TV - RTS Scotland Awards

The Royal Television Society’s (RTS), Britain’s leading forum for television and related media, Scotland Centre has crowned the winners of the RTS Scotland Awards 2020...

Press Release

The RTS Scotland Awards cover all forms of production in Scotland, recognising and celebrating excellence and innovation across a wide range of genres and crafts. Due to the COVID-19 lockdown the award ceremony has moved to online this year and the prestigious awards were announced yesterday live on the RTS Scotland YouTube channel, with actor, comedienne and writer Karen Dunbar hosting the online event.

With 26 categories in total, BBC Scotland led the way garnering 12 wins across its 30 nominations. Five production companies each took home two awards, Firecrest Films picked up three awards for Murder Case including Documentary and Specialist Factual, Director and Editing.

April Chamberlain, RTS Scotland Chair, said “The RTS Scotland Awards are back for their 7th year. Many, many congratulations to all of our nominees and winners. Though we’re not able to get together to celebrate in our usual style this year, the quality, calibre and number of entries reflects the continued growth and outstanding achievement of television production in Scotland today. Sincere thanks to post production company, Arteus for their continued support making this year’s online ceremony possible.”

Lisa Hazlehurst, Chair of Judges and Head of Lion Scotland & Executive Producer, added “The RTS Scotland Awards get bigger every year and 2020 is no exception with a record number of entries. We are delighted to celebrate and recognise the formidable standard of work demonstrated in entries across all genres and categories.” 

There were also two special awards presented during the ceremony: the Judges’ Award (new for 2020) and the RTS Scotland Award. Recognising its extraordinary achievements in its first year, BBC Scotland received the inaugural Judges’ Award.

The judges noted that “This year Royal Television Society Scotland has created The Judges’ Award to be made in years when the RTS believes there is a worthy recipient who may not have fitted neatly into a particular awards category. The first ever recipient of the Judges’ Award isn’t a production or an individual but a whole channel. The BBC Scotland Channel. And the Judges’ Award is to mark the extraordinary achievements in its first year. Since its launch in February 2019 it has broadcast more than 17 hundred hours of programming working with around 80 suppliers. Under the helm of Steve Carson and his team the channel has given us shows reflecting modern Scotland.”

The RTS Scotland Award was presented to Donalda MacKinnon, Director, BBC Scotland for her outstanding contribution to Scotland’s television industry.

The judges for this award said, “This award is for somebody who has made an outstanding contribution to television in Scotland. Whose work has made a significant and lasting impact on audiences and viewers in Scotland. The recipient of the RTS Scotland Award this year is someone who has not only excelled at her role as Director of BBC Scotland, but is also the leader of a new channel which has changed the ecology of Scottish broadcasting.

"Under Donalda MacKinnon's leadership, 250 new jobs in Scotland have been created, including 80 new posts in journalism. An extraordinary feat in itself in the current climate. The realisation of this long-discussed goal has been one of Donalda's outstanding achievements. Yet it is by no means her only exceptional accomplishment. 

"I’d like to highlight Donalda's incredible work to advance career progression for women and improve workplace culture here in Scotland. Since 2016 when Donalda took up the exacting position she will soon relinquish, she has championed new opportunities to effect cultural change, introduced greater diversity into the work-force and is delivering increasing value to Scottish audiences. This she has achieved at a time of radical change in Broadcasting, and in the cultural, political and social features of Scotland and the UK.

"That's quite a legacy.”

Please see below the full list of other winners and nominees:

News

WINNER - STV News at Six (North) - STV News

Nominees:

STV News at Six (Central) - STV News
The Nine - BBC Scotland

Current Affairs

WINNER - Disclosure: Who Killed Emma? - BBC Scotland

Nominees:

Scotland Stories: Finding a Fix - STV News
Disclosure: The Lost Boys - BBC Scotland

Sports Programme

WINNER - The Fort - IMG Productions Scotland, BBC ScotlandNominees:

Inside the Cage: The Rise of Female Fighters - Firecrest Films, BBC Three
Sportscene Sunday Night Highlights - BBC Scotland Sport


Sports Live Event

WINNER - Celtic v Kilmarnock - Billy McNeill Remembered - Sky Sports

Nominees:

Scottish Cup Final: Hearts v Celtic - BBC Scotland Multiplatform, BBC One Scotland
Sportscene Scottish Cup Fourth Round: Auchinleck Talbot v Ayr Utd - BBC Scotland Multiplatform, BBC Scotland

Animation and VFX

WINNER - Magic The Gathering - War of the Spark - Axis Studios, Online stream

Nominees:

KS3 Science – Playdead, BBC Bitesize
Victorian Scotland – Playdead, BBC Bitesize


Comedy

WINNER - Burnistoun Tunes In - The Comedy Unit, BBC Scotland

Nominees:

Two Doors Down - BBC Studios Scotland, BBC Two
Scot Squad - The Comedy Unit, BBC Scotland

Short Form

WINNER - The New Scots - Ewan Fletcher, Grace Kirkwood, Gavin Hopkins, BBC Scotland

