RT SHORT STORY COMPETITION 2025: WINNERS ANNOUNCED

FIRST PLACE AND 5,000 LYNDA McCARTHY FOR WITNESS'

SECOND PLACE AND 4,000 ANGELA FINN FOR A SPECTRUM OF SORROW'

THIRD PLACE AND 3,000 IAN FEIGHERY FOR AUNTIE AND ANTO AND IVY AND AVA'

AWARDS BROADCAST LIVE ON RT RADIO 1'S ARENA FROM THE PAVILION THEATRE, D N LAOGHAIRE

www.rte.ie/writing | www.rte.ie/Culture | #rteshortstory

Cork writer wins prestigious competition with her very first short story sent out for publication

A subtle, sensitive and quietly powerful story of domestic tension, Witness' by Lynda McCarthy has been announced as the winning story in this year's RT Short Story Competition 2025 in honour of Francis MacManus.

The announcement was made live on RT Radio 1's Arena as part of an RT Short Story Competition Special hosted by Rick O'Shea in the Pavillion Theatre Dun Laoghaire.

As winner Lynda McCarthy received a cheque for 5,000. Lynda, a journalist originally from Cork, now living in County Waterford with her husband and children, first drafted this story last year while taking part in an online evening creative writing course with Waterford Libraries. This is her first time sending a work of fiction out for publication. Of the story, she said, I wanted to explore this character who feels barely visible in her own home what would it take for her to change her circumstances? What would it mean for her to have someone witness how she is treated? Witness is available to read and listen back to on rte.ie/culture - it's read by acclaimed actress Elaine Walsh.

Second Prize went to A Spectrum of Sorrow' by Angela Finn, a final year PhD student at the School of English, DCU, who was presented with a cheque for 4,000, while Third Prize went to Auntie and Anto and Ivy and Ava' by Ian Feighery, a primary school teacher from Tallaght, Count Dublin, who was presented with a cheque for 3,000. The seven runners-up received 300 each.

The winning short stories were selected by this year's judges, writers Neil Hegarty, Tristan Rosenstock and Jan Carson from the shortlist of 10 short stories (shortlisted from 2,200 entries submitted).

WHAT THE JUDGES SAID ABOUT WITNESS' BY LYNDA McCARTHY (First Prize)

Awarding the prize, Neil Hegarty said: In the subtle and sensitive Witness, a middle-aged woman takes stock of her life - the impetus to do so being the arrival of new eyes and new energy in the form of a young French exchange student. As she assesses her stale relationships with her husband and her sons, we see - or do we? - the tentative beginnings of a new life, of a new courage, of a new way of living.

Jan Carson added: In Witness we meet a middle-aged woman forced to take an honest look at her life and marriage. This story is beautifully written. We particularly enjoyed the small but detailed observations and the creeping sense of discomfort as the protagonist slowly begins to acknowledge that her husband is not supporting her youngest son's needs and decides to advocate on his behalf. A quietly powerful read.

WHAT THE JUDGES SAID ABOUT A SPECTRUM OF SORROW' BY ANGELA FINN (Second Prize)

Awarding the prize, Jan Carson says: The sentences in A Spectrum of Sorrow are crisp and cool and perfectly executed. The judges were impressed by the writer's ability to approach the subject matter objectively whilst at the same time thoroughly engaging the reader. We were captivated from the first sentence and loved the reflective imagery of the final paragraph.

Neil Hegarty added: A Spectrum of Sorrow explores grief - and what can come afterwards, if we give ourselves time to grieve, and then permission to live again. The unnamed protagonist must set about rebuilding her life - but how? The story shows that life and renewed momentum are like flowing water - they will find a way through. A skilful and gently restorative story.

WHAT THE JUDGES SAID ABOUT AUNTIE AND ANTO AND IVY AND AVA' BY IAN FEIGHERY (Third Prize)

Awarding the prize, Tristan Rosenstock says: Ivy is treated to a day out with her fun-loving Auntie Ciara, but the emotionally aware Ivy soon realises that they both need an escape. Auntie Ciara reveals that her relationship with Anto is over as he didn't want to have children. Meanwhile, Ivy's parents have their hands full with Ivy's sister Ava, who has special needs. The yearning for and challenges of parenthood are beautifully woven together and we get a wonderful sense of how a young child learns to act beyond her years and help lighten the burden for everyone around her.

Neil Hegarty adds: Auntie and Anto and Ivy and Ava is one of a number of child-focused entries to this year's competition - and one of the most interesting and distinctive. It's no straightforward matter to imagine experiences from a child's point of view - but here, the author excels in teasing out the vividness, the anxieties, the pleasures, and connections that infuse this child narrator's life.

***Read about the winning writers and what they said about their stories in the Notes to Editors below.

New judge, Jan Carson described this year's shortlist as eclectic, captivating and a real snapshot of the issues pertinent in contemporary Ireland.

The shortlisted stories, in alphabetical order by story title were:

A Spectrum of Sorrow, by Angela Finn

Auntie and Anto and Ivy and Ava, by Ian Feighery

Corr n na Maidine (Irish language), by Niall Siadhail

Feeding Time, by Sin ad Troy

It Must Have Come First, by Sage Omar

Kazakhstan, by Kevin McDermott

Labels, by Mary O'Rourke

Pool Story, by Jill Kenny

Witness, by Lynda McCarthy

Wolves, by Peter McCauley

All ten stories were published on rte.ie/culture and read by an ensemble of Irish actors on RT Radio 1's Late Date from Monday 13th October until last night, Thursday 23rd October. The shortli

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