Sight for Wight celebrated its 16th annual Short Story Writing Competition Awards Ceremony at The Riverside Centre, Newport on Friday 12th December to a full house! This year’s theme was ‘Superhero’
The celebrity readers this year were Chesney Hawkes (Singer/Songwriter), Richard Cadell (Sooty & Sweep), Kate Weston (Easy Radio South), Andy Jackson (Nation Radio South) and Darren Walsh (Comedian).
Our Master of Ceremonies was Maurice Kachuk.
ABOVE PHOTO – Maurice Kachuk
Spiderman presented the awards to the three under 18 categories:
Under 8’s Winners
Third Place – Iris Woodford with the story, Evermoon. Iris won a voucher kindly donated by Dinosaur Isle.
ABOVE PHOTO – Certificate accepted on behalf of Iris’ mum!
Second Place – Molly Jasper with the story, Superhero Rose. Molly won an Entertainer voucher kindly donated by Paz Thakrar.
ABOVE PHOTO – Molly with Spiderman!
First Place – Ula Batchelor with the story, Owlette Saves UK. Ula won an Entertainer voucher, kindly donated by Sandham Office Services.
ABOVE PHOTO – Ula Batchelor with mum and Spiderman!
The Mystery Judge said: A very imaginative story with an unusual choice of Superhero transformation and it works well. The flying alien motorbikes using lasers to cut out and kidnap the UK are exciting and I like the idea of a Superhero owl’s wings being used to karate chop in a fight and then blow the enemy into a different galaxy.
Ula’s story was read and recorded by Richard Cadell.
8 – 11’s Winners
Third Place – Ella Atkinson-Gaffe with the story, The Super Buddies. Ella won an Entertainer voucher, kindly donated by Janice Ferguson.
ABOVE PHOTO – Ella with Spiderman!
Second Place – Owen Wickham with the story, Cusp And The Doomsday Plot. Owen won a robot, kindly donated by Lisa Hollyhead.
ABOVE PHOTO – Owen with Spiderman!
First Place – Toby Manning with the story, The Final Piece. Toby won a voucher for a Family Day Out, kindly donated by Hovertravel. Toby’s prize includes having his story printed in the County Press.
ABOVE PHOTO – Toby with Spiderman!
The Mystery Judge said: This stood out because it is a considered, mature introspective on the cost of being a superhero; the self-sacrifice often involved, but seldom explored. It’s also a testament to deep and knowing friendship, especially in the line, ‘he knew he could save him, but he would have to give up the final piece of himself.’
Toby’s story has been read and recorded by Andy Jackson.
Certificates of Merit were awarded to:
Lucia Franco with the story, The Cake Mixture Disaster.
ABOVE PHOTO – Lucia with Spiderman!
Evie Cooke with the story, Superhero.
ABOVE PHOTO – Evie with Spiderman!
Lillian Woodford with the story, A Starlight Story.
ABOVE PHOTO – Lillian with Spiderman!
12 – 17’s Winners
Third Place – Yuna Bereza with the story, The Woman In The Peacock Hat. Yuna won a voucher, kindly donated by ComiCoffee.
ABOVE PHOTO – Yuna with Spiderman!
Second Place – Georgii Iakovlev with the story, Dunno And The Sky Stone. Georgii won an Amazon voucher, kindly donated by TESCO.
ABOVE PHOTO – Olga collecting on behalf of Georgii with Spiderman!
First Place – Evie May Quick with the story, The Dunes. Evie won a Waterstones voucher, kindly donated by Wight Computers.
ABOVE PHOTO – Evie with Spiderman!
The Mystery Judge said: This is a worthy winner which has brilliant scene setting and the building of tension and danger. Continuity was kept throughout; e.g. an injury declared at the beginning was still featuring and impacting the character at the end. My favourite sentence was, ‘the man on the right seemed younger, with eyes that haven’t yet seen the atrocities of the world.’ It was a very subtle rendition of the ‘superhero’ theme including how this superhero was mentored by an older brother. I love the way this short story ended which, for me, was the opening chapter of a much fuller story I’d like to read.
Evie’s story has been read and recorded by Kate Weston.
