ardeear

Opportunities

If you’re a script writer (whether for the stage, screen, audio or beyond), knowing what’s out there can be a challenge to track. My aim with this page is to share opportunities I’ve spotted – predominantly across the UK and often the Yorkshire region – which might help, including where to find funding. The information here isn’t exhaustive, but it’s a starting point. If I’ve missed anything worthwhile, please get in touch and I’ll add it here.

Current Call Outs/Opportunities – By Date:

  • STAGE Adult Short Play Writing Workshops for INK Festival: a practical course, led by acclaimed playwright, scriptwriter and theatre director Rob John, designed to help participants complete a short play to submit to INK Festival 2027. At the final session, writers will have the opportunity to hear their work read by professional actors. Deadline: 1st August 2026.
  • STAGE/SCREEN Kay Mellor Fellowship – a year-long, part-time, paid opportunity for a writer based in Yorkshire and the Humber to develop their writing for stage and screen courtesy of BBC Writers, Leeds City Council, Leeds Playhouse and Rollem Productions. Deadline: 1st August 2026.
  • STAGE Mainstage Prize for Horror Playwriting: win a £10,000 cash award, a rehearsed reading of the winning play, and mentorship opportunities. Deadline: 1st August 2026 (23:00).
  • STAGE Jewish Playwrights Programme – Jewish Literary Foundation: the six-month programme will support eight emerging playwrights – Jewish writers or those exploring Jewish themes – in developing full-length scripts, with mentorship sessions, dramaturgical feedback, peer support, and an industry day to test extracts with a leading director and professional actors. Deadline: 3rd August 2026.
  • STAGE Summerseat Players – New Writing Festival: for emerging writers based in Northwest England. Six short plays will be selected and staged as part of the festival. One writer will also receive the Best of Festival award, with support to develop their short play into a full-length production for a future Summerseat Players season. Deadline: 3rd August 2026.
  • STAGE Connections Through Culture 2026 – British Council: apply for a grant of up to £15,000 to develop meaningful partnerships, cross-cultural exchange and long-term collaboration between the UK and participating countries. Deadline: 12th August 2026 at 23:59 BST.
  • STAGE The Bill Cashmore Award – The Lyric: a paid opportunity for two new one-act plays by writers aged 18-30, to be professionally produced at the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre and Bristol Old Vic. Deadline: 25th August 2026 (midday).
  • STAGE Umbrellas For Fish – an international literary journal dedicated to absurd and existential drama. They publish original plays that explore the uncertainties of human existence and the contradictions of modern life. Deadline 25th August 2026 (for September 2026 issue).
  • STAGE Mini Plays Magazine – submissions call out on the theme of Echoes of the Digital Age. They are looking for sharp, short scripts that capture the friction between our physical lives and our digital existence. Deadline: 31st August 2026.
  • POETRY BOLD – Queer Poetry Anthology: poems by UK poets must be unpublished and a maximum of thirty lines. Deadline: 1st September 2026 (23:59).
  • STAGE The Climate Playwriting Prize 2026 – courtesy of Shakespeare’s Globe with a £15000 prize, the submission window opened in June 2026. Deadline 1st September 2026.
  • SCREEN Three Month Content Sprint from The Unit: a relaxed, collaborative opportunity to create screen content. Supported by City of Bradford Metropolitan Council, Channel 4, and the National Science and Media Museum. June-August 2026.
  • STAGE People’s Play Award: for playwrights from the North of England who are yet to have a play performed professionally. One winning script will be chosen for a five-night production by the People’s Theatre, and the writer will receive a cash prize of £1,000. Deadline: 12th September. 
  • STAGE Step Forward – Common Ground: SRM Theatre Company callout for 5-minute monologues, duologues, poetry and song submissions to be self-produced for an event at The Watershed, Slaithwaite, on 13th November 2026. Deadline: 21st September 2026.
  • STAGE INK Festival – Student Script Submissions: submission window open for the 2027 INK Festival (15-18 April 2027). Deadline: 31st October 2026 (23:59)
  • STAGE 8x8x8 – Secrets and Lies – from Ilkley Playhouse:  a playwriting festival offering eight writers the chance to put their original, previously unpublished short work (8 minutes to be precise) on stage in September 2027. Info and application form available as download below. Deadline: 1st November 2026.
8 x 8 x 8.info and application 26-27Download
  • STAGE Leeds Pub Theatre – Connections: the latest callout for self-produced 5-minute monologues/duologues for performance on 19th November 2026. Deadline: 9th October 2026
  • STAGE Yorkshire Fringe Festival 2027 – multiple events across Yorkshire during the Festival 10-25 July 2027. Producers should check the Fringe’s website for how to get involved in the 2027 programme.
  • STAGE The Play Lottery – a playwriting contest for writers based anywhere in the UK, with a twist – the winning play is chosen entirely at random.

