Old Member beats Orange Prize winning authors to win BBC Short Story Award

Congratulations to Kate Clanchy (1984, English), who has won this year’s BBC National Short Story Award. She beat a shortlist which included past Orange Prize winners Lionel Shriver and Naomi Alderman and Bafta-nominated writer Jane Rogers. Clanchy’s winning story revolved around parental love and sacrifice in a hospital ward.

The judges praised Clancy’s story for its “rich lyricism” and “deeply affecting style”. The chairman of the judging panel declared Clanchy’s story to be the unanimous choice of the panel: “An account of a deeply painful experience that we felt had become richer on every re-reading. We were all impressed by its acute control of emotional tone and by the vividness and generosity of the writing.”