Jonathan Witchell Memorial Prize Winners 2017

The winners of the Jonathan Witchell Memorial Prize for Best Radio Feature 2017 are Laura Buchanan, Marco Di Gioia, Duncan Newton-Grant and Valentina Sagasti Vivanco.  Their feature The Glasgow Night Shelter focuses on the staff and volunteers who work to help refugees who have come to the city.  The family and friends of Jonathan Witchell thought it was a compelling subject which grabbed attention right from the start, saying it was a very brave piece to make.  “We loved the visual description of the centre, and there was a great mix of different pieces of audio”.  Everyone agreed it was a very well-produced feature.

The prize, donated by the family of former student Jonathan Witchell who died suddenly in 2007, rewards outstanding student work in the field of radio feature production. Jonathan was a graduate of the MSc in Media Management in 1997. After graduating from Stirling Jonathan moved in to radio from where he started his BBC career at Radio Devon, before moving on to Radio Lincolnshire. He then joined BBC Radio Kent in 1997 where he worked for nearly a decade.

Student Laura Buchanan was thrilled to receive the prize, and talked about the group’s experience working on the project. “The most rewarding part of this project was getting to work with the wonderful staff and residents of the Glasgow Night Shelter, and showcasing the amazing work they do for asylum seekers and refugees. We are delighted to be receiving this award and to have our hard work recognized, and we hope that our radio feature can continue to spread the good word of the Glasgow Night Shelter.”

Tom Witchell said that everyone involved in the judging process really enjoyed listening to the piece and wished the students well in their chosen careers.

 

The prizes were presented by Suzy Angus on 13^th September

 

The Glasgow Night Shelter