RT SHORT STORY COMPETITION 2023 WINNERS ANNOUNCED
MR HOO' BY JOHN O'DONNELL WINS FIRST PRIZE OF 5,000
It's a fabulous thing to read and fall in love with a story Judge, Ferdia MacAnna
TESSA AND VIVIANE' BY JULIE CRUICKSHANK WINS SECOND PRIZE OF 4,000
BREATHE' BY ROBIN LIVINGSTONE WINS THIRD PRIZE OF 3,000
AT SPECIAL LIVE EVENT AND LIVE ON AN ARENA SPECIAL ON RT RADIO 1
www.rte.ie/writing | www.rte.ie/Culture | #rteshortstory
Mr Hoo' by John O'Donnell, an exquisite and touching story about an easily-led, bird-loving young fellow's trip to the dark side - and subsequent redemption, in the words of the judges, has been announced as the winning story in this year's RT Short Story Competition in honour of Francis MacManus. The announcement was made at a special RT Radio 1 Arena RT Short Story Special live programme hosted by Sean Rocks in the Pavillion Theatre Dun Laoghaire and broadcast live on RT Radio 1.
The winning stories were selected by writers Ferdia MacAnna, Kathleen MacMahon and Claire Kilroy.
As winner, John O'Donnell received a cheque for 5,000.
Second Prize went to Tessa and Viviane' by Julie Cruickshank who was presented with a cheque for 4,000, while Third Prize went to Breathe' by Robin Livingstone who was presented with a cheque for 3,000. The seven runners-up received 250 each.
Commenting on this year's judging, Kathleen MacMahon said: Choosing the winner from the richness of the ten stories on the shortlist was daunting, but it was storytelling that prevailed in the end these three came closest to perfection.
Ferdia MacAnna said: This is my second stint as a judge and once again it was a privilege to dive headlong into new work by so many talented writers. It was illuminating to hear the works brought to vivid technicolour life by the reading of talented actors. The 10 shortlisted stories are composed with craft, wry wit, insight, humour and originality as well as fearless storytelling. If there is a theme in these marvellous visions, then in my view it's this: the stories chronicle aspects of LOVE in so many of its shapes and forms. Beautiful, touching, funny, well-crafted visions of imagination and beauty. Long Live Love.'
Claire Kilroy said: It was thought-provoking and fascinating and a thoroughly satisfying experience. As writers, we came to this with different tastes. Yet, when we sat down to judge the written stories, we were unanimous in our verdict, and when we came together a second time to discuss the recorded stories, we were again unanimous. I loved the process because it proved that literary quality shines.
WHAT THE JUDGES SAID ABOUT MR HOO'
Ferdia MacAnna said: This is the work of a talented, visionary writer. The gullible protagonist Bird' is a truly memorable creation. I didn't want this story to finish.
Kathleen MacMahon said: An exquisite story, it had everything I want as a reader. From the little bit of mystery at the beginning (Mr Hoo?) to the lovely voice of the boy and his romantic notions. I enjoyed the raucous wit, the comedy, and the tension. There's depth in the story, when the mother tells him he's a good boy I found that very moving. And of course, it lands with the most beautiful image at the end. A beautiful story of a good lad who seeks flight but gets caged. We all loved this story, so it was easy to choose it as the winner.
Claire Kilroy said: It's exhilarating to see a story built around a metaphor, that of a bird, which is sustained beautifully but never overplayed, and lands in the closing lines with such grace.
WHAT KATHLEEN MacMAHON SAID ABOUT TESSA AND VIVIANE'
This story is brilliantly crafted, taking the mother's life backwards from her first appearance as a very boho corpse, to her final apparition as a little girl untouched by life. The daughter is lost and looking for purpose, but even this is denied by the mother's precipitous death. The daughter's voice is sassy and unsentimental. I loved the mother's voice too, in all its colour. The little details are beautifully observed. The story of a complicated life, it rings gloriously true.
WHAT CLAIRE KILROY SAID ABOUT BREATHE'
This writer has an uncanny ability to alight on details that are so authentic as to put the reader there. He has imagined himself fully into his young protagonist's shoes or his boots, rather, his red Doc Marten boots of which he is so proud. With exceptional pacing, the reader (or listener) is hurtled from the young man's body into his head as he panics on the operating table. In capturing the claustrophobia of a being unable to breathe, the writer captures the claustrophobia of Belfast during the riot years.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS OF THE PRIZEWINNING STORIES
First Prize: Mr Hoo
John O'Donnell is a writer and a lawyer. His work has been published and broadcast in Ireland and abroad. Awards include the Irish National Poetry Prize, and the New Irish Writing Awards for Poetry and Fiction. He has published five poetry collections. His collection of short stories Almost the Same Blue was longlisted for the Edge Hill Short Story Prize. Rainbow Baby, a play for radio, was broadcast on RTE's Drama On One and won a prize at the New York Festivals Radio Awards. He lives and works in Dublin.
About the story: John says: Mr Hoo is loosely based on a real case; I still remember the late Professor Nial Osborough recounting the grisly facts to us in First Year Criminal Law. As a kid, the need to belong is overpowering; you'll do nothing your parents ask of you, but you'll do anything for your friends.
