Winners announced of inaugural Theatre503 Playwriting Award

The winners of the inaugural Theatre503 Playwriting Award have been announced. The judges decided to award the prize jointly after nearly five hours of "fierce debate".

The winning scripts are And Then Come the Nightjars by Bea Roberts, set against the backdrop of rural hardship, and Valhalla by Paul Murphy, billed as a "tense psychological thriller".

Each writer receives a prize of £6,000 (provided by The Richard Carne Trust and an "anonymous donor"), and a guaranteed production of their work at Theatre503.

Artistic director Paul Robinson commented, "It is now fairly widely acknowledged that Theatre503 is a writer's best first chance and we're really proud of our unique place in the industry."

The judges for the prize were playwrights Dennis Kelly, Tanya Ronda and Roy Williams, director Erica Whyman, Royal Court literary manager Chris Campbell, agent Lily Williams and critic Henry Hitchings.

Also announced today were the successful applicants for the 503Five Writer Residency Scheme, and 18-month training programme. They are Chloe Todd Fordham, Brian Mullin, Vinay Patel, Ella Greenhill and Nessah Muthy.