1st Red Planet Prize

The Stage reports that the first winner of the inaugural screenwriting competition, the Red Planet Prize, is forty-year-old Joanna Leigh, a lexicographer from Wales. HolbyBlue creator Tony Jordan established the Red Planet prize to discover new screenwriting talent.

Leigh, who studied screenwriting at the London College of Printing, wrote a script called Sam J, which is about the writer Samuel Johnson and how he came to produce his dictionary masterpiece.

Her script was chosen by a panel including Jordan, BBC Wales head of drama Julie Gardner, actor and writer Mark Gatiss and Stephen Fry.

Gatiss described Leigh's script as a "terrific page turner", while Gardner said it was a "bold and inventive dramatisation of a critical moment in the history of English literature".

Jordan said: "Joanna's script had everything the competition was trying to find - a unique voice, great characters and a remarkable story well told."

Leigh, who beat off competition from more than 2,000 entrants to win the prize, said she was "thrilled" to win.