Sunday Dispatch

The Sunday Dispatch was a British newspaper, published between 27 September, 1801 and 1961. [ [http://www.bl.uk/collections/brit19th.html Concise History of the British Newspaper in the 19th Century: The British Library Newspaper Library ] ] [ [http://www.georgianindex.net/publications/newspapers/news-dates.html Georgian Index - British Newspapers ] ]

History

First published as the Weekly Dispatch in 1801, it was bought by Alfred Harmsworth and Lord Rothermere in 1903 [ [http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/BUrothermere.htm Harold Harmsworth, Lord Rothermere ] ] from the Newnes family. [http://www.dmgt.co.uk/aboutdmgt/dmgtbackground/anexcellence] The pair turned the newspaper around from bankruptcy, and made it the biggest selling Sunday newspaper, changing its name to the Sunday Dispatch in 1928.

As editor Charles Eade had served as Press Liaison officer for Lord Mountbatten during World War II, distribution was up from 800,000 to over 2 million copies per edition in 1947. [ [http://www.ampltd.co.uk/digital_guides/popular_newspapers_world_war_2_parts_1_to_5/ABC-Net-Sales.aspx Popular Newspapers During World War II, Parts 1 to 5, 1939-1945 ] ]

In light of comment from Randolph Churchill that Esmond Harmsworth, 2nd Viscount Rothermere was "pornographer royal" for his ownership of the Daily Sketch and Sunday Dispatch, Rothermere fired both Eade and the editor of the Daily Sketch in 1959. [ [http://www.guardian.co.uk/Columnists/Column/0,,403355,00.html Can Desmond really make things OK! at the Express? | Columnists | Guardian Unlimited ] ] Under its last editor Walter Hayes, it still had pre-printed posters with the headline "CHURCHILL IS DEAD," in preparation of the death of his father Winston Churchill [ [http://www.peebycartoons.com/biography/index.html Peter Betts || Biography ] ]

Unfortunately, in an era when other papers such as the News Chronicle, the Empire News and the Sunday Graphic were rapidly falling to the influence of television, the Sunday Dispatch ceased publication in 1961. [ [http://www.ketupa.net/dmgt2.htm DMGT, Rothermere and Northcliffe: landmarks ] ]

The possible late 1960s Dispatch was the fictional setting of Philip Norman's 1996 novel "Everyone's Gone to the Moon" about reporting in the British pop-invasion of America in the 1960s. [ [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9405E2DD1139F935A15756C0A960958260 Yesterday's Papers - New York Times ] ]

Famous stories and headlines

*September 1927 - In light of the trial verdict of the murder of PC Gutteridge of the Metropolitan Police, the headline read "Hanged by a microscope." An early case of ballistics science, it reflected the fact that microscopic examination of the Smith and Wesson gun cartridge cases had provided the crucial evidence to convict car thieves Frederick Browne and Pat Kennedy of the murder. [ [http://www.met.police.uk/history/george_gutteridge.htm Metropolitan Police Service - History of the Metropolitan Police Service ] ]

*1933 - published Harry Price's book "Leaves From a Psychist's Case-Book" in a series of 10 articles. [ [http://www.harryprice.co.uk/Writings/writ_by_price_into.htm Writings By Harry Price - Introduction ] ]

*1940 - then editor Charles Eade asked Winston Churchill weeks before he became Prime Minister of the United Kingdom for permission to publish an article Churchill wrote in 1937 entitled "How The Jews Can Combat Persecution" - Churchill, recognising the changed political situation, refused. [ [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/03/11/nwinston11.xml Churchill kept ghettoes warning under wraps - Telegraph ] ] [ [http://scotlandonsunday.scotsman.com/politics.cfm?id=385482007 Scotland on Sunday ] ] [ [http://www.fpp.co.uk/History/Churchill/Inland_Revenue/3_Eade.html Real History and Churchill's War ] ]

*1945 - the first Miss Great Britain contest was held by Morecambe and Heysham Council in association with the Dispatch, which as a preliminary to the personal appearance heats at Morecambe, photographic heats held in the newspaper attracted contestant from all over the country. [ [http://www.miss-gb.co.uk/history.asp Miss Great Britain ] ] The first prize was 7 guineas and a basket of fruit. [www.hca.heacademy.ac.uk/resources/ TDG/reports/korneeva-morecambe-wolfe.ppt]

