Alexandra Brocková won the 2026 Tom Stoppard Prize

Alexandra Brocková won the 2026 Tom Stoppard Prize for her essay “Ships, Seas, Harbors.” This year’s jury praised the text for “combining cultural erudition with existential depth” and, through the symbolism of the sea, sailing, and shipwreck, raising questions about human direction, responsibility, and the limits of one’s own life. Alexandra Brocková writes poetry, essays, and scholarly texts; she focuses on philosophy, and her debut poetry collection Lurking in the Moss was nominated this year for the Magnesia Litera Award for Debut of the Year. Since 2021, the Václav Havel Library has awarded the Tom Stoppard Prize for an original, unpublished essay in the Czech language that makes an exceptional contribution to understanding the contemporary world.