{"id":594376,"date":"2025-11-26T05:52:28","date_gmt":"2025-11-26T05:52:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/594376\/"},"modified":"2025-11-26T05:52:28","modified_gmt":"2025-11-26T05:52:28","slug":"pride-of-scotland-awards-launch-search-for-nations-unsung-heroes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/594376\/","title":{"rendered":"Pride of Scotland Awards launch search for nation’s unsung heroes"},"content":{"rendered":"

Teenage cancer survivor Georgie Hyslop, 17, has told how scooping her award at last year’s ceremony left her ‘on cloud nine’.Heather Greenaway<\/strong> and Sally Hind<\/strong><\/a> Deputy Chief Reporter<\/p>\n

04:30, 26 Nov 2025<\/p>\n

\"GeorgieGeorgie Hyslop, from Ardrossan, Ayrshire, raised thousands for others during her own battle with cancer(Image: Alasdair MacLeod\/Daily Record)<\/p>\n

From hobnobbing with the cream of Hollywood and wowing TV audiences to settling down for a cuppa with the PM in Downing Street, it\u2019s been quite a year for the Ups and Downs theatre group<\/a> and teenage cancer survivor Georgie Hyslop.<\/p>\n

And the inspirational Scots can trace it all back to the moment they were nominated for a Pride of Scotland Award. The Daily Record Pride of Scotland Awards<\/a> with P&O Cruises celebrate the nation\u2019s unsung heroes, and today, as we launch the search for this year\u2019s winners, Georgie and the Ups and Downs reveal how being nominated – and going on to win – rocked their world.<\/p>\n

Selfless Georgie, 17, from Ardrossan<\/a>, Ayrshire, who has raised more than \u00a381,000 for others during her battle with cancer, said: \u201cI\u2019m still on cloud nine. This year has been unbelievable, and I find it hard to find the words to describe it. There have been so many stand-out moments that just picking one is near impossible.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was named the Pride of Scotland Teenager of Courage in June and at the ceremony I was surprised by my two heroes \u2013 Napoli and Scotland player Billy Gilmour and musician James Marriot, who gave me a signed guitar. Then in October I got the shock of my life when my favourite actor Margot Robbie popped into my London hotel room and told me I had won a Pride of Britain Award.<\/p>\n

\"GeorgieGeorgie with award presenters James Marriott and Billy Gilmour(Image: Alasdair MacLeod\/Daily Record)<\/p>\n

\u201cShe invited me to the UK premiere of her new movie A Big Bold Beautiful Journey and I got to walk the red carpet with her and her co-star Colin Farrell.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am studying acting at Ayr College so being at a film premiere with so many stars was a dream come true and has made me even more determined to follow my acting dream.\u201d<\/p>\n

In December 2023, when she was just 15-years-old Georgie was diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma – a rare cancer which occurs in the bones or in the soft tissue around them.<\/p>\n

Determined not to let her illness get the better of her, Georgie vowed to help others and in the last two years she has fundraised for the Schiehallion Ward at the Royal Hospital for Children in Glasgow, the Teenage Cancer Trust and Marion’s House.<\/p>\n

In July 2024 the teenager was told she was in remission but earlier this year she was told her cancer had returned and she began treatment again.<\/p>\n

Despite the cruel twist of fate, Georgie continues to raise money for others and last month her annual Rare Cancer Ball took her total to a whopping \u00a381,000.<\/p>\n

\"NominationsNominations for next year’s awards are open<\/p>\n

The big-hearted student, whose last scans showed her tumours have reduced in size, was named Pride of Britain\u2019s Good Morning Britain Young Fundraiser of the Year and received her award from Bad Education star Layton Williams and YouTuber Vikkstar.<\/p>\n

She said: \u201cThere aren\u2019t words to describe my Pride of Britain experience. The night itself was incredible. I have never seen so many stars and they all knew me. I felt like I was the celebrity and many of them have asked what they can do to support my fundraising.<\/p>\n

\u201cI also got to go on Good Morning Britain with Susanna Reid, Kate Garroway and Ranvir Singh which was amazing as I grew up watching them and there I was on their sofa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Georgie added: \u201cAnother pinch me moment was meeting the Prime Minister in Downing Street. I chinned him about the Rare Cancer Bill which has been pushed back until March.<\/p>\n

\u201cI told him not every cancer patient will have until March and he said he would talk to the Speaker of the House about bringing it forward which is great.<\/p>\n

READ MORE: Daily Record Pride of Scotland award winner Georgie shares her cancer story in powerful podcast<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cMy mum also got to reenact Hugh Grant\u2019s dance from Love Actually on the Downing Street stairs which is a moment I will never forget.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis has been one incredibly magical year and it would not have happened if someone had not nominated me for a Pride of Scotland award. I\u2019ve been given a massive platform to raise awareness of rare cancers and for that I will be forever grateful.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Ups and Downs \u2013 a musical theatre group for children and young people with Down\u2019s syndrome and their siblings which has been making a difference for three decades scooped the P&O Inspiration Award at Pride of Scotland.<\/p>\n

