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August 12, 2005updated 22 Nov 2022 4:28pm

July: Standard sale soars after bombing coverage

By Press Gazette

Dominic Ponsford
Newspaper coverage of
last month’s July 7 London bombings and their aftermath appears
to have boosted newspaper circulations across the board.
The Evening Standard has seen the most marked affects. After a June
paid-for sale that had followed the recent trend and dropped 12.19 per
cent year-on-year – July has seen a complete turnaround in the paper’s
circulation story.
Sales were up 3.98 per cent year-on-year to 372,955, a 12.1 per cent
increase month-on-month.
When combined with the free Lite copies the
Standard achieved a combined circulation of 448,445 –
its highest figure since October 2001.
Standard managing director Mike Anderson said: “The Evening Standard is
an iconic London brand. From the euphoria of winning the Olympic bid to
the outrage of the terrorist attacks the Evening Standard devotes its
energies to keeping readers updated throughout the day.
“There has been
a huge appetite for news over the last month and all our editions have
been flying from the newsstands. We are delighted but not surprised
that at such a significant time Londoners have turned to the Evening
Standard to keep them in touch with the latest developments. These
figures show how essential the Evening Standard is to the capital.”
In
the national market circulation gains were generally more modest. The
red-top tabloids slowed their pace of circulation decline in July
dropping 2.27 per cent year-on-year on average compared with a 4.17 average drop the
month before.
But the circulation of the quality daily papers went up overall by an
average of 0.84 per cent – compared with a 2.54 per cent drop in June.
The Times was the biggest winner continuing
succesive months of growth
since turning tabloid. It was up an impressive 7.32 per cent
year-on-year to 698,043 sales.Times editor Robert Thomson said: “The
extraordinary increase in the sales of The Times during July indicates
the importance of traditional journalistic values during a time of
crisis. There is no doubt that readers sought objective and
comprehensive coverage and a wide range of opinion and analysis during
these difficult days.”
The Telegraph was also up year-on-year, compared with a slight drop
last month. It rose 0.81 per cent 912,319.
A Telegraph Group spokesman said: “With major news breaking in July,
these increases indicate that readers choose our quality titles to
bring them accurate and informed coverage of all the big stories. It is
particularly pleasing to see increased sales of both newspapers during
this peak holiday time. The Daily Telegraph has again out-performed its
closest rival, the Times, by selling almost 215,000 more copies.”
The Independent posted its
first year-on-year circulation drop since it launched a tabloid version
in September 2003. It’s headline circulation figure was down 2.47 per
cent to 255,603.
The Guardian has slumped to a new circulation low
after last month’s performance (which was its worst since June 1978). It
fell 3.44 per cent year-on-year to 358,345 – possibly feeling the
effects of a suspension of marketing activity pending its expected
relaunch in Berliner format at the end of September.
The Daily Express may have felt the effects in July of axing
high-profile columnists such as Charlie Catchpole and Carol Sarler.
Its sale has slumped 11.01 per cent year-on-year to
835,937.
In the Sunday market the Sunday Times and the Observer were the only
national titles to put on sales year-on-year. The Observer rose 1.03
per cent to 445,738 and the Sunday Times was up 2.61 per cent to
1,338,616.
Overall, circulation of the red-top Sunday tabloids was down 2.21 per
cent year-on-year (compared with a 5.46 per cent drop in June) and the
quality Sundays were up 0.3 per cent on average (compared with a 3.85
per cent drop in June).

UK national newspapers Audit Bureau of Circulation figures for July 2005
Current month Last Month mth/mth Last Year Yr/Yr
Jul 05 Jun 05 +/- % Jul 04 +/- %
National morning popular
Daily Mirror 1,752,948 1,742,378 0.61 1,816,908 -3.52
Daily Record 464,064 462,472 0.34 485,802 -4.47
Daily Star 889,860 855,612 4.00 919,103 -3.18
The Sun 3,343,486 3,230,652 3.49 3,378,306 -1.03
Total of average daily net
circulation
6,450,358 6,291,114 2.53 6,600,119 -2.27
National morning mid market
Daily Express 835,937 893,184 -6.41 939,384 -11.01
The Daily Mail 2,420,601 2,350,012 3.00 2,418,743 0.08
Total of average daily net
circulation
3,256,538 3,243,196 0.41 3,358,127 -3.03
National morning quality
The Daily Telegraph 912,319 903,772 0.95 904,981 0.81
Financial Times 410,306 425,984 -3.68 421,179 -2.58
The Herald 73,963 76,774 -3.66 76,554 -3.38
The Guardian 358,345 361,408 -0.85 371,129 -3.44
The Independent 255,603 262,124 -2.49 262,086 -2.47
The Scotsman 66,053 67,743 -2.49 65,069 1.51
The Times 698,043 683,495 2.13 650,448 7.32
Total of average daily net
circulation
2,774,632 2,781,300 -0.24 2,751,446 0.84
Overall total of average daily net
circulation
12,481,528 12,315,610 1.35 12,709,692 -1.80
National morning sporting
Racing Post 81,269 84,147 -3.42 83,121 -2.23
London evening
Evening Standard 372,955 332,524 12.16 358,665 3.98
National weekly sporting
Sport First 14,601 14,289 2.18 21,896 -33.32
National morning group
The Daily Mirror / Daily Record 2,217,012 2,204,850 0.55 2,302,710 -3.72
National Sunday popular
Daily Star Sunday 432,600 420,905 2.78 500,274 -13.53
News of the World 3,701,988 3,563,073 3.90 3,706,972 -0.13
Sunday Mail 553,054 553,894 -0.15 579,579 -4.58
Sunday Mirror 1,548,851 1,485,485 4.27 1,569,781 -1.33
The People 976,194 913,618 6.85 1,022,243 -4.50
Sunday Sport 159,144 154,317 3.13 159,198 -0.03
Total of average Sunday net
circulation
7,371,831 7,091,292 3.96 7,538,047 -2.21
National sunday mid market
Sunday Express 887,401 931,608 -4.75 985,457 -9.95
The Mail on Sunday 2,261,511 2,253,480 0.36 2,412,785 -6.27
Total of average Sunday net
circulation
3,148,912 3,185,088 -1.14 3,398,242 -7.34
National Sunday quality
Independent on Sunday 206,689 206,007 0.33 209,003 -1.11
The Business 192,160 195,912 -1.92 211,805 -9.28
The Observer 445,738 441,187 1.03 441,193 1.03
Scotland on Sunday 75,183 82,124 -8.45 75,667 -0.64
Sunday Herald 53,295 56,573 -5.79 51,343 3.80
The Sunday Telegraph 682,900 674,531 1.24 692,021 -1.32
The Sunday Times 1,338,616 1,325,292 1.01 1,304,600 2.61
Total of average Sunday net
circulation
2,994,581 2,981,626 0.43 2,985,632 0.30
Overall total of average Sunday net
circulation
13,515,324 13,258,006 1.94 13,921,921 -2.92

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