On Monday night the annual Property Press Awards were held in London. The event, sponsored by LSL Property Services and meticulously arranged by the team at Wriglesworth was heaving with the Great & the Good of what would once have been Fleet Street. I was one of a 37 of judges who sifted the wheat from the chaff to come up with worthy winners in the various categories.
To my embarrassment there was a new award in 2015 – the Property Commentator of the Year which was generously thrust into my hands by retired BBC political editor & Strictly survivor, John Sargeant. The competition was stiff so how I ended up at the top of the heap suggests need for a Judicial Enquiry. Pending the outcome my thanks to my fellow judges for their sense of humour! The citation read;
“For this category, judges were looking for personalities who had their fingers on the pulse of the property market, making erudite and informative comment and analysis. […] The Gold Award Winner impressed the judges with the way multimedia commentary was delivered to the public in an intelligent and balanced way which is easily understandable and sometimes entertaining.”.
The full list of the winners is:
Property Business Journalist of the Year
Winner: Hilary Osborne, The Guardian
Silver: Hannah Brenton, Property Week
Bronze: Oliver Shah, The Sunday Times
International Property Journalist of the Year
Winner: Carol Lewis, The Times: Bricks & Mortar
Silver: Zoe Dare Hall, FT: House & Home; The Sunday Times: Home
Bronze: Nicole Blackmore, The Daily Telegraph; The Sunday Telegraph
Periodical Property Consumer Writer of the Year
Winner: Ruth Bloomfield, The London Magazine/Stylist
Silver: Claire Pilton, Condé Nast
Bronze: Zoe Dare Hall, A Place in the Sun; The London Magazine; Grand Designs
Property Trade Magazine of the Year
Winner: Show House
Silver: Property Week
Bronze: Estates Gazette
National Freelance Writer of the Year
Winner: Donna Ferguson
Silver: Ruth Bloomfield
Bronze: Fred Redwood
Garden Writer of the Year
Winner: Bunny Guinness, The Sunday Telegraph
Silver: Caroline Donald, The Sunday Times
Bronze: Pattie Baron, London Evening Standard: Homes & Property
Bronze: Naomi Slade, The Daily Telegraph; House & Garden
Consumer Mortgage Writer of the Year
Winner: Nicole Blackmore, Sunday Telegraph; The Daily Telegraph
Silver: Donna Ferguson, The Guardian; The Observer
Bronze: Anna Mikhailova, The Sunday Times
Bronze: Simon Read, The Independent
Regional Property Writer of the Year
Winner: Helen Davies, Liverpool Echo
Silver: Gill Oliver, Oxford Mail
Bronze: Deborah Churchill, Move To London
Property Commentator of the Year
Winner: Henry Pryor, Independent commentator
Silver: Yolande Barnes , Savills
Bronze: Roger Bootle, Capital Economics
Bronze: Kate Faulkner, Independent commentator
Property Columnist of the Year
Winner: Helen Davies, The Sunday Times: Home
Silver: Anne Ashworth, The Times: Bricks & Mortar
Bronze: Rupert Bates, Show House
Lifestyle & Interiors Property Writer of the Year
Winner: Emma Wells, The Sunday Times: Home
Silver: Hugh Graham, The Sunday Times: Home
Bronze: Alexandra Goss, The Sunday Times: Home
Scoop of the Year
Winner: Alexandra Goss, The Sunday Times
Silver: David Hatcher, Real Estate Capital
Bronze: Karen Robinson, The Sunday Times: Home
Property Staff Writer of the Year
Winner: Hilary Osborne, The Guardian
Silver: Lee Boyce, Daily Mail
Bronze: Francesca Steele, The Times: Bricks & Mortar
Bronze: Mark Bridge, The Times: Bricks & Mortar
National Newspaper Supplement of the Year
Winner: Anne Ashworth, The Times: Bricks & Mortar
Silver: Janice Morley, London Evening Standard: Homes & Property
Bronze: Helen Davies, The Sunday Times: Home
Lifetime Achievement Award
Winner: Jeremy Gates
Overall Journalist
Winner: Hilary Osborne, The Guardian