Current Callouts – Rolling/Open:

  • AUDIO & SCREEN BBC Commissioning – opportunities, commissioning briefs and contacts.
  • SCREEN BFI National Lottery Creative Challenge Fund – aimed at UK organisations running creative project development programmes for feature film/immersive media. Applicants must design and submit a programme proposal—including details of participants, structure, budget, and delivery plan—via the BFI’s online portal. The winning organisations will receive funding of between £12,000 and £150,000 per programme to support development labs, workshops, mentoring, and talent development schemes.
  • SCREEN Climate Spring and Counterpoints Arts – offering investment and support for feature films and TV projects that explore how climate change drives displacement and migration.
  • AUDIO Frequency Theatre – they are looking for a wide range of plays and will consider all genres, styles, content, issues, etc. They are especially interested in plays which take risks with the medium of audio and embrace what can be communicated through the medium.
  • SCREEN ScreenSkills Bursaries – aimed at individuals aged 18 and over across all career stages in the UK screen industries.
  • AUDIO The Skewer – Radio 4 comedy show, seeking ideas. Produced by unusual, the callout page includes a contributor guide.

General Writing & Creative Industries Support

  • How to Write a Kick Ass Funding Application – courtesy of The Space
  • Aberystwyth University Scriptwriting Society – for keen scriptwriters who are aged 18+ and based in the Aberystwyth area in Ceredigion, Wales. Non-students are welcome.
  • Arvon – a charity supporting writers since 1968, offering courses and retreats – both in-person and online – led by leading authors.
  • BBC Upload – for any kind of content: audio, video, text or images – open to submissions all year round, with content showcased every day on BBC radio stations and social & online platforms.
  • Bradford Cultural Voice Forum – a network of creative people, who work in the Bradford District’s cultural sector that exists to share knowledge, resources, and opportunities. 
  • Bradford Producing Hub – an independent arts development organisation aiming to nurture and support artists and creative companies across the Bradford district. Events, training, resources, funding & opportunities.
  • ITCH New Writing & Creativity from Studio Productions @ Bingley Little Theatre – monthly script writing lab, Theatre in the Bar, scratch nights and routes into production for longer pieces.
  • London Playwrights Blog – a weekly round-up of the latest scriptwriting opportunities.
  • My Funding Central – often writers have to become producers to get their work out there and this resource helps identify a range of funding opportunities.
  • The New Monday – a free community initiative that brings together individuals and organisations from TV, film and the wider creative industries in Leeds with breakfast networking and speaker sessions on the first Tuesday of every month (it is The New Monday after all…)
  • New Writing North – on a mission to bring people together through writing, reading and engaging in ideas. They find and support talented people from all backgrounds to access creative opportunities, enabling them to flourish. Multiple events, courses and prizes. Includes Northern Writers’ Awards.
  • New Writing South – a contemporary literature organisation working with and for writers at all stages of their career in the south-east of England. Their programme includes in-person and virtual opportunities.
  • OKRE Fund – provides financial support to early-stage imaginative, meaningful and collaborative entertainment projects. OKRE funded projects currently in development include dramas, comedies and videogames.
  • Script East Midlands – a support hub for script writers in the East Midlands: opportunities and workshops, professional mentoring from award-winning scriptwriters, a monthly Writers Group.
  • Script Yorkshire – a volunteer-run organisation supporting writers in creating stories for stage, screen and radio. Offers members free workshops with industry professionals and script-sharing opportunities.
  • SimplyScripts – a database of hundreds of downloadable scripts, movie scripts, screenplays, and transcripts of current, classic and maybe a few soon-to-be-released movies, television, anime, unproduced and radio shows.
  • TYPE! – seeking short/micro plays or screenplays (2-5 minutes in length) to feature in a free bookmark magazine championing bold new writing. Rolling submission deadline.
  • Wilson’s Republic – a community of independent creative businesses and individuals spanning design, illustration, art, film, photography, music, fashion, architecture, digital and other businesses with a creative edge.

