Award-winning Sitwell claims no plans to join Spectator

William Sitwell and his magazine, Waitrose Food Illustrated, have
won three awards in a week – proof, says Sitwell, that a rumoured move
to The Spectator is not on the cards.

Sitwell won an editor of
the year award at this year’s glossy BSME Awards, while his magazine
won the most effective customer title prize from the Association of
Publishing Agencies (APA) and staff writer Kevin Gould was named
journalist of the year at the same ceremony.

Sitwell is one of
several touted as possible replacements for Boris Johnson, who is
thought likely to step down as editor of The Spectator in the near
future.

But Sitwell said he was “very happy”

at Waitrose
Food Illustrated, although he admitted he thought editorship of The
Spectator was “the best job in Fleet Street”. He added: “Gosh, it’s an
exciting idea, but I’m pretty settled at Waitrose Food Illustrated at
the moment.

“The BSME judges said we bridged the divide between
customer and consumer publishing, and that was a great compliment, as
it was my main aim when I took on the editorship.”

Waitrose Food
Illustrated publisher John Brown Citrus won five awards at the APA
ceremony, also winning best launch for BDO Stoy Hayward, designer of
the year for Jeremy Leslie, creative director of MReal, and most
effective internal communications for Teachers Magazine for the DfES.