Francis MacManus Short Story Friday 11 July 2014
The RTÉ Radio 1 Francis MacManus Short Story Competition 2019 is now open for entries. To download a copy of the Entry Form and Rules of the Competition please click here
This is the winning entry for 2018: "Ashes" by Claire Zwaartman. "Ashes" is the story of a pair of siblings scattering their father's ashes. It is about the complicated nature of family, disharmony and moving on. In their early twenties, Mike and Emer must let go of anger and resentment with this final act.
Francis MacManus Short Story Competition
A reading of one of the 25 finalists of the Francis MacManus Short Story Competition: Bumblebee by Fiona Gartland read by Angela Harding.
Bumblebee by Fiona Gartland
A reading of one of the 25 finalists of the Francis MacManus Short Story Competition: Bumblebee by Fiona Gartland read by Angela Harding.
About the Competition
The RTÉ Radio 1 Short Story Competition has been a critically important launch pad for new and emerging writers since its inception in 1986, with a wide ranging appeal including young aspiring authors in Ireland.
A competition for original short stories for radio was first established in 1986 in honour of the RTÉ Radio head of features, and acclaimed novelist, Francis MacManus (1909-1965). Since then, it has been a source of encouragement, support and recognition for new, emerging writers as well as established names. Past winners have gone on to receive national and international acclaim, including Claire Keegan, Molly McCloskey, Ivy Bannister, Anthony Glavin and Nuala O’Connor, and many more.
Every year, the winning and shortlisted stories are produced and broadcast on RTÉ Radio 1 in a season of new writing, read by leading actors, who in recent years have included Peter Hanly, Emmet Kirwan, Cathy Belton, Ingrid Craigie, Denis Conway, Andrew Bennett, Kathy-Rose O'Brien, and many more.
This year, the full shortlist of 10 stories will be broadcast in the autumn, and will be available for download as podcasts. And for the 2018 competition, all three prizewinning stories will be available to read on thejournal.ie following broadcast.