Mercury Musical Developments (MMD) and Stiles + Drewe, in partnership with Theatrical Rights Worldwide, have announced ‘Father’ from Confessional by James Lark (pictured) as the winner of the 2026’s Stiles + Drewe Best New Song Prize.
The winner and runner up – ‘In the Beginning’ from Legendary by Cheeyang Ng – were revealed at the end of a concert performance featuring all 12 finalists at The Other Palace in London hosted by Alex Young.
The concert also included tributes to Adam Lenson, David James and Hugh Wooldridge – three influential and cherished members of the new musical community who passed away in October.
Commenting on the event, George Stiles and Anthony Drewe said: “Huge congratulations to James Lark, whose song ‘Father’ is a worthy winner, and to Cheeyang Ng and all our finalists. This year’s concert carried extra weight as we remembered three dear friends and colleagues who gave so much to new musical theatre. It felt fitting to honour them with an evening of new writing, and it’s clear the future of British musical theatre is in very good hands.”
Awarded on an annual basis to a member of Mercury Musical Developments (MMD) – the UK’s largest membership organisation dedicated to developing new musical theatre writing – the Song Prize was established and overseen by acclaimed writing duo Stiles and Drewe (Identical, Honk!, Mary Poppins).
The Song Prize showcases 12 new songs from the musicals of tomorrow during a celebration concert featuring a cast of West End performers. This year’s concert was directed by Alex Jackson, with musical direction from Livi van Warmelo.
The judging panel was made up of Stiles and Drewe, Chris Ma, Joanne Benjamin, Jon Robyns, Miranda Cooper and Rafia Hussain. The winner received £1,000 towards developing their work, the runner-up was awarded £250.
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