WE ARE DELIGHTED TO REVEAL
THE COMPETITION WINNERS!
SHORT STORY & POETRY COMPETITION 2025 – WINNERS!
VICTORY in partnership with
Portsmouth Authors Collective (PAC)
‘VICTORY’ 50th Anniversary
SHORT STORY & POETRY COMPETITION 2025
COMPETITION RESULTS
WINNERS
Short Story Competition Results - THE WINNERS
| First | Narrow Victory | Charlotte Comley |
| Second | The Battlefield | Karen Silverthorne |
| Third | Small Victories, Big Battles | Martin Barker |
| Local Winner | Spectral Watch | Charlotte Comley |
Poetry Competition Results - THE WINNERS
| First | Little Boy | Chris Hardy |
| Second | Small Victories At Home | Carole Westgate |
| Third | Seven | Vivienne Moles |
| Local Winner | A Victory For Gravity | Kerry M |
Prizes
- Personal Certificate – All ten shortlisted stories and poems will receive a certificate listing their achievement.
- First Prize – Five novels/poetry collections from Portsmouth Authors Collective, together with a voucher (to be announced live on radio) and Victory merchandise.
- Second Prize – Three novels/poetry collections from Portsmouth Authors Collective, together with Victory merchandise.
- Third Prize – Two novels/poetry collection from Portsmouth Authors Collective, together with Victory merchandise.
- Special Local Submission Prize – In addition to the winners above, one short story and one poem submission from a ‘PO’ post code will be offered VIP Tickets to Victory’s 50th Anniversary Celebration to be held at the The Gaiety, Southsea during October 2025, where they will meet some of their favourite presenters.
- All judges decisions are final.
STORIES AND POEMS BROADCAST DATES
If you missed a broadcast, or you just want to listen again, you can do so via our Catch Up service.
Stores and Poems were broadcast within Morning Call, which airs every weekday between 10am and 12pm. The list below contains the shortlisted stories and poems, along with the date they were broadcast.
| Broadcast Date | Poem | Story | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14th July | A Victory For Gravity | Kerry M | Racing for Rodney | Penny Rogers |
| 15th July | A Scarecrow Victory | Irene Strange | Hollow Victory | Colin Templeman |
| 16th July | Another Planet | Holly Crawford | Reflections | Annaliese Crocker |
| 17th July | Small Victories At Home | Carole Westgate | Man v. Squirrel | Penny Rogers |
| 18th July | Chests Of Gold | Simon Smailes | Narrow Victory | Charlotte Comley |
| 21st July | Seven | Vivienne Moles | The Trip | Denise Reader |
| 22nd July | Transform | Kyle Hounsome | Spectral Watch | Charlotte Comley |
| 23rd July | Little Boy | Chris Hardy | The Battlefield | Karen Silverthorne |
| 24th July | The Battle of Beera Kadesh | Simon Smailes | Tomorrow | Moira Lees |
| 25th July | I Close My Eyes And Try | Jo Riglar | Small Victories, Big Battles | Martin Barker |