Lyceum Theatre Oldham has launched its second one-act playwriting competition, with the three winning scripts set to be performed at the theatre next year.

PlotFest 2027 is open to first-time and experienced writers, with entries closing on 30 November 2026.

Entries must be original plays which have not previously been produced or performed. Scripts should have between one and five characters and be no longer than 30 minutes.

The three winners will be announced in March 2027 before their plays are performed at the Lyceum's Basement Theatre in Union Street in July.

First prize is £300, with £200 for second place and £100 for third.

The theatre held its first PlotFest competition in 2016 and planned another for 2020. Writers who submitted scripts before the Covid pandemic prevented that competition from taking place have been encouraged to enter them again, provided they still meet the criteria.

Bob Pegg won second prize in the 2016 competition with his play The Salutation. He said: "It's always a great feeling when you see something of your own performed before a live audience as well as more than a little humbling."

Mr Pegg said he was later shortlisted by the BBC with another script, reaching the final 20 from more than 3,000 submissions. He said the same script subsequently received Arts Council funding and had a short run in Manchester.

His memoir, Unlettered Men, was also shortlisted for the Northern Writers Northbound Book Award in 2022.

The closing date for PlotFest entries is 30 November 2026. Competition details are available at https://www.lyceumtheatre.org.uk/plotfest-2027