The deadline is approaching for the 2026 Observer Anthony Burgess Prize for Arts Journalism.

This annual competition aims to discover the best new writing in arts journalism. Entrants are asked to write a review of a new work in the arts. The maximum length is 800 words, and there is a prize fund of £4,000 plus the opportunity to be published in the print and online editions of the Observer. The winner will be awarded £3000, and there are two runner-up prizes of £500.

Last year’s winner, Richard Pound, wrote about Olivier Schrauwen’s day-in-the-life graphic novel, Sunday. The runners-up were Anuj Mishra, whose subject was Paval Kapadia’s drama film All We Imagine as Light, and Damien Le-Hoste, who wrote a review of the exhibition ‘Making a Rukus!’

Anthony Burgess was a versatile novelist, musician and critic. The Observer Burgess prize celebrates the 32 years that he spent working as a contributor to the arts pages of the Observer.

This year’s guest judge is Susannah Clapp, the theatre critic of the Observer.  She will be joined on the judging panel by Anna Leszkiewicz, the Arts Editor of the Observer, and Andrew Biswell, director of the Anthony Burgess Foundation.

You have until the end of 28 February 2026 to submit your entry. Full entry details, plus terms & conditions and some useful writing tips, can be found on our Observer Burgess prize pages.

Pictured above: The winner and runners-up of the 2025 Observer Burgess Prize (from left: Anuj Mishra, Richard Pound, Damien Le-Hoste).