Ulster University is celebrating a historic win for two of its own. Professor Brian Irvine, composer and Professor of Music at Ulster University, and David Holmes, the internationally acclaimed composer and producer who holds an honorary doctorate from the University, have won the Ivor Novello Award for Best Television Soundtrack for their original score to Trespasses, the critically acclaimed Channel 4 drama series.
The award was presented at The Ivors with Amazon Music ceremony on Thursday 21 May 2026 at the JW Marriott Grosvenor House, London. Regarded as the highest honour in British and Irish music creation, The Ivors celebrate originality and excellence across film, television, opera and contemporary composition. Brian and David were among 16 composers and songwriters to receive awards across 14 categories on the night, in a ceremony that also saw Sam Fender named Songwriter of the Year and Calvin Harris honoured with the PRS for Music Icon Award.
The winning score for Trespasses — an adaptation of Louise Kennedy's celebrated novel — is a work of profound emotional and atmospheric depth, rooted in the tensions, intimacies and complexities of life in Northern Ireland during the Troubles. For both composers, the project carried a deep personal and cultural weight, and their score has been widely praised for the honesty and sensitivity with which it carries the drama's emotional register.
The win crowns a remarkable period of international recognition for the pair. Their soundtrack for The Woman in the Wall claimed the 2025 IFTA Award for Best Original Music, while their score for The Apprentice accompanied the Palme d'Or-nominated feature at the Cannes Film Festival. Collectively, Irvine and Holmes have now accumulated BAFTA, IFTA, Olivier and Ivor Novello nominations and awards across their distinguished collaborative career.
For Professor Irvine, the win marks a second Ivor Novello — his first came for Least Like The Other: Searching for Rosemary Kennedy, which also received an Olivier Award nomination following performances at the Royal Opera House, London. David Holmes is widely regarded as one of the defining composers of his generation, with screen credits spanning Killing Eve, Out of Sight, Ocean's Eleven and '71.
Professor Brian Irvine said:
"To win an Ivor Novello for Trespasses is genuinely such an honour. These awards mean so much because they celebrate the craft of composition at its most rigorous and original — and to be recognised in that company is incredible. Trespasses is a story about love, hope, prejudice, compassion, tenderness and forgiveness. It is a world we both know well and it was a wonderful challenge to colour that complex and difficult space with sensitivity and humanity. Huge gratitude to all the Tresspasses team for allowing us to be part of this beautiful project."
Ulster University is immensely proud of both Brian and David, and of the creative culture that continues to place Northern Ireland on the world stage. Their win further underlines the growing international profile of creative practice emerging from Ulster University, particularly at the intersection of music composition, film, moving image and screen production.
Ulster University Vice-Chancellor, Professor Paul Bartholomew said:
"Brian and David's win at The Ivor Novello Awards is a truly extraordinary achievement. Their work on Trespasses is a masterclass in the power of music to deepen the emotional truth of a story — and to have that recognised at the highest level of British and Irish composition is a testament to both their craft and their commitment to telling Northern Ireland's stories with integrity and artistry. We offer them our warmest congratulations."
The Trespasses score joins a growing body of internationally recognised screen music emerging from Northern Ireland, and reflects Ulster University's continued investment in creative arts, screen production and music composition as disciplines of both cultural and economic significance.
Photography: Professor Brian Irvine and David Holmes at the Ivor Novello Awards. Photo credit: Dave Bennett Agency.
