The Irish Times has launched an international edition which is now available in London and the south-east of England.
Editorial content and page layout is completed in Dublin and transmitted to London for origination, printing and distribution.
The
new edition was formally launched at a reception at the Irish Embassy
in London hosted by the Irish ambassador Daithi O’Ceallaigh. He said
the innovation marked a new stage in the newspaper’s 146-year history
which would serve not only a large Irish diaspora but also a growing
number of readers, especially in Britain and mainland Europe, with a
passion for foreign affairs.
Editor Geraldine Kennedy said she
had received a steady stream of letters from readers complaining The
Irish Times was not “readily available” in the Greater London area even
though it can be read online.
She said they thought it “wasn’t the same to read it on screen – they wanted to be able to feel and fold their newspaper.”
The distribution network will be expanded to other major cities in the coming months.
Kennedy
said that in common with other international editions printing
requirements were such that the London edition has a reduced page count
and colour content.
But the real compensation was its availability on the newsstands first thing each morning.
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