Second Prize: Tessa and Viviane
Originally from Galway, Julie Cruickshank lives and works in Dublin. This is her third time to be shortli
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
29/05/2026
With InfoComm 2026 just weeks away, NDI is giving attendees plenty of reasons to...
29/05/2026
Reaffirming a partnership that has defined Canadian sports broadcasting since 19...
29/05/2026
Mobile/tablet is No. 2 device for watching TV, suggesting that the sports-production industry needs to take another look at the format
Ring Digital's Sprin...
29/05/2026
Berliner Ensemble, one of Berlin's five major theater companies, has expande...
29/05/2026
Solid State Logic will showcase its new compact, fly-away TCA Tour audio product...
29/05/2026
Gerald (Jerry) Pierce, a pioneering technologist who helped shape the digital transformation of the motion picture industry, passed away last month on April 12 ...
29/05/2026
Paramount+ will be the English-language U.S. home for Barclays Women's Super...
29/05/2026
Further strengthening its virtualisation strategy to fully support broadcasters ...
29/05/2026
Swiss broadcaster Canal Alpha has deployed Harmonic's award-winning, software-based XOS Advanced Media Processor to modernize playout operations across cant...
29/05/2026
PTZOptics will showcase a new generation of intelligent video workflows at InfoComm 2026, June 17-19, Las Vegas. Visitors to booth N8227 will see how PTZOptics ...
29/05/2026
Arizona's Family has launched the Arizona's Family Sports (AZFS) streaming app, a new direct-to-consumer destination for live, local sports. The app is ...
29/05/2026
Starting in 2027, DAZN will be the exclusive home of The Canadian Football Leagu...
29/05/2026
Comcast Business has detailed the advanced network infrastructure it has deploye...
29/05/2026
In two-day event, leaders from academia and industry explored solutions to chall...
29/05/2026
The Basketball Tournament (TBT), now entering their 13th year of competition, ha...
29/05/2026
Roku has launched FOX One as a Premium Subscription on The Roku Channel in the U.S. Roku customers can now subscribe to FOX One using their Roku account for liv...
29/05/2026
In its sixth year, the broadcaster's coverage has become a global brand and ...
29/05/2026
Ratings Roundup is a rundown of recent ratings news and is derived from press re...
29/05/2026
The days are getting longer, the temperatures are rising, and playlists are filling up for the season. With summer around the corner, Spotify's global edito...
29/05/2026
New retro-inspired MPC announced
There are few devices that have gained the status held by Akai Pro's MPC range, and in recent years, the company have s...
29/05/2026
Save up to 30 on acclaimed titles
Following a successful launch at Superbooth 2026, Bjooks have revealed that they will be continuing the Kickstarter campa...
29/05/2026
Binaural monitoring application improved
Genelec have just released an update that brings some powerful new features to their HRTF-based binaural headphone ...
29/05/2026
6 June 2026 at SAE Institute, London, UK
IMSTA FESTA 2026 is almost upon us, with some of the biggest names in pro-audio set to descend upon SAE Institute i...
29/05/2026
Gerald (Jerry) Pierce, a pioneering technologist who helped shape the digital transformation of the motion picture industry, died April 12, 2026, at his home in...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
Comparing 5 AI Video Enhancers for Restoring Old Video Quality
Kate Luvis May 29, 2026
0 Comments
Digitizing VHS, MiniDV, and other legacy formats doe...
29/05/2026
Studio Hamburg Builds New Post Pipeline with DaVinci Resolve Studio
Brie Clayton May 29, 2026
0 Comments
Workflow replaces a patchwork of legacy tools...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/05/2026
At the Intersection of Music and Dance, an Epic Collaboration Boston Conservatory musicians and dancers found creative parallels in their recent performance o...
29/05/2026
Back to All News
The Official Trailer of Physical 100 Italy, on Netflix From Se...
29/05/2026
At just 20 years old, Sean Melia from Summerhill Co. Meath has been revealed as the winner of Super Garden 2026. Sean is the youngest ever contestant and winner...
29/05/2026
Experimental HIV vaccine achieves a long-sought goal In a first for the field, all non-human primates given a new series of vaccines generated antibodies capabl...
28/05/2026
Thomsons Climate Crisis Toolkit is already being put to work, helping journalist...
28/05/2026
FOX Sports' MLB coverage dominated the night at the 47th Annual Sports Emmy ...
28/05/2026
One of the most memorable postseasons in baseball history would have had no memo...
28/05/2026
NBC's Sunday Night Football is among the most-decorated and most-watched pro...
28/05/2026
The 2026 Sports Emmys marked a watershed moment for Prime Video Sports. After bu...
28/05/2026
Hosted by ESPN Senior Writer Ryan McGee, the ceremony honored winners from athletic departments, conference offices, professional networks, production companies...
28/05/2026
Major rights-holders rolled out their 2026 college football slates today, offering a first look at marquee windows, kickoff partners, and conference distributio...
RT SHORT STORY COMPETITION 2023 WINNERS ANNOUNCED 
