Channel 4 Writing for Television Awards 2026: FilmNation

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Award details 

There is one award available. 

The winner will be offered the unique chance to work closely with FilmNation TV UK through a long-term placement, a bursary worth £3000 and mentoring support. They will take part in a peer-group programme with opportunities to meet writers and industry professionals. The winner will also be given access to the C4/NWN Northern Talent Network. 

No writing experience is necessary. For this award, we want to discover new writers from Northern England who would like to work in television. We especially welcome submissions from people of colour and those from LGBTQ+, disabled and lower socio-economic backgrounds, who are particularly under-represented in this area of the TV industry.  

FilmNation TV UK is part of international independent entertainment company FilmNation Entertainment, whose TV productions include Chris O’Dowd’s Small Town, Big Story, the award-winning HBO mini-series I Know This Much Is True, and the TV drama adaptation of Isabel Allende’s bestselling novel The House of the Spirits. 

Please visit FilmNationTV UK’s website to find out more about the work they produce: https://www.filmnation.com/

This award will be judged by: FilmNation TV UK and New Writing North. 

Entry details 

To enter writers should submit an outline of an original TV drama storyline (up to 400 words) and a sample script of no more than ten pages, and answer the application questions. Please note that writers who enter this award may also enter the other Channel 4 Writing for Television Award strands.

You don't have to be writing in a specific genre or style to apply for these awards, but we would encourage you to take a look at the kinds of work the production companies have developed, and consider which might be the best fit for your writing.

The deadline for entries is 12 noon, 26 June 2026

We are unable to accept submissions after this deadline.

To apply for this award you should be: 

  • Living in the North of England at the time of entering and planning to remain here for at least another 12 months. 
  • Over the age of 18. 
  • Writing for television and willing to commit to developing your work through the programme on offer. 

For more information, please read the Eligibility and Conditions of Entry carefully. 

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