Dr Liz McKenzie, chair of the British Association of Friends of Museums (BAFM), was among the winners at The Museums & Heritage Show 2004 Awards for Excellence.

McKenzie, who is a trustee of the SS Great Britain, as well as being a member of the organising committee of Museums and Galleries Month and the Museums Association Governing Bodies Forum, is regarded as a passionate and loyal defender of museums large and small, and particularly the volunteers who work within them.

She was recognised with the Overall Contribution by an Individual award.

Comedienne, writer and broadcaster, Sandi Toksvig, hosted the awards ceremony in London on 12 May, which was attended by around 300 professionals from the museums, heritage, gallery and visitor attraction sectors. The other winners on the night were:

Marketing campaign: Glasgow Whistler Festival.

Highly commended: The Real Mary King's Close and the Revitalisation of the Ironbridge Gorge.

Use of technology: Zoomable Pictures, the National Gallery. Highly commended: Copying Caligula, National Galleries Liverpool.

Project on a limited budget: Big Improvements for Small Children, Cotswold Motoring Museum.

Highly commended: 1842 A Faithful Picture, the National Coal Mining Museum; From Son of a Slave to Sheriff of Monmouthshire, Chepstow Museum.

New product/service: TimeFrame from Fuji Photo Film. Highly commended: British Sign Language Tour, Tate Modern.

Educational initiative: Fish Heads & Tales Projects, Falmouth Art Gallery.

Highly commended: Home Comforts, Tyne & Wear Museums, Sunderland Museum and Art Gallery; Show Me (www.show.me.co.uk), 24 Hour Museum.

Temporary exhibition: The Impossible View?, The Lowry.

Permanent exhibition: Living and Dying, Wellcome Trust Gallery, British Museum. Highly commended: The National Maritime Museum Cornwall.

Classic award: Museum of Kent Life.

Highly commended: Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust, Slimbridge.

Excellence overseas: US Airforce Mission 3D/4D, Kalamazoo Aviation History Museum. Highly commended: Academia del Espacio Museu de les Ciencies Principe Felipe.

The Independent Award: The Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew.

Next year the Museums & Heritage Show takes place on 11-12 May. The Awards for Excellence 2005 will be presented on the evening of 11 May, with entries due by 4 March 2005. Details: www.museumsandheritage.com