Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Highland sports award to be presented in memory of Bill McAllister

Journalist served as the Press and Journal's Highland sports editor, North news editor and first Highland editor.

Bill's widow Bet McAllister (centre) with son Ker and daughter Gemma and the new trophy Image Ewen Weatherspoon.
Bill's widow Bet McAllister (centre) with son Ker and daughter Gemma and the new trophy Image Ewen Weatherspoon.

A major journalism award is to be named in memory of the late writer and broadcaster Bill McAllister.

Bill, 78, was highly respected in journalism and sports circles for more than 60 years.

He died in April.

Bill was a colourful and engaging writer, broadcaster and after dinner speaker who also served as a local councillor.

The Bill McAllister Memorial Trophy will be presented to the Sports Reporter of the Year at the annual Highlands and Islands Media Awards.

‘His name will be remembered for years to come’

The award is open to writers and broadcasters delivering a wide range of sports coverage in the area.

The winner will be presented with the award at the Highlands and Islands Press Ball on February 2 at the Kingsmills Hotel in Inverness.

Bet McAllister, Bill’s widow and a Highland councillor, said: “Bill’s family is very proud that this prestigious award will be given to sports journalists in his memory.

“He was such a big part of journalism in the Highlands and Islands for so long and this ensures his name will continue to be remembered for many years to come.”

Bill McAllister with the Scottish League Cup, the Camanachd Cup and the Scottish Cup.

Nicola McAlley, chair of the Highlands and Islands Media Awards judging panel, said: “Bill was a stalwart of the sports scene and a fantastic character with an anecdote for every occasion.

“He was a giant in terms of journalism in the Highlands and it is very fitting that his legacy will be honoured and remembered from now on by future winners of this category.”

Bill joined the North Star in Dingwall aged 16 and two years later moved to the Highland News in Inverness.

P&J’s first Highland editor

He subsequently joined the Press and Journal, where he worked for 24 years.

During that time he was Highland sports editor, North news editor and the paper’s first Highland editor.

He was also the P&J’s shinty correspondent for many years until shortly before his death.

In 1990, he set up his own press and public relations company and was founder and editor of Highland Football and Sport, the first monthly magazine devoted to the North game.

Bill McAllister wrote a book on the Highland League.

Bill’s entertaining reporting style generated a huge interest in the Highland League in print and also on BBC Radio Scotland for many years.

In 1993, he wrote the history of the first 100 years of the Highland League, The Highland Hundred.

He also enjoyed researching local history projects and writing a weekly column in the Inverness Courier.

In addition, he was commissioned by the Inverness Football Memories Project to research and record the history of professional football in Inverness since around 1885.

Conversation