Spirited Spiteri is top of the Scots
from The Scotsman - 29 November 2003

SHARLEEN Spiteri, the lead singer of Texas, scooped the prestigious Top Scot accolade at a glittering award ceremony in Edinburgh last night.

Spiteri dazzled the audience as she walked off with the accolade at the annual Spirit of Scotland Awards, sponsored by Glenfiddich, to honour independent spirits whose work enriches the cultural life of Scotland. She also took an award for excellence in music.

Previous winners of the Top Scot accolade include JK Rowling, the Harry Potter author, and the Olympic rower, Katherine Grainger.

The gala evening, which lasted into the small hours of this morning, was presented by Fred MacAuley and Kirsty Wark and took place at Prestonfield House in Edinburgh.

The Glenfiddich Spirit of Scotland Awards began in 1998, with the aim of recognising individuals who are leading the way in various aspects of Scottish culture.

Featuring seven awards, plus an overall Top Scot accolade, a judging panel led by John McGurk, the editorial director of The Scotsman Publications, Iain Martin, the editor of The Scotsman, John McLellan, the editor of Scotland on Sunday, Sally Gordon, of Glenfiddich, and Sandy Ross, the managing director at Scottish Television, drew up a shortlist of nominees.

All were selected for excellence within their chosen fields, ranging from food, screen, sport, art, writing, music and business.

However, the final winners were decided by the people of Scotland, voting by their thousands via telephone hotlines and the internet.

Previous winners of the Glenfiddich Spirit of Scotland Awards include Sir Alex Ferguson, Kirsty Wark, David Coulthard, Iain Banks, Travis, Ian Rankin, Jack Vettriano, Nick Nairn and Brian Souter.

For the first time, the awards ceremony at Prestonfield House will be televised by STV and Grampian tomorrow to celebrate St Andrew’s Day.

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