Soho Theatre has announced Philippa Lawford as the winner of the Verity Bargate Award 2026 for her new play The Wilderness, one of the UK’s longest-running and most prestigious awards for emerging playwrights.
The announcement was made during a ceremony at Soho Theatre, where Lawford received the biennial prize for her play about a young English teenager experiencing a spiritual awakening on a Texan farm during a sweltering summer.
As the winner, Lawford will receive £12,000 alongside an exclusive option for Soho Theatre to produce the play. A full London run of The Wilderness at Soho Theatre will be announced at a later date.
Monica Ali, speaking on behalf of the judging panel, said: “The Wilderness is a beautiful, intelligent and deeply affecting play. What is so striking is the way its largest ideas arise so naturally from character. Through Meg, Rhoda and John, three profoundly different responses to faith become an unexpectedly resonant portrait of contemporary life: Meg’s fierce longing to be chosen speaks to loneliness and atomisation; Rhoda’s generous, communitarian faith to our need to give, receive and belong; while John’s secular rationalism asks what is left when meaning and responsibility rest with us alone. It is a remarkably subtle play about faith, but also about the much larger human hunger for connection, purpose and somewhere to belong.”
The 2026 judging panel was chaired by Character 7 founder Stephen Garrett and included playwright Beth Steel, theatre-maker Bryony Kimmings, novelist Monica Ali, playwright Roy Williams and theatre director Rufus Norris.
Alongside the main award, Robert Akodoto received the Character 7 Commission for The Last of the Watermelon Kid, a coming-of-age story centred on a young boy growing up in foster care.
Akodoto will join Soho Theatre’s 2027 Soho ReDraft programme, which supports playwrights in developing first drafts into production-ready scripts.
Stephen Garrett said: “Robert’s THE LAST OF THE WATERMELON KID is not just one of the most kinetic and cinematic pieces of theatre I’ve ever read, it feels magically plucked from the headlines. It’s as funny as it is dark, as moving as it is necessary. We’re excited to start with him to bring what promises to be an electrifying, wild and hugely entertaining story to the screen.”
Elham Ehsas was also recognised by the judges, receiving a Highly Commended commendation for The Faithfuls, a play following two Taliban fighters engaged in conversation, prayer and debate atop an ancient Buddha statue.
Soho Theatre’s Rose Abderabbani, Max Elton and Pooja Sivaraman said: “The Verity Bargate Award is the longest-established new writing award in the UK, with the winning play receiving a full production at Soho Theatre. It sits at the heart of our work with writers, allowing us to discover distinctive new voices, develop meaningful relationships and take creative risks; the Award gives us an invaluable opportunity to hear what writers want to say now and to support ambitious new work from page to stage.”
The full Verity Bargate Award 2026 shortlist comprised The Faithfuls by Elham Ehsas, The History by Tife Kusoro, The Last of the Watermelon Kid by Robert Akodoto, Voyagers by Ava Wong Davies, Water After Ajax by Billie Collins and The Wilderness by Philippa Lawford.
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