  • Word Up North – an arts charity based in West Yorkshire that promotes and develops creative writing and reading in the North of England. It delivers a year-round programme of work including new writing and talent development.
  • Writers’ Guild of Great Britain – WGGB is the trade union for writers in TV, film, theatre, audio, books, poetry, comedy, animation and videogames.
  • The Uncultured – a mass of resources for freelancers working in the creative and cultural industries, include ACE templates to support funding applications.
  • The Wolfson Foundation – funds a broad range of organisations working across the fields of education, health & disability, heritage, humanities & the arts: its grants are for capital initiatives, i.e. buildings (new build or refurbishment) and equipment.
  • UK Community Foundations – grants are distributed according to the particular needs of the local area or region in which the funder is based.
  • Zealous – creative career tips & application advice. Tips on being selected for opportunities, being noticed and growing as a creative.

Stage/Theatre (includes funding)

  • 509 Arts – freelancers, artists and practitioners of all kinds are welcome to contact the company to explore opportunities.
  • Arts at the Arms – Yorkshire based with the aim to support local creatives share their practice by showcasing original work and developing talent. They are keen for email feedback and to connect with creatives who are interested in being part of future events.
  • Arts Council England – England’s development agency for creativity and culture. Includes Developing your Creative Practice (DYCP) funding of up to £12000 to support individuals and National Lottery Project Grants of up to £100000. The availability of grants and application processes change frequently, so it is worth checking the ACE funding pages for changes. ACE advertises jobs in the arts & culture via their Arts Jobs website.
  • Arts & Humanities Research Council – AHRC funds outstanding original research across the whole range of the arts and humanities.
  • The Boring Fund – helps small non-profit UK organisations cover some of the boring costs like insurance, web hosting, admin time.
  • Box of Tricks – open door policy to receiving new plays and forging creative relationships with Northern playwrights, supporting development through the PlayMakers Network.
  • Bradford Arts Centre – supports dance, theatre, and music artists to create work and develop their creative practice. This includes providing studio space, offering organisational and developmental support and help and guidance with writing funding applications.
  • The Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting – writing opportunities, support and resources alongside news about the prize itself.
  • Common/Wealth Theatre – Bradford & Cardiff-based, make site-specific theatre events that encompass electronic sound, new writing, visual design and verbatim. Email to express interest in working with them in this way.
  • Esmée Fairbairn Foundation – grant applications can be made to support creative, confident communities.
  • Finborough Theatre – encourages open script submissions on all subjects and themes.
  • The Fore – encourages applications from charities working with underserved communities, and those who have struggled to access trust and foundation funding in the past.
  • Garfield Weston Foundation – funds are available to support charities working in areas including community, education, health, arts and heritage.
  • Grand Plan – supports UK artists of colour with £1000 grants to take a creative leap.
  • Grants Online – a portal dedicated to developments in grant funding with a page dedicated to arts, culture & heritage.
  • The Hope Theatre – Write Club is a new writing festival and invites contributions from writers.
  • How to Write a Play with Mike Bartlett – playwriting advice, writing tips, writing exercises, answers to your questions, and thoughts on the theatre world from Olivier Award-winner Mike Bartlett.
  • Jerwood Foundation – supports excellence and emerging talent in the arts in the UK and welcomes funding applications from organisations.
  • John Ellerman Foundation – aims to advance the wellbeing of people, society and the natural world by focusing on funding the arts, environment and social action.
  • Leeds Playhouse – the Furnace artist development programme supports local creatives and helps to generate new work.
  • London Playwrights – an online resource for emerging playwrights with events and script consultancy. A variety of paid workshops (in person and online) are available.
  • National Lottery Heritage Fund – funds projects that connect people to the UK’s heritage with grants from £10,000.
  • The National Theatre – Playwrights Series: playwrights discuss, on video, different approaches to their craft.
  • Paines Plough – Tour the Writer is a writer development programme, established in partnership with leading theatres and producers across England.
  • Papatango Playwrights’ Studio – free and open to playwrights of all levels of experience: digital workshops, one-to-one advice, open-access funding, networking, interviews and representation (build your own profile on their website listing your experience, available scripts and creative interests, searchable by other creatives and producers).
  • Paul Hamlyn Foundation – supports organisations which are working at the intersection of art and social change.
  • Rayne Foundation – purpose is to effect and promote positive social change.
  • Red Ladder Theatre Company – artist development initiatives include a commitment to reading the first 10 pages of every script submission. Otherwise, they are open to supporting theatrical creatives with advice on funding, the theatre-making scene in the North of England and with introductions.
  • Roots Theatre – partner with LGBTQIA+ artists, communities, charities and places to create unique theatrical projects. Join their newsletter to be the first to hear about opportunities.
  • Royal Court Theatre – Writers’ Card Membership offers free support and exclusive events, including sending in plays for consideration, accessing funding, resources and insights. There’s also a seven-part video series helping playwrights start, write and finish a play: it’s available to watch on our Instagram and YouTube. The videos are short and BSL versions are available.
  • Royal Exchange Theatre – new writing & support for playwrights gives access to script submission windows, writing resources, workshops and partnerships.
  • Sheffield Theatres – Making Room (a network of artists & activities, promoted through a newsletter) and The Bank, a creative hub and artist development programme.
  • Slung Low – creatives and writers can be considered for Slung Low projects by emailing their biography and portfolio details.
  • The Stage – fighting for the future of theatre since 1880, a resource for theatre makers of all kinds.
  • Theatre in the Mill – with upcoming opportunities, including jobs, casting and programmes.

