Shortlisted nominees for the 19th Writers’ Guild of Ireland (WGI) Zebbie Awards were announced today (Thursday, 9th July), with IFTA winner and BAFTA nominee Ailbhe Keogan among the writers up for prizes across seven categories celebrating Irish writing for stage, screen and audio.
The ceremony, hosted once again by Tara Flynn, takes place at the Light House Cinema in Dublin on Thursday, September 3rd. Voting by WGI members to choose the winners opened this morning on script.ie.
The nominations land at a moment of contrast for the Irish screen sector. Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland reported a record-breaking production spend of €544 million in 2025, but the WGI says writers are still not seeing that boom reflected in fair contracts, fair payment or public recognition. The Guild frames the Zebbies as a chance to put the industry’s writers in the spotlight and to make the point that no production exists without a script.
Keogan is nominated in the Best TV Drama Script category for Trespasses, Episode 4, shortlisted alongside Mary Fox and Marty Thornton for Hidden Assets, Series 3 Episode 1, and Jo Spain for Mix Tape, Episode 1.
The Feature Film category is similarly strong, with nominations for Richie Conroy for Fran the Man, Sheena Lambert for Báite and Colin Thornton and Darren Thornton for Four Mothers.
Visually impaired writers Nadine Lattimore and Lisa O’Donovan are both nominated in the Children’s & Young People’s TV category for episodes of Maddie & Triggs. In the Short Film category, Mary is Missing, written by Aisling Byrne and Caitríona Daly, was developed in collaboration with a group of intellectually disabled artists.
The Zebbie Awards recognise Irish writing across Theatre, Television Drama, Continuing Drama, Short Film, Feature Film, Radio & Audio Drama and Children’s & Young People’s Television, with only WGI members able to read the nominated scripts and vote in the member-voted categories. This year, the Guild has also introduced two new judged categories — Best Irish Language Script and Best Debut Script — which are separate from the member-voted nominations announced today.
Speaking on this year’s shortlist, Jennifer Davidson, Chair of the Writers Guild of Ireland, said:
“Once again, we’re delighted to celebrate the extraordinary craft and talent of Irish writers through the Zebbie Awards. This year’s nominations show the range and quality of writing being created by our members across stage, screen and audio.
At a time when the Irish screen industry is experiencing record-breaking growth, it is more important than ever that writers are properly recognised and fairly paid for the work that makes that success possible. No film, television series, play, audio drama or children’s programme can exist without the script at its heart.
The Zebbies are an important opportunity to shine a spotlight on the brilliant creative minds behind the stories audiences love, and to remind the industry that fair contracts, fair payment and public recognition for writers must be central to any sustainable future for Irish storytelling.”
About the Zebbie Awards
The awards are named in honour of O.Z. “Zebby” Whitehead (1911–1998), a Broadway and Hollywood actor who supported, encouraged and financed new writing talent in Ireland after moving to Dublin in 1963.
The Writers Guild of Ireland is the representative body for writers for stage, screen, radio and digital media, supported by Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland, Coimisiún na Meán and the Arts Council. It represents over 400 Irish writers across film, television, theatre, radio, animation and games, and campaigns for rights, remuneration, more control of work and better recognition for its members. The Zebbies are supported by Screen Ireland and the Irish Copyright Licensing Agency.
2026 Zebbie Awards nominees
Best Short Film Script
- Mary is Missing – Aisling Byrne, Caitríona Daly
- The Knife – Joy Nesbitt
- Minding – Shannon Welby
Best Children’s & Young People’s TV Script
- Maddie & Triggs, Ep149 “Dust Bunnies” – Nadine Lattimore
- The Unreal, S2 Ep1 – Rodney Lee
- Maddie & Triggs, Ep148 “Ice Cream” – Lisa O’Donovan
Best Radio & Audio Drama Script
- Spooky FM: Jingle Hells – Peter Dunne
- Safe Space – Caitlin Magnall-Kearns
- Fragile Maoilíosa – Charlie McGuinness
Best Continuing Drama Script
- Ros na Rún, S30 Ep27 – Peadar Cox
- Ros na Rún, S29 Ep81 – Fíona Ní Dhuibhir
- Fair City, S36 Ep25 – Senta Rich
Best Theatre Script
- Dublin Gothic – Barbara Bergin
- Jigsaw – Lee Coffey
- Denouement – John Morton
Best TV Drama Script
- Hidden Assets, S3 Ep1 – Mary Fox & Marty Thornton
- Trespasses, Ep4 – Ailbhe Keogan
- Mix Tape, Ep1 – Jo Spain
Best Feature Film Script
- Fran the Man – Richie Conroy
- Báite – Sheena Lambert
- Four Mothers – Colin Thornton & Darren Thornton