reading with a professional director and in front of a non-paying audience is acceptable, but a performance involving payment to actors and/or a paying audience is not).
5. Plays entered in the competition must not, at the time they are submitted, have been offered for publication, performance or broadcast in any other form or medium to any other person or company. Nor can they, at the time of entry or during the course of the competition, have been entered for any other competition. The winning playwrights will be deemed to have entered into an undertaking not to accept offers for their entries from other broadcasters or publishers before December 2011.
6. All scripts submitted must be a minimum of 50 pages of A4 paper (or equivalent) and a maximum of 75 pages (note, a rough guide is a minute per page; please read and time your play before you send it). The play should have a maximum of six central characters (there may be up to three small "doubling" characters too, who don’t have more than a few lines each). Your play must be accompanied by a short synopsis which outlines the complete story of the play. This must be no more than 400 words.
7. There are two categories for entry. One is for entrants who speak English as a first language and the other is for entrants with English as a second language.
The BBC may require proof of eligibility for the selected category before announcing a winner.
8. The play must be written substantially or entirely in English. Unfortunately, we do not have the facility to offer a translation service. Entries that have been translated must acknowledge this fact by giving a credit to the translator or translators. Entries that have been translated will be entered in the English as a first language category.
9. The competition opens on 16 October 2010 and closes on 31 March 2011.
Entries must be received in London by midnight GMT on 31 March 2011. Entries received after this time will not be considered.
10. Entries must be submitted either:
* by post to the following address: Rm 823B, South East Wing, BBC Bush House, Strand, London WC2B 4PH
OR
* by email to the following email address: radioplay@bbc.co.uk
11. All entries must be accompanied by a completed copy of the entry form attached to this leaflet or which can be downloaded at: www.bbcworldservice.com/radioplay.
12. Entrants can enter individually or as part of a group. If entering as a group, all entrants must meet the entry requirements and be eligible for the same category. No member should have also entered individually. Please note, the prize only includes payment for one airfare per category.
13. In the case of an entry by two or more writers, the BBC will need written or email confirmation from each writer involved that they are prepared to take a share of the prize money and are prepared to receive those funds from a nominee who will be one of the writers, as the prize money will be paid to one individual only. The nominee will be selected by the writers and it will be his or her responsibility to distribute these funds to the other writers and the organisers can take no responsibility for that aspect.
14. Only one entry per person is permitted including any group entries. If you submit more than one entry, only the first entry received will be considered. Please do not submit plays you have entered before.
15. All entries must be the original work of the entrant and must not infringe the rights of any other party. The BBC accepts no liability if entrants ignore these rules and entrants agree to fully indemnify the BBC against any claims by any third party arising from any breach of these rules.
16. Entries must not contain defamatory, obscene, offensive or any other unsuitable material. Entries must be suitable to be broadcast by the BBC to audiences of all ages.
17. Entrants retain the copyright in their entries but grant to the BBC a non-exclusive licence to broadcast their entry across all media, as well as use it on any online platforms.
18. The prize for the winning entry in each category will consist of £2,500 sterling and a trip to London (airfare and accommodation for one person) to see the winning play being recorded for broadcast on the BBC World Service and attend a prizegiving event. Where the winner is under 18, the prize will also include airfare and accommodation for an accompanying adult. The prize is as stated and cannot be deferred or transferred. There will be no cash alternatives.
More information here.
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