Screen (Film/TV)

  • Actwrite – London-based screenwriters connecting with professional and trained actors to workshop scripts through in-person table reads.
  • BBC Writers – discovering, developing, and championing new and experienced writing talent across the UK. BBC Writers writing opportunities can be found here.
  • BFI – the British Film Institute has a wealth of learning & training and provides funding & industry support, including filmmaking toolkits. The BFI’s UK Global Screen Fund (UKGSF) is designed to boost international development, production, distribution, and promotional opportunities for the UK’s independent screen sector.
  • Channel 4’s New Writers Scheme – for unrepresented writers living in the UK’s Nations and Regions with a burning desire to write TV drama.
  • Edinburgh Screenwriting Sessions – a bi-weekly meetup at Filmhouse in Edinburgh for screenwriters of all stages. An opportunity to get some writing done and socialise with other screenwriters in Scotland. Open to all.
  • Internet Movie Script Database – large movie script resource (scripts usually available as a link towards the bottom of the individual film’s screen).
  • National Film & Television School – NFTS has campuses across the UK in Beaconsfield, Cardiff, Glasgow and Leeds which deliver a range of long and short form courses.
  • Royal Television Society – RTS provides events, education and training across the UK.
  • Screen Yorkshire – content funding, skills & talent – including training & development – and production funding. Get it all in Yorkshire.
  • ScreenSkills – careers, jobs and skills training in film, TV, VFX, animation & games.
  • The Unit – a free, open-access creative space for filmmakers and creatives of all levels. Funded by Channel 4, Bradford Council, and supported by Screen Yorkshire. It offers weekly workshops, industry-standard equipment hire, post-production facilities, and a hot-desking space.
  • Yorkshire Screenwriters – a screenwriting development group meeting in Leeds and connecting with industry agencies and producers in the region. Meets monthly to share feedback on member scripts with an annual 48 hour screenwriting challenge and Screenwriters’ Retreat. Their Facebook page is where the most current updates can be found.
  • Wildseed Studios – Bristol based, Wildseed is a live action and animation, TV and film production company focusing on premium film and tv properties. As well as working with established creators and talent, Wildseed is also a leading destination for emerging talent looking to get into premium scripted production.

Audio (Podcasts/Radio)

  • Chapel FM – various opportunities to get involved with radio and podcast production (scripted and unscripted), including their ‘lit fest on the radio’ Writing on Air. Due to a funding issue in late 2025, the latest Writing on Air festival has been delayed. To help fund their endeavours to support new writing, you can donate here.
  • Frequency Theatre – always open to submissions of unsolicited scripts to be considered for production. They may give feedback to playwrights who they feel have potential, but whose submission has just missed the mark.