Dublin writer wins Francis MacManus Short Story Competition

Jamie Samson's 'Bubble' takes RTÉ Radio title

'Bubble' by Dublin writer Jamie Samson has been announced as the winning story in this year’s RTÉ Short Story Competition 2026 in honour of Francis MacManus.

The announcement was made live on RTÉ Radio 1’s Arena as part of an RTÉ Short Story Competition Special hosted by Rick O’Shea in Poetry Ireland / Éigse Éireann in Parnell Square, Dublin.

Samson receives a cheque for €5,000 from judge Jan Carson. His short story, 'Bubble’ follows a student's night shift at a rundown Dublin off-licence, where an armed robbery takes a strange turn.

“I wanted to explore, in a tongue-in-cheek way, how life or death situations force us to decide what we're willing to fight and risk everything for," Samson says.

Samson’s writing has appeared in The Irish Times, Channel, The Four-Faced Liar, Sans Press and The Stoney Collection; he was previously shortlisted in the RTÉ Short Story Competition in 2023. He is working on a novel set in West Cork during the 1920s. Along with all the shortlisted stories, ‘Bubble’ is available to read and listen to on rte.ie/culture and is also available on RTE Listen, read by Rory Nolan.

Second Prize went to 'James Langley Was in Love with Sean Harris’ by Stephanie O'Connor, a research officer with the RCSI, originally from Bangor, Co Down, now living in Wicklow; she was presented with a cheque for €4,000 by judge Aingeala Flannery.

Third Prize went to 'A Fork in the Road’ by Paul Edmondson, from Salford, England, now retired and living in Waterford, who was presented with a cheque for €3,000 by judge Tristan Rosenstock. The seven runners-up received €300 each.

The winning short stories were selected by this year’s judges, Jan Carson, Aingeala Flannery and Tristan Rosenstock from a shortlist of 10 short stories listed below (shortlisted from almost 2,500 entries).

Awarding the prize, Jan Carson said: “From the first read, I adored this story and it only grew stronger in premise and execution with each subsequent read. It’s quirky, shot through with humour but also peppered with profundity. It’s a perfect little bubble of a read.”

Aingeal Flannery said: “Voice, humour and pace were what set this apart and made it the clear winner. A darkly funny story with appealing characters, snappy dialogue, and a shifting power dynamic, told by a first-person narrator who swings from self aggrandisement to self-loathing over the course of a single sentence. This is very accomplished writing, it smuggles in just enough background information to give the story a sense of time and place that doesn’t interrupt its natural rhythm and momentum, building up to deliver a well-earned final twist that is deeply satisfying to the listener.”

Second Prize

Awarding the prize, Aingeala Flannery said: “James Langley was in love with Sean Harris stood out, firstly because love stories are not as common as you might think, and secondly because the pace was very interesting, typically a short story covers a short period of time, often a contained episode, but this one spans years, and the writer gets away with it, because of how time unfolds. Time moves differently in some settings. Hospitals. Airports. And of course, in prisons, where inmates are serving long stretches of time, and visitors are given tiny windows of time. A memorable short story is one that creeps up on you and stays with you long after you’ve finished reading it - this story has that. Occasionally you read a piece of writing and wish you’d written it yourself. And James Langley was in Love with Sean Harris was one of those for me."

Tristan Rosenstock said: "Intimacy is formed in an unlikely scenario. A narcissist and a sensible loner forge a relationship which initially appears one-sided, but which ultimately gives meaning to both partners. We’re left wondering how the relationship fared once the prison sentence was up and they could see each other more than once a fortnight. Intriguing characters and a very unconventional love story."

Third Prize

Awarding the prize, Tristan Rosenstock said: “A stunning account of how a couple’s struggle with fertility can lead to a sense of emotional distance between partners. Tom displays love through ‘usefulness’ while neglecting the emotional needs of his wife Mary. Were they really well suited to begin with? Or are their unspoken daily rituals enough to sustain the marriage?”

Jan Carson added: "On a sentence-by-sentence level this is a piece of incredibly accomplished writing, powerful in its restraint and deft in the delivery of quiet but intense observations. The characters are beautifully drawn. The language employed reveals the beauty inherent within the domestic. A quiet explosion of a read."

Commenting on this year’s shortlist and winners, Sarah Binchy, series producer said: “Our sincere congratulations to this year’s winners, and to all the writers on the shortlist. As the series marks 40 years on air, it’s heartening to see such a vibrant and varied range of stories on this year’s shortlist. Thanks to our reading panel and our thoughtful and insightful judges, Aingeala Flannery, Jan Carson and Tristan Rosenstock, to our fine array of renowned actors who have been bringing the stories to life on air and on podcast, and to our Late Date and Arena colleagues and colleagues in RTÉ Sound and RTÉ listen, as well as our digital, marketing and comms teams for their great support for the competition.”

The ten shortlisted short stories selected by this year’s judges are (in alphabetical order, by story title):

'A Fork In The Road’ by Paul Edmondson

'Bubble' by Jamie Samson

'Co-Operative' by Cathy Shah

‘Cottage Pie’ by Alison Jameson

'Discover: Nature’  by Alicia McAuley

'Inertia' by John Armstrong

'James Langley Was In Love With Sean Harris’ by Stephanie O'Connor

'Like Clean Windows Kill The Birds’ by John O'Donovan

'Na Rúisigh’ by Rónán Mac Con Iomaire

'The Light From Other Places’ by Kartikay Gupta

Set up in 1986 to honour writer and broadcaster Francis MacManus, the RTÉ Short Story Competition has been a critically important launch pad for new and emerging writers in Ireland. Past winners and shortlisted writers include Claire Keegan, Molly McCloskey, Danielle McLaughlin, Anthony Glavin, Chris Binchy, Nuala O’Connor, Liz Nugent, Colin Walsh, Stephen Walsh, Austin Duffy and Sarah Gilmartin.

All shortlisted short stories are available to read and listen to on rte.ie/culture and are also available on the RTE Listen app.

The RTÉ Short Story Competition is free to enter, and open to any writer over 18 living on the island of Ireland or living abroad who holds an Irish passport. Details of next year’s competition will be announced in early 2027. For more on the RTÉ Short Story Competition, see www.rte.ie/writing.