The High Sheriff, Jacque Gazzard presented the following awards:
Edana Minghella Award Winner
Edana was a huge supporter of the charity since 2016 and a strong advocate for mental health. In honour of Edana, Chris Cane, competition organiser, created the Edana Minghella Award. This award is for a story with depth, emotion, wellbeing and creativity.
Katherine Groves was the winner with the story, Maximus: A Vectis Superhero. Katherine won a voucher kindly donated by Ventnor Botanic Garden.
ABOVE PHOTO – Katherine with the High Sheriff, Jacque Gazzard
The Mystery Judge said: Such a cleverly constructed story, portraying how overcoming adversity can exist in many forms. I was moved by both the heartfelt depiction of life as a veteran and of the bond between humans and animals. The story brought the characters of Rob and Maximus to life and perfectly reflected how superheroes live amongst us. Written with such emotion, empathy and depth, the story stayed with me long after I read it.
Katherine’s story has been read and recorded by Chesney Hawkes.
Over 18’s Winners
Third Place – Peta Sankey with the story, Brodie The Superhero Labradoodle. Peta wins a voucher, kindly donated by Wight Mouse Inn.
ABOVE PHOTO – Peta with the High Sheriff, Jacque Gazzard
Second Place – Ruth Hollingshead with the story, Not All Superheroes Wear Capes. Ruth won a voucher, kindly donated by The Bargeman’s Rest.
ABOVE PHOTO – Ruth with the High Sheriff, Jacque Gazzard
First Place – Peter McDonagh with the story, You Don’t Have To Wear A Cape To Be A Superhero. Peter won a voucher, kindly donated by Wightlink.
ABOVE PHOTO – High Sheriff with Sue McDonagh on behalf of Peter.
The Mystery Judge said: What a wonderful piece of storytelling; the author really embraced how seemingly ordinary people can make the world of difference to others. I loved this story for its sense of community, for acknowledging that accessibility should be at the heart of everything we do and for showing that, by working together, we can achieve so much more.
Sadly, Peter passed away in July and it was his wife, Sue, who brought Peter’s entry to Millbrooke House and shared the very sad news but wanted to enter Peter’s story as he had written it before he passed away.
Peter’s story has been read and recorded by Darren Walsh.
The results were announced amidst an evening of local Island talent with magic and mirth from the amazing Huxley Magician and singing from Paula Johnson.
ABOVE PHOTO – Huxley
ABOVE PHOTO – Paula Johnson
Competition organiser, Chris Cane, said: “We were honoured to have such talented and famous readers again this year so a huge thanks to them for their help and support. The entertainment this year was superb. Our celebrity readers, volunteers, performers and staff all gave up their time to support Sight for Wight with this year’s Award Ceremony, so a huge thank you to everyone. This is one of our key fundraising annual events and so vital to continue to help raise funds for our members.”
ABOVE PHOTO – Spiderman with Chris Cane
JD, CEO at Sight for Wight added, “Events like this remind us just how much creative talent exists on the Isle of Wight. This was not simply a celebration of storytelling, but a celebration of imagination, confidence, and community. From young writers to established creatives, the Island continues to prove itself as a place where ideas are encouraged and voices are valued.
It was a pleasure to see so many people come together to recognise that creativity. Sight for Wight is proud to support opportunities that champion creativity and inclusion, and we look forward to seeing many more stories, ideas, and talents continue to flourish across the Island.”
Sight for Wight couldn’t have done the competition without the support of our generous sponsors:
Appley Manor, ASDA, Bargeman’s Rest, Chale Parish Council, Chris Cane, COMICOFFEE, Debbie Mason (Island Magazine), Dinosaur Isle, Hovertravel, Janice Ferguson, Kris Stevens, Newport Parish Council, Paz Thakrar, Red Funnel, Sandham Office Services, Sue McDonagh, TESCO, Ventnor Botanic Gardens, Warners, Waterstones, Wight Computers, Wight Mouse Inn, Wightlink.
You can listen to the winning stories below:
UNDER 8s
8 – 11s
12 – 17s
Edana Minghella Award
18+