\"InspirationInspiration award winner Up and Downs(Image: Alasdair MacLeod\/Daily Record)<\/p>\n

The fun-filled group, which was formed in 1995 by three music teachers, went on to be named This Morning Local Heroes at Pride of Britain and their effervescent energy left everyone on a high.<\/p>\n

Their President Lorna Leggatt, whose son Ellis, 26, has been a member of the group since he was five, said: “Enchanting, fantastical, out of this world, historical \u2013 there are not sufficient words to describe this year for the Ups and Downs. It\u2019s been like a rollercoaster but there\u2019s been no going down – just up.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom appearing on This Morning and getting a selfie with the Prime Minister to dancing round with the Strictly stars who were sat near us at the ceremony \u2013 they were all fit to burst with excitement.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey received their Pride of Britain Award from singer Rag \u2018n\u2019 Bone Man and the rapper Aitch who both have sisters with Down\u2019s syndrome, and you could see how much they loved our guys.<\/p>\n

\"NickyNicky Byrne of Westlife performing with a member of Ups & Downs(Image: Steve Bainbridge \/ Daily Mirror)<\/p>\n

\u201cThe young people were signing autographs all night. I doubt they will ever come down off cloud nine and will be expecting the red carpet treatment every day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lorna, who watched the group open for Callum Beattie at the OVO Hydro at the weekend, added: \u201cTo think our epic year all stemmed from just one Pride of Scotland nomination. I cannot encourage folk enough to nominate their unsung heroes as it could change their lives and help them to continue changing the lives of others.\u201d<\/p>\n

Today, as we launch nominations for this year\u2019s awards, we want to hear about others like inspirational Georgie and the incredible Ups and Downs who, like them, have made a difference in our local communities and beyond.<\/p>\n

From acts of kindness and selfless bravery, to raising millions for charity, it\u2019s no wonder the Pride of Scotland is the People\u2019s Oscars.<\/p>\n

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The combination of big hearts and big stars have made the Daily Record Pride of Scotland Awards with P&O Cruises, a runaway success.<\/p>\n

Famous faces who have lent support to the awards include Queen Camilla, Sir Rod Stewart, Brian Cox, Dougray Scott, Lulu, Sir Kenny Dalglish and Lorraine Kelly to name a few.<\/p>\n

Full details of this year\u2019s ceremony, which will be hosted by Elaine C Smith and Sanjeev Kohli at the Glasgow Hilton in June, will be confirmed in the coming weeks.<\/p>\n

Host Sanjeev Kohli said: \u201cPride of Scotland celebrates the best of people and the best in people. Every year it is an utter privilege to meet these wonderful humans and help shine a light on their achievements.\u201d<\/p>\n

Host Elaine C Smith added: \u201cPride of Scotland is one of my favourite nights of the year and I feel privileged to be back as host. I look forward to honouring the inspirational people who are quietly making a difference to their communities and changing lives in Scotland. These are the folk who make me proud to be a Scot and their selfless achievements need to be shouted from the rooftops.\u201d<\/p>\n

Carnival UK & P&O Cruises president Paul Ludlow added: \u201cP&O Cruises welcomes many guests from Scotland each year, so it is very fitting and an honour for us to be part of one of Scotland\u2019s most significant events. Through Pride of Scotland, we can all acknowledge and celebrate those remarkable and inspirational individuals who make a real difference across the country.\u201d<\/p>\n

How to nominate<\/p>\n

P&O CRUISES INSPIRATION AWARD – Celebrating a remarkable individual or group who inspire everyone around them, or the wider world, with their positive spirit and awe-inspiring journey to achieve, or overcome adversity. They may deserve recognition for an extraordinary reaction to a defining or pivotal moment, or perhaps their actions have had an extraordinary impact.<\/p>\n

OUTSTANDING BRAVERY – For adults who risk their own safety to help others in danger.<\/p>\n

CHILD\/TEENAGER OF COURAGE – For battling against the odds to help others or putting themselves at risk to save lives.<\/p>\n

YOUNG FUNDRAISER OF THE YEAR – To reward a person aged 16 or under for inspirational charity work.<\/p>\n

EMERGENCY SERVICES AWARD – For police, fire, ambulance, paramedics or air, sea or mountain rescue who have gone beyond the call of duty to help others.<\/p>\n

LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT – To recognise far-reaching achievement, possibly on a national or international scale.<\/p>\n

SPECIAL RECOGNITION – For achievements not covered in other categories, such as inspiring carers, campaigners and members of the Armed Forces.<\/p>\n

To nominate go to www.prideofscotland.org<\/a> The closing date is February 23.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Teenage cancer survivor Georgie Hyslop, 17, has told how scooping her award at last year’s ceremony left her…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":594377,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5009],"tags":[84236,748,12450,4884,83587,712,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-594376","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-scotland","8":"tag-ardrossan","9":"tag-britain","10":"tag-charity","11":"tag-great-britain","12":"tag-pride-of-scotland","13":"tag-scotland","14":"tag-uk","15":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115614447129626744","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/594376","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=594376"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/594376\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/594377"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=594376"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=594376"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=594376"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}