007 First Light and Saros have been nominated for Best Original Video Game Score at the inaugural Ivors Composer Awards.
Typically the trophy for Best Original Video Game Score is awarded as part of the Ivor Novello Awards in May but this year, the category will make up part of the new Ivors Composer Awards.
Announced earlier this year, the Ivors Composer Awards will take place on November 17, 2026 and celebrate music created by British and Irish composers for a variety of different mediums including documentary, TV, film and video game soundtracks.
Today (Tuesday October 20) the nominees for Best Original Video Game Score were revealed – check out the full list below:
007 First Light (The Flight)
Saros (Sam Slater)
Spirit Of The North (Pav Gekko)
“They represent some of the most exciting and innovative British and Irish composers, creating music that brings interactive worlds and stories to life. Their creativity makes an extraordinary contribution to our culture and creative industries, and these nominations recognise the skill, originality and impact of their work,” said Lord Neri, CEO of The Ivors Academy, in a statement.
The Best Original Video Game Score category was open to original music integral to the worlds, atmosphere and player experience of video games written by British, Irish or UK resident composers for games released in the UK between 1 January 2025 and 30 June 2026.
“A great composition changes everything. Across the games we play and the virtual worlds we explore, music enriches our understanding, evokes emotional subtleties and opens new ways of experiencing interactive storytelling. This year’s nominees demonstrate that power in abundance. Congratulations to them all,” added The Ivors Academy chair Tom Gray.
The full list of nominees for the 2026 Ivors Composer Awards is:
Best Original Video Game Score
007 First Light (The Flight)
Saros (Sam Slater)
Spirit Of The North (Pav Gekko)
Best Community And Participation Composition With Abrsm
Benches (Samuel D Loveless)
Holocene (Ailís Ní Ríain)
How We Stand, How We Breathe (Brian Irvine)
Best Large-Scale Composition
Before We Fall (Anna Thorvaldsdottir)
Exoplanets (Robert Laidlow)
Non Fiction: Piano Concerto In Four Movements (Hania Rani)
The White Book – Extracts From Han Kang’s ‘The White Book’ For Soprano And Orchestra (Laura Bowler)
[Untitled] (Cassie Kinoshi)
Best Original Documentary Score
A Gorilla Story: Told By David Attenborough (Richard Collins And Patrick Jonsson)
David Frost Vs… (Thomas Farnon)
Grenfell: Uncovered (Benjamin Kwasi Burrell)
The Last Musician Of Auschwitz (Jessica Dannheisser)
Underland (Hannah Peel)
Best Original Film Score
Effi O Blaenau (Ioana Șelaru And Siôn Trefor)
Project Hail Mary (Daniel Pemberton)
The History Of Sound (Oliver Coates)
Best Original Score For Performance
Festen (Mark-Anthony Turnage)
No. 59 (Dr Frompou’s Anatomical Study Of An Orchestra) (Richard Ayres)
Oum – A Son’s Quest For His Mother (Bushra El-Turk)
Best Original Television Score
Believe Me (Carly Paradis)
Legends (Siôn Trefor)
Mint (Patrick Jonsson)
Best Small-Scale Composition
Hope Spiral (Ben Nobuto)
Night Owl (Sasha Scott)
Reef (Ruth Morley)
Scrunchy Touch Sweetly To Fall (Kite And Finger Run) (Alex Paxton)
Shining (Hania Rani)
Best Vocal And Choral Composition
A Taste Of Trapped Sun (Anselm Mcdonnell)
Ballads Of A Bogman (Stephen Mcneff)
Litany To The Magdalene Dead (Deirdre Mckay)
Songs Of Sleep And Prophecy (Martin Suckling)
The Black Lake (Richard Blackford)
The winners will be revealed in a ceremony at London’s Grosvenor House on November 17, 2026
