The Offies
British theatre award
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The Off West End Theatre Awards, nicknamed The Offies, is an annual awards ceremony launched in 2010 by OffWestEnd to recognise and celebrate excellence, innovation and ingenuity of independent Off West End theatres across London. The awards recognise productions staged outside the commercial West End and highlight the work of emerging and established artists, companies, and creative teams.
| Abbreviation | The Offies |
|---|---|
| Formation | 2010 |
| Type | Independent Theatre Awards |
| Purpose | Excellence in Off West End Theatre |
Region served | United Kingdom |
Official language | English |
Patron | Kathy Burke (since 2010) |
Founders | Sofie Mason & Diana Jervis-Read |
Chief Executive | Denholm Spurr (since 2024) |
| Staff | 2 |
| Volunteers | approximately 60 |
| Website | offies |
History
The OffWestEnd Theatre Awards were launched in 2010 by Sofie Mason and Diana Jervis-Read[1] to commemorate and recognise on and off-stage talent within the theatre industry of around 80 of London's independent Off West End theatres.[2][3] The first-ever award ceremony for The Offies was held on 27 February 2011 with Simon Callow hosting the event.[4] The aim of the awards is to help raise the profile and status of independent theatres in London by rewarding productions not eligible for the Society of London Theatre-Laurence Olivier Awards.[5] The winners are selected by a panel of theatre critics.[6]
In 2014, Phoebe Waller-Bridge won two Off West End Theatre awards for her one-woman show Fleabag at the Soho Theatre.[7]
In 2017, Geoffrey Brown replaced Sofie and Diana as director.[8]
In 2024, Denholm Spurr became the director.[9]
Ceremony
| Date | Award Ceremony Host | Awards Venue | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 27 February 2011 | Simon Callow | Wilton's Music Hall, Shadwell | [10][11] |
| 5 February 2012 | Louise Jameson | Theatre Royal Stratford East | [12] |
| 24 February 2013 | Simon Callow | Wilton’s Music Hall | [13] |
| 2 March 2014 | Louise Jameson | Unicorn Theatre, Southwark | |
| 20 April 2015 | Louise Jameson | Online | [14] |
| 28 February 2016 | Ian McKellen (via Twitter) | Online | [15] |
| 26 February 2017 | Patrick Stewart (via Twitter) | The May Fair Hotel, Mayfair | |
| 4 March 2018 | Amy Lamé | Albany Theatre, Deptford | [17] |
| 31 May 2019 | Geoffrey Brown | Battersea Arts Centre | [18] |
| 8 March 2020 | Host; Geoffrey Brown Presenters; Lyn Gardner, Danielle Tarento, Julie Ward, Winsome Pinnock, Lynette Linton | The Coronet Theatre | [19] |
| 2021 | Geoffrey Brown | Online | [20] |
| 20 February 2022 | Online | Online | |
| 12 February 2023 | Geoffrey Brown | Alexandra Palace Theatre | |
| 25 February 2024 | Geoffrey Brown | Woolwich Works | [23] |
Notable Winners
The following tables highlight selected notable winners and finalists from each year of the Offies.
| Year | Recipients |
|---|---|
| 2011 |
Producer: Will Young and Ben Monks – Supporting Wall(Finalist)[11] |
| 2012 |
Producer: [Will Young] and Ben Monks – Supporting Wall (Finalist); Danielle Tarento – Producer (Winner)[12] |
| 2013 |
Male: Tom Rhys Harries – Torch Song Trilogy (Nominee); Harry Melling – I Am a Camera (Nominee); Andrew Gower – The Conquest of the South Pole (Nominee); Alan Cox – Cornelius (Nominee)[13] |
| 2014 |
New Play: Will Adamsdale – The Victorian in the Wall (Nominee); Luke Barnes – Bottleneck (Finalist); Phoebe Waller-Bridge – Fleabag (Nominee); Frank McGuinness – The Match Box (Winner); Arinzé Kene – God’s Property (Nominee)[7] |
| 2015 |
Female: Victoria Hamilton-Barritt – The Heights (Nominee); Phoebe Waller-Bridge – The One (Nominee); Linda Bassett – Visitors (Winner); Gemma Whelan – Dark Vanilla Jungle (Nominee)[14] |
| 2016 |
Director: Thom Southerland – Grand Hotel (Nominee); Russell Labey – Gods and Monsters (Nominee); Gary Lloyd – Carrie (Nominee); Gary Lloyd – Carrie (Nominee – second production listing); Christopher Nairne – The Edge Of Our Bodies (Nominee); Chris White – Klook’s Last Stand (Nominee)[15] |
| 2017 |
Male Performance (Plays): Zubin Varla – Poison (Nominee); Richard Gadd – Monkey See Monkey Do (Nominee); Ken Nwosu – An Octoroon (Winner); Jethro Compton – White Fang (Nominee); Harry Melling – Jam (Nominee); Ben Aldridge – Run The Beast Down (Finalist); Ian McDiarmid – What Shadows (Finalist); Adrian Lukis – I’m Gonna Pray For You So Hard (Nominee); Adam Deacon – The Retreat (Nominee)[16] |
| 2018 |
Male Performance (Plays): Wil Johnson – Leave Taking (Winner); Tyrone Huntley – Angry (Nominee); Trevor White – Building the Wall (Nominee); Timothy Harker – An Honourable Man (Nominee); Robert Costerlli – Rothschild & Sons (Nominee); Les Dennis – End of the Pier (Nominee); Irfan Shamji – Mayfly (Finalist); Henry Goodman – Honour (Nominee)[17] |
| 2019 |
Design: Set (Plays): takis – Ain't Misbehavin' (Nominee)[18] |
| 2020 |
Most Promising New Playwright (Plays): Temi Wilkey – The High Table (Nominee)[19] |
| 2021 |
New Play (Plays): Young Jean Lee – Straight White Men (Nominee)[20] |
| 2022 |
Performance Piece (Plays): Rosie Day – Instructions for a Teenage Armageddon (Finalist)[21] |
| 2023 |
Female Performance in a Musical: Liv Andrusier – Ride at the Charing Cross Theatre (Winner)[22] |