Birth of London's free morning paper

Text size:

Monday 15 March 1999

The first new newspaper for London in more than a decade appears tomorrow when Associated Newspapers, publisher of the Evening Standard, launches London Metro.

A daily morning newspaper, it will be distributed free to travellers on London Underground.

Modelled on the hugely successful Stockholm newspaper distributed free on the metro in that city - it will initially be available at 72 stations, expanding to all 261 over the next few weeks. It will be distributed from dispensers on the stations under an arrangement with London Underground.

London Metro will give a digest of the latest news - London, national and international - and sport, as well as 12 pages of television and events listings. It will help make the best of the capital, adding to the Evening Standard's daily coverage of the best restaurants, bargains, bars, shows and exhibitions.

According to its editor, Ian Mac-Gregor, it will contain no editorial comment of any sort, aiming simply to present the news "without spin or bias". The intention, he says, is to give the information that will allow readers to make up their own minds. Its style, he says, is "no-nonsense news in a no-nonsense format".

Being available only between 6am and 10am, it will not, he says, be competing with the Evening Standard. It will be the first major launch for Associated Newspapers since that of the Mail on Sunday in 1982. Associated also publishes the Daily Mail.

Apart from quickly moving to full colour, the 40-page London Metro will also be different from any other newspaper in Britain in one crucial way: it will be the first true daily newspaper - as opposed to magazine - in this country to be stitched together. This will make it easy to handle, even when strap-hanging in the Tube, and will also ensure that it does not fall to pieces when it is picked up from the dispensers.

Viscount Rothermere, the chairman of Daily Mail and General Trust, said: "Metro is a quality product, yet it is free. We're delighted to welcome it as a new Associated Newspapers service for Londoners. This is a very exciting development."

The decision to launch is based partly on research showing that only half the 800,000 rush-hour Tube travellers currently read a newspaper.

Paul Dacre, Editor-in-Chief of Associated Newspapers, said: "We believe that there is a significant potential audience, including a large number of young, intelligent readers, who will welcome a publication that gives them information in a straightforward and concise form.

"The paper, which has a brilliant team of young journalists, has been designed to fill this gap in the market."

Max Hastings, Editor of the Evening Standard, welcomed the new newspaper as good for London and for the Standard. "Metro should give Tube travellers a snapshot of the morning news before the Evening Standard hits the streets with our full moving update through the day.

"If Metro gives us a bit of competition in breaking London news, it will help to keep the Standard on its toes."

Inquiries to:
Clive Savage, Fodor Wyllie Associates Tel: 0181 541 4082 Fax: 0181 541 1248
Email: clives@fodorwyllie.com