Nominees:

Chris McQueer's HINGS - Belter Studios and Serious Productions, BBC Scotland
Victorian Scotland – Playdead, BBC Bitesize


Children’s

WINNER – Swashbuckle - BBC Children’s In-House Productions, CBeebies

Nominees:

Rùn (Private Pet) - Sorbier Productions, BBC Alba
The Demon Headmaster - BBC Children’s In-House Productions, CBBC

Daytime

WINNER - Kirstie's Handmade Christmas - Raise the Roof Productions, Channel 4

Nominees:

The Customer is Always Right - Firecracker Films Scotland, BBC One
Kirstie's Celebrity Craft Masters, Raise the Roof Productions - Channel 4


Factual Entertainment and Features

WINNER - Rogue to Wrestler - Firecracker Films Scotland, BBC Scotland

Nominees:

Mirror Mirror - Very Nice, BBC Scotland
Getting Hitched: Asian Style - Firecracker Films Scotland, BBC Scotland

Documentary and Specialist Factual

WINNER - Murder Case - Firecrest Films, BBC Scotland

Nominees:

Real Kashmir FC - Matchlight / Bodhi Media, BBC Scotland
Darren McGarvey's Scotland – Tern, BBC Scotland


Documentary and Specialist Factual: Arts

WINNER - imagine... James Graham: In the Room Where It Happens - BBC Studios, BBC One

Nominees:

The Importance of Being Oscar - IWC Media, BBC Two
Paddington: The Man Behind the Bear, BBC Studios, BBC Two

Documentary and Specialist Factual: History

WINNER - The Day We Walked on the Moon - Finestripe Productions, ITV

Nominees:

Choose Life: Edinburgh's Battle Against Aids - Two Rivers Media, BBC One
Battle of Skye Bridge – Tern, BBC Scotland


Documentary and Specialist Factual: Science and Natural History

WINNER – Climategate - Red Sky Productions, BBC Four

Nominees:

A Year to Save My Life: George McGavin and Melanoma – Tern, BBC Four
Cannabis: Miracle Medicine or Dangerous Drug? - BBC Studios, BBC Two

Editing

WINNER - Audrey McColligan, Murder Case - Firecrest Films, BBC Scotland

Nominees:

David Arthur, IED - Improve Every Day - TurnerGang Productions, BBC Scotland
Ed Horne, The Mack: A Tale of Two Fires - BBC Studios, BBC Scotland


Sound

WINNER - David Murricane - IWC Media, BBC Two, Channel 4, Channel 5

Nominees:

Kevin Dallas - BBC Studios Scotland, BBC One
Kahl Henderson – Savalas, BBC Scotland

Graphics and Titling

WINNER – Nicholas Munro – Arteus, Cinema

Nominees:

SeriousFX - Red Sky / RTRP / BBC Studios, BBC Scotland, Channel 4, BBC Four
Playdead - KS3 Science, BBC, Bitesize


Student Award

WINNER – Flit - Jack Allen, Elías Nader, Ina Morken, University of Edinburgh

Nominees:

Margin of Terror - Kieran McLister, University of Edinburgh
Spare Parts - Paul Barrie, Victoria Jones, Martin MacLeod, Royal Conservatoire of Scotland
Tom Urie: Mental Health and Depression - Cameron Thom , Ryan Price, Emma Cunningham, City of Glasgow College
Grime Scheme Scotland - Daniel Greig, Julian Greenwood, Jack Darrer, Kieran Colquhoun, University of the West of Scotland

Young Journalist

WINNER - Connor Gillies - BBC Scotland

Nominees:

Courtney Cameron - STV News, STV
Rajdeep Sandhu - BBC Scotland


On Screen Personality

WINNER - Kirstie Allsopp and Phil Spencer - Raise the Roof Productions and IWC, Channel 4

Nominees:

Annie Price - Firecrest Films, BBC Three
Martin Geissler - BBC Scotland

Drama

WINNER – Guilt - Happy Tramp North / Expectation, BBC Scotland

Nominees:

Elizabeth is Missing - STV Productions, BBC One
The Victim - STV Productions, BBC One


Camera

WINNER - Nanu Segal BSC, Guilt - Happy Tramp North / Expectation, BBC Scotland

Nominees:

Matt Pinder, Murder Case - Firecrest Films, BBC Scotland
Julian Schwanitz, IED - Improve Every Day - TurnerGang Productions, BBC Scotland

Director

WINNER - Matt Pinder, Murder Case - Firecrest Films, BBC Scotland

Nominees:

Niall MacCormick - STV Productions, BBC One
Katy Homan, imagine… Jo Brand: No Holds Barred, imagine… Edna O’Brien: Fearful and Fearless - BBC Studios, BBC One


Writer

WINNER - Andrea Gibb, Elizabeth is Missing - STV Productions, BBC One

Nominees:

Ford Kiernan, Greg Hemphill, Still Game - BBC Studios Scotland, BBC One
Rob Williams, The Victim - STV Productions, BBC One

Images & info - RTS