Suranne Jones and Lesley Sharp Named First Ambassadors for The Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting

The Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting today announced award-winning British actors SurAnne Jones and Lesley Sharp as its first ambassadors. Known for their roles as Scott and Bailey in the ITV drama of the same name, they will once again join forces to champion the importance of new writing alongside the Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester and family-owned property company, Bruntwood.

The biennial Prize, now in its sixth year, is an opportunity for writers of any background and experience to enter unperformed plays into Europe's largest playwriting competition. The new ambassador scheme will help raise awareness of the Bruntwood Prize and open up opportunities to discuss how the Prize can nurture new talent and the craft of playwriting.

On becoming a Bruntwood Prize Ambassador, SurAnne Jones commented: 'I'm thrilled to be involved with Bruntwood again and honoured to be an ambassador. I have great relationships with two of the writers from the year I was on the panel and I'm always looking to support new talent in our industry. We make stories come to life, but we need the people who write them to be nurtured first!'

Lesley Sharp explained why she became a Bruntwood Prize Ambassador: 'The Bruntwood Prize is renowned for discovering writers that have urgent, exhilarating and unique voices. Voices that would perhaps not be heard, plays that would not be seen if it wasn't for the Prize. Writers that shape and change theatre, that ask us questions about our world, that offer us insights and perceptions we are thrilled and unnerved and entertained by. I am delighted to be part of the Bruntwood Prize family. Now, more than ever we need our lives, our society, our world to be documented, to be understood. We need great writers.'

The 2017 winning scripts, will be announced at an awards ceremony in Manchester this November. The total prize fund is £40,000 and full details of the Prize can be found at writeaplay.co.uk, where a series of free workshops and video tutorials from theatre industry experts can also be accessed.