Nick Hern Books and An Tobar and Mull Theatre have teamed up to launch the Playground Residency, a new paid residency programme for professional playwrights on the Isle of Mull.
Taking place in April 2027, the residency will support two writers developing new plays, with one place reserved for a playwright who is Scottish or based in Scotland and the other open to a playwright from elsewhere in the UK.
Based in Tobermory, the three-week residency is designed to provide writers with dedicated time and space to focus on new work while drawing inspiration from Mull’s landscape, wildlife and creative community.
The selected playwrights will receive accommodation for the duration of the residency, a weekly stipend of £600, support towards travel costs, access to An Tobar and Mull Theatre’s Writers’ Studio, and dramaturgical guidance from Artistic Director Rebecca Atkinson-Lord.
The Playground Residency forms part of Playground, Nick Hern Books’ wider programme of financial and practical support for playwrights, which also includes co-commissioning and mentoring initiatives announced earlier this year.
Matt Applewhite, Publisher and CEO of Nick Hern Books, said: “We’re excited to be expanding our Playground programme, and working with the wonderful team at An Tobar and Mull Theatre to offer professional playwrights the increasingly rare gifts of time, space and freedom – in stunning surroundings. The residency will give two writers a chance to step away from everyday pressures and make meaningful progress on a new play. We can’t wait to welcome them and see where this opportunity takes their work.”
Rebecca Atkinson-Lord, Artistic Director and CEO of An Tobar and Mull Theatre, added: “We’re thrilled to be partnering with Nick Hern Books to give playwrights the time and space for inspiration to flourish. As support structures for new writing erode across the UK, it’s vital to find ways to help playwrights keep creating in the ways that work best for them.”
Applications for the Playground Residency close at 12pm (GMT) on Monday 2 November 2026. Applicants must be aged 18 or over, based in the UK, and have had at least one play professionally produced as a full production with a run of three weeks or more.
Listings and ticket information can be found here.
