Tributes to BBC Radio Orkney's Dave Gray after his death at 63

Tributes have been paid to Orkney broadcaster Dave Gray, who has died after a short illness at the age of 63.

Gray began his career at BBC Radio Orkney more than 30 years ago, when he was fixing cars in a garage across from the BBC studio in Kirkwall.

He began by presenting his "Metallic Gray" programme - to fill the lack of heavy metal music on the station.

Gray fell in love with broadcasting, swapping mechanics for microphones to become a radio journalist and producer.

He became a well-known voice in Orkney and his broadcasting skills shone through on regular appearances on national BBC radio.

Paying tribute, Orkney MSP Liam McArthur said "Dave was warm, witty and irreverent. His irreverence was often rightly directed at politicians, but never with rancour."

Convener of Orkney Islands Council, Graham Bevan, said "Dave was an expert at asking probing questions and regularly subjected elected members and officials to a grilling on air.

"It was in his chats with ordinary folk in Orkney, with a story to tell, that his talents most shone through.

"His love of Orkney - its history, its culture and its community - was clear."

Gray went on to run BBC Radio Orkney from 2008 until he retired in 2021.

He never lost touch with the station and remained a frequent voice on the airwaves.

BBC Scotland News managing editor, Peter MacRae, said "The Orkney audience took Dave to their hearts because he was the same person on air as off.

"He was passionate about Orkney and local journalism and a strong advocate for maintaining the BBC's commitment to Scotland's rural communities."