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Gazette scoops six in North East Press Awards

The Evening Gazette, Middlesbrough, carried off the North East Newspaper of the Year title to complete a bumper evening at the Tom Cordner Transco North East Press Awards.

The Gazette team took home five other trophies from the event, with Gazette reporter Angus Hoy being named North East Journalist of the Year and also winning the Hard News Prize. Photographer Ian Cooper won the Picture of the Year Award, Anthony Vickers was North East Sports Writer of the Year and the subs team secured the Splash Subbing Award.

Editor Steve Dyson said: “These awards were richly deserved by the top team of journalists we have at the Gazette.

“They are always striving for the best news coverage, the best sports stories, the best pictures, features and business news – and, of course, always put together by a team of sub editors who really push the boat out with some superb design work.

“The main award, that of Newspaper of the Year, is also about everyone else who works at the Gazette.

“We have great journalists, but we also have a top print and production team who help to present the paper to the public, a cracking newspaper sales team who get the paper where it needs to be every day of the week, and an enthusiastic advertising team, who provide much of the revenue needed for such a large daily operation to excel the way it does.

“This award is also for them and every single person who works at the Gazette.”


  • Gazette winners Anthony Vickers, Angus Hoy,
    editor Steve Dyson, Ian Cooper and Tony Dumphy.
    Picture by: Michelle Maddison
  • It was a night for the region’s evening papers, with The Gazette winning 12 places in the Awards’ shortlistings, followed closely by the Newcastle Evening Chronicle, and Sunderland Echo – joint runners-up for Newspaper of the Year.

    The Chronicle’s news team won the special Kate Adie Award for Initiative for its ‘Justice for Rebecca’ campaign that helped change the law on sentences for causing death by dangerous driving.

    Chronicle reporter Hannah Davies was Young Journalist of the Year, and colleague Julie Cush held on to the Health Reporter Prize she won last year.

    The Sunderland Echo enjoyed a total trophy tally of five. Its winners were: Investigative Journalism – Patrick Lavelle; Best Exclusive – John Corney & the news team; Community Prize – Bethany Usher; Consumer Affairs – Sarah Stoner and the North East Women’s Writer of the Year – Linda Colling. David Crosby was presented with the Eric Dobson Scroll for gaining the highest results in the region in the NCTJ exams.

    Agency man Raoul Dixon, of North News & Pictures, was North East Photographer of the Year.

    The North East Weekly Newspaper winner was the Darlington & Stockton Times for the fourth year in a row, with special mentions for close contenders Teesdale Mercury and Hexham Courant. The Courant’s Brian Tilley was voted North East Weekly Newspaper Journalist.

    The Journal’s Susan Taylor took the honours for Page Design, and sister paper the Sunday Sun earned itself the Arts Prize with Matt McKenzie’s portfolio.

    The Northern Echo – the previous North East Newspaper of the Year – featured strongly in the shortlists with 11 mentions, and took the prizes for Business, Features, and North East Columnist of the Year.

    North East Magazine of the Year was A Love Supreme, the fanzine of Sunderland football supporters, edited by Martyn McFadden – a previous winner of several national fanzine awards.

    The region’s lifetime recognition award, the Graeme Stanton Trophy, went to his widow, Heather Miller. She recently retired after a full career in newspapers and local radio, mostly in the North East, where her husband used to edit the Evening Chronicle.

    It was presented to her by the paper’s present editor Paul Robertson, on behalf of the Society of Editors (North) and the Tom Cordner Awards.

    Guest speaker Yvonne Ridley, a former winner herself, presented the trophies at the event, which began as a tribute to the Hartlepool Mail news editor who died in 1976.

    Click here for the full winners list.

    Back to the awards index

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