A crime reporter is celebrating a hat-trick of prizes after the Scottish Press Awards were handed out at a ceremony in Glasgow.

Bryan Rutherford, crime and investigations reporter for the Press and Journal, was named journalist of the year, regional journalist of the year and specialist journalist of the year at the 46th edition of the annual awards.

They were among five wins for the DC Thomson-owned title which also won front page of the year while Sean Wallace was named sports journalist of the year.

There were also four awards for The Herald including reporter of the year for Martin Williams while the biggest prize of Scottish newsbrand of the year went to The Scottish Sun.

Press and Journal editor Craig Walker said: “Last year was an exceptional year for The Press and Journal for so many reasons and I was delighted for us to receive 14 nominations at the Scottish Press Awards.

“Winning five awards and being highly commended in another four tonight gives us a further boost on top of knowing we are producing stories which champion and campaign for our communities.

“Our newsroom has evolved in a major way in recent years but at the heart of everything we do are the communities we serve, and have done for more than 275 years, across the north and north-east.

“Congratulations to Bryan and Sean for winning the top awards in their categories. Bryan’s achievement tonight was particularly impressive as he took home three awards, including the prestigious journalist of the year prize.”

There were two awards for former Herald journalist Dani Garavelli – now freelance – who won interviewer of the year and columnist of the year , while another ex-Herald staffer, Catriona Stewart, won the Nicola Barry Award sponsored by Women in Journalism Scotland.

The Sunday Post celebrated winning Campaign of the Year with their campaign, ‘Saving Mothers and Babies’ which resulted in the Scottish Government agreeing funding for pre-eclampsia tests.

And the team at East Lothian Courier were awarded Weekly Newsbrand of the Year.

Chair of Judges Richard Neville, former head of News brands at DC Thomson and current director of Neville Robertson Communications, said: “These awards celebrate talent from across the whole of Scotland and represent thriving journalism in every community from our big cities to our smallest villages.

“Maintaining that quality and consistency of coverage in every community is difficult these days but tonight’s winners show that our industry has the talent, skills and dedication needed to do the job.”

Newsbrands Scotland director John McLellan said: “It was a brilliant evening with the very best in Scottish journalism gathered to congratulate, commiserate and, of course, gossip.

“Once again my sincere thanks must go to all our judges and our sponsors, without whom the event would not be possible.”

The full list of winners and runners-up is below.

Young Journalist of the Year – Sponsored by Muckle Media
• Winner: Sian Maher – The Scottish Sun
• Runner Up: Andrew Robson – The Courier

Arts and Entertainment Journalist of the Year
• Winner: Kenny Farquharson – The Jaggy Thistle
• Runner Up: Neil MacKay – The Herald and Herald on Sunday

Interviewer of the Year
• Winner: Dani Garavelli – The Herald
• Runner Up: Jonathan Brocklebank – Scottish Daily Mail

Food and Drink Writer of the Year – Sponsored by Diageo
• Winner: Chitra Ramaswamy – The Times Scotland
• Runner Up: Ailsa Sheldon – The Herald

Financial/ Business Journalist of the Year – Sponsored by Royal Bank of Scotland
• Winner: Greig Cameron – The Times and Sunday Times Scotland
• Runner Up: Keith Findlay – The Press and Journal

Political Journalist of the Year – Sponsored by The Law Society of Scotland
• Winner: Kieran Andrews – The Times Scotland
• Runner Up: Chris Musson – The Scottish Sun

Sports Columnist of the Year
• Winner: Michael Grant – The Times Scotland
• Runner Up: Susan Egelstaff – The Herald

Sports Journalist of the Year
• Winner: Sean Wallace – The Press and Journal
• Runner Up: Rob Robertson – The Herald

Columnist of the Year – Sponsored by Edrington
• Winner: Dani Garavelli – The Herald
• Runner Up: Kenny Farquharson – The Times Scotland

Specialist Reporter of the Year
• Winner: Bryan Rutherford – The Press and Journal
• Runner Up: Helen McArdle – The Herald

Feature Writer of the Year – Sponsored by The Glenmorangie Company
• Winner: Kevin McKenna – The Herald
• Runner Up: Marc Horne – The Times and Sunday Times Scotland

Sports Photographer of the Year
• Winner: Andrew Milligan – PA Media
• Runner Up: Ian MacNicol – Getty Images

News Photographer of the Year – Sponsored by Visit Scotland
• Winner: Jeff Mitchell – Getty Images
• Runner Up: Jane Barlow – PA Media

Best Coverage of a Live Event
• Winner: The Scottish Sun – The death of Alex Salmond
• Runner Up: The Courier – Aberfeldy Shooting

Podcast of the Year
• Winner: The Ferret – A Place to Heal
• Runner Up: Rachael Revesz – Coatbridge, The Disappearance of Moira Anderson

Weekly Journalist of the Year
• Winner: Lewis McBlane – The Northern Scot
• Runner Up: Luke Jarmyn – Stranraer & Wigtownshire Free Press

Regional Journalist of the Year
• Winner: Bryan Rutherford – The Press and Journal
• Runner Up: Dale Haslam – The Press and Journal

Nicola Barry Award – Sponsored by Women in Journalism Scotland
• Winner: Catriona Stewart – Freelance
• Runner Up: Lindsay Bruce – The Press and Journal

Lifetime Achievement Award
• Winner: Melanie Reid – The Times Scotland

Weekly Newsbrand of the Year – Sponsored by Caledonian MacBrayne
• Winner: East Lothian Courier
• Runner Up: Cumnock Chronicle

Scoop of the Year – Sponsored by the Journalists’ Charity
• Winner: Graham Mann – The Scottish Sun
• Runner Up: Kieran Andrews – The Times Scotland

Front Page of the Year
• Winner: The Press and Journal
• Runner Up: The Scotsman

Journalism Team of the Year – Sponsored by Amazon
• Winner: The Scottish Sun – The death of Alex Salmond
• Runner Up: The Courier – Aberfeldy shooting

Campaign of the Year
• Winner: The Sunday Post – ‘Saving Mothers and Babies’
• Runner Up: The Press and Journal – ‘Community Fund’

Reporter of the Year – Sponsored by Openreach
• Winner: Martin Williams – The Herald
• Runner Up: Caroline Wilson – The Herald and Herald on Sunday

Journalist of the Year – Sponsored by Media House
• Winner: Bryan Rutherford – The Press and Journal

Scottish Newsbrand of the Year
• Winner: The Scottish Sun