Edinburgh high court

STV will be allowed to film the judge Lord Bracadale as he passes sentence in Edinburgh high court next week

Credit: by ralmqvist on Flickr. Some rights reserved

Scottish broadcaster STV has been granted permission to film the sentencing of a man found guilty of murder at the High Court in Edinburgh.

David Gilroy was found guilty of the murder of Suzanne Pilley after a trial last month and STV will be allowed to film the judge Lord Bracadale as he passes sentence next week.

In an STV report a spokesperson for the broadcaster said: "This is the first time in the UK that TV news cameras have been allowed to film a sentencing in a criminal court, and we’re pleased that STV has been instrumental in making that happen".

The Judiciary of Scotland confirmed this was the first time "permission has been granted to film during a sentencing diet in the High Court".

According to a report by the BBC in September last year, "cameras have been allowed in Scotland's courts since 1992 but only if all parties involved have given their consent".

In August last year it was reported by STV that production company Windfall Films had been given permission to film in Glasgow high court, but not for on-the-day news reporting.

At the time of writing no one at the Judiciary of Scotland or Windfall Films was available to comment on what filming took place as a result of last year's permission for documentary-related filming.

STV has been granted permission to film by Lord Hamilton the Lord President and Lord Justice General following application.

This comes as broadcasters including the BBC, ITN and Sky campaign to allow filming in UK courts, with a call for legislation which would allow televised cases to be included in the Queen's speech next month.

Justice secretary Ken Clarke has said the government is keen to overturn the ban on TV cameras. Filming is currently permitted in the Supreme Court.

In the latest case of STV the footage will not be broadcast live, instead it "will be made available immediately afterwards via satellite feed", the Judiciary of Scotland confirmed.

"The camera will focus on the judge and no other person will feature in the footage except the Macer and the Clerk. The accused will not be filmed".

In its own report, the STV spokesperson added that his will "allow viewers a rare insight into the closing stages of what has been a very controversial murder case".

The case will commence at 10am on 18 April.

Free daily newsletter

If you like our news and feature articles, you can sign up to receive our free daily (Mon-Fri) email newsletter (mobile friendly).