AFTER a challenging year for the print industry, The Bunyip came home with several awards during newspapers’ night of nights on Friday.

At last week’s Country Press Awards, held at the Clare Country Club, The Bunyip came first in the Best Headline and Best Road Safety Reporting categories and placed third for Best Front Page.

Furthermore, Bunyip editor Sara Gilligan was crowned Young Journalist of the Year, winning a trip to Canberra, and also achieved first place in the Best Editorial Writing category.

The headline ‘TWO-DE-LOO’ was praised for its reference to the building of two new toilet blocks in Gawler and the demolition of an existing facility.

While everyone “loves a bit of toilet humour”, the use of a toilet seat as one of the ‘os’ was also applauded.

The Bunyip’s front page ‘OPEN FOR BUSINESS’ (June 3, 2020) was commended for its clever design and subject matter (coming out of COVID).

Former Bunyip journalist Sam Bradbrook’s article ‘LIVES DESTROYED: First responders share their lasting road trauma pain’ (July 22, 2020) was recognised for its different approach in raising awareness of road safety by sharing the trauma various first responders experience in their line of work.

Sara started at The Bunyip in November, 2019, after relocating from Renmark sister paper The Murray Pioneer.

She enjoys raising awareness on social issues, including domestic violence, homelessness and suicide prevention and felt grateful to belong to a “hardworking and supportive” team.

“I’m looking forward to spending a week in Canberra with some of Australia’s best journalists and experiencing a behind-the-scenes look at Parliament House,” she said.

“Like for many others, 2020 was a challenging year, especially around The Bunyip’s closure, but through the support of our readers, local community and our staff, we have managed to turn our
misfortunes into successes.

“I’m proud of all we have achieved as a team.”

Across the Taylor Group The Murray Pioneer took out the top gong, winning Best Newspaper - with a circulation of more than 4000.

The Border Times also came runner-up for Best Newspaper - with a circulation of under 4000.

Prominent politicians and industry figures also attended the awards, including Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack who spoke about a previous life working as newspaper editor of The Daily Advertiser in New South Wales.