Rick's O2 Media Awards Adventure II: Return to the O2 Media Awards

Diss me gettin' stiffykert from faymus orfuh G. P. Taylor. And actually I have great hair, so shut up.

Being a hopelessly self-aggrandising sort, I indulged in yet more of my endless boasting the other day. The reason: I was off to the O2 Media Awards for Yorkshire and the Humber, having been shortlisted in the features and digital categories.

Well, last night was the ceremony, held in the picturesque surroundings of York Racecourse. The sun was setting and we sat on the balcony watching hot-air balloons taking off from the field below, like something out of Northern Lights.

I didn't win the awards - Martin Smith and Graham Walker of The Star, Sheffield took top honours - but I did get two nice certificates with the words 'highly commended' emblazoned across them. "Ever the bridesmaid," people say when they see me, but only because I giggle a lot and wear a dress.

The judges said:

Rick Burin of the Harrogate Advertiser impressed judges with a portfolio that also demonstrated his ability to appeal to readers across different mediums, from print to those who sourced their information on-line. This was someone with a deft touch, a writer with the skills to make you read on and be glad you did. (Feature Writer of the Year - Highly Commended)

Rick Burin is a journalist who knows how to write for a digital audience and is just as comfortable writing blogs and Tweets as he is at filing copy for his weekly paper. He brings some refreshing personality and irreverence to his online writing which he demonstrated well in his live General Election blog. (Digital Journalist of the Year - Highly Commended)

Good, eh? Unfortunately I got there much later than I did in 2010 and had to go a bit early to catch the last train from York to Harrogate (22:11 - thanks Northern Rail!), but what with the hot air balloons, free food and people saying nice things about me, it was a really fine evening.

PS: I did say I'd tell you what food there was. Pilau rice and stir-fry veg, with granary bread.

O2 Media Awards 2011

I'm a-freight this isn't the award I'm in the running for. (Sorry.)

Hello there. This is a short missive to let you know that I've been nominated for a couple of O2 Media Awards. I'm up for the Feature Writer of the Year and Digital Journalist of the Year gongs at the Yorkshire and the Humber ceremony on July 14.

Last year I was shortlisted as both a Young Journalist and Digital Reporter and invited to eat veggie sausage sandwiches at The Loft in Leeds. This year's event will take place at York Racecourse.

This very blog formed part of my digital portfolio, so thank you for reading, commenting and generally being awesome over the past year. Without your support (and I do mean YOU), there wouldn't be much point to me doing it.

I'll report back to you on July 15 with all the gossip from the evening. And by gossip, I mean what we had to eat.

Rick's O2 Media Awards adventure

This is essentially what they gave me, but for writing.

I don't usually write about myself, as movies are just so much more interesting. After all, I've never masterminded a heist. Except that one time in Madrid. But following such celebrated posts as that one where I pretended I was raised by the Wolverhampton Wanderers squad and that one where I kept boasting, I've decided to tack up a few self-aggrandising lines about last night's O2 Media Awards for Yorkshire and the Humber.

I didn't win an award - a couple of deserving folks scooped the gongs - but I was highly commended in the Digital Journalist of the Year and Young Journalist of the Year (Weeklies) categories. And at risk of appearing the raging egomaniac I secretly am, here's what the judges said:

Digital Journalist of the Year
Rick Burin has an insatiable thirst for maximising the web, and his efforts are paying off. He’s launched his own film review site, uses Twitter and Facebook to uncover and disseminate news and sports stories and created a blog which when snow and ice hit his home town became an invaluable source of information for stranded residents.

Young Journalist of the Year
Here’s a journalist with a mature writing style that belies his years. A potential star of the future.

I'm really chuffed with that. And it was a great night, full of friendly people and veggie sausage sandwiches. Thanks to everyone who gave me their good wishes beforehand. For a full list of winners, please mosey on over to the O2 site.

Toot toot. That's the sound of my own trumpet.

Yours truly (right) posing with Marlon Brando as the O2 Media Awards nominations were revealed. I just happened to have that Oscar with me.

I'm delighted to report that I've been nominated in a pair of categories at next month's O2 Media Awards for Yorkshire and the Humber. I'm up for Digital Journalist of the Year and Young Reporter of the Year (Weeklies). Readers who were with us back when we were called Films on Friday and appeared at www.harrogateadvertiser.co.uk might like to know that those weekly movie columns formed part of my portfolio for the digital award. I gave this blog a mention too.

The results will be revealed in a swanky event at The Loft in Leeds on Thursday, July 22.

Next up on this here blog is a round-up of the last 30-odd movies, shorts and teleplays I saw, featuring French noir and a man putting another man in the bin.