TRIBUTES have been paid to the veteran broadcaster John Milne, who has died at the age of 72.

The former BBC Scotland journalist became known across the country as the first presenter of Good Morning Scotland.

Dundee-born Mr Milne, who was also known as the face of Newsnight Scotland, presented Reporting Scotland for 10 years during the 1980s and 1990s.

He went on to present ­radio's Newsweek Scotland on Saturday mornings ­before retiring on his 65th birthday in 2007 after a BBC career spanning ­almost 40 years. He covered both the Piper Alpha disaster and the Lockerbie bombing

Former colleagues said he helped shape the character of Scottish journalism.

Current Reporting Scotland presenter Jackie Bird said: "He was Reporting Scotland. I was in awe at working with someone with such a reputation, but he turned out to be warm and welcoming with a fantastically dry sense of humour.

"He was a true Scottish broadcasting great."

Mr Milne began his journalism career in print journalism, his first job with DC Thomson before he joined The Scotsman newspaper.

He joined the BBC in 1971, working first in Aberdeen before he moved to Glasgow two years later.