*2 December, 1945 - broke news that British spy John Amery was already dying of Tuberculosis. A post mortem revealed after his conviction and execution for high treason that he had not been suffering from the disease. [ [http://www.stephen-stratford.co.uk/john_amery.htm John Amery ] ]

*13 February, 1949 - in light of the importation of American "dark humour" comics, the headline read: "Horror has crept into the British nursery. Morals of little girls in plaits and boys with marbles bulging in their pockets are being corrupted by a torrent of indecent coloured magazines that are flooding bookstalls and newsagents." [ [http://books.guardian.co.uk/review/story/0,,1956123,00.html Review: Great British Comics by Paul Gravett & Peter Stanbury | Review | Guardian Unlimited Books ] ] The counter article was co-written by the Reverend Marcus Morris, later founder of "The Eagle" comic [http://www.dandare.org/eagle/morris/morris.htm The Eagle comic ] ]

*1950 - in late summer, the Dispatch was partly responsible for launching the Flying Saucer debate in the UK, when in a circulation battle with the Sunday Express. Both papers competed to serialise the seminal books by Major Donald Keyhoe "Flying Saucers are Real," Frank Scully’s "Behind the Flying Saucers" and Gerald Heard's "Riddle of the Flying Saucers." Eade had been encouraged to promote ‘flying saucer’ stories by his friend Lord Mountbatten whom he had served as Press officer during the Second World War. [ [http://www.uk-ufo.org/condign/casehoax2.htm case histories photo hoaxes ] ] The Dispatch later reported on the 1951 Mount Kilimanjaro incident [ [http://www.xdream.freeserve.co.uk/UFOBase/Kilimanjaroarticles.htm Globe In Transit ] ] and the West Freugh Incident in April 1957 [ [http://www.ufologie.net/htm/westfreugh57.htm ufo - UFOS at close sight: The West Freugh Incident, 1957 ] ] [http://www.forteantimes.com/exclusive/DS7.shtml]

*June 1953 - serialisation of "The Rommel papers" edited by military historian Basil Liddell Hart. [ [http://www.umds.ac.uk/lhcma/cats/liddell/li0924.shtml Liddell Hart 9 Military writings; books, 1925-1970 ] ]

*25 April, 1954 - the headline read "Doctor's Journal Launches a Startling Campaign - Smoking sensation - MP Urges Ban On Manufacture Of Cigarettes As Move Against Cancer Peril" on the risks of smoking and lung cancer. The article was later cited in 2000 by Gallaher Tobacco to the UK Parliamentary Health select committee showing that such risks had been known for some while [ [http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm199900/cmselect/cmhealth/27/0011324.htm House of Commons - Health - Minutes of Evidence ] ] [http://66.102.9.104/search?q=cache:dtjgnqJRVOEJ:www.gallaher-group.com/corporateresponsibility/relationship_gallaheruk_10.asp+%22sunday+dispatch%22+newspaper&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=50&gl=uk]

*1954 - broke the story that racing driver Mike Hawthorn was not called up for National Service because he cited that he was not in the country, while actually he was. [ [http://www.mike-hawthorn.org.uk/callup.php Mike Hawthorn's Tribute Site - the story of Mike and National (Compulsary Military) Service - and how he managed to intentionally avoid it. During the enforcement period, 2.5 million young men did their time for National Service with around 6,000 called up every month. The disruption caused by national service to young lives was major ] ]

*1959 - exposed a story about Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard, where he sold shares at $65 each in a company that didn't exist. Hubbard apologised, and returned all monies, allegedly commenting: "It's lucky the police did not become involved, otherwise something most unpleasant might have happened." [ [http://www.clambake.org/archive/books/tsos/sos-15.html#p5 The Scandal of Scientology / Chapter 15: Is Scientology Political? ] ]

Former journalists and editors

*Ursula Bloom - reporter. A later fictional novelist who wrote under numerous pseudonyms, she published over 500 books in her lifetime, an achievement that won her recognition in the Guinness Book of Records. [ [http://www3.shropshire-cc.gov.uk/bloom.htm Ursula Bloom (1892-1984) ] ]
*William Brittain - editor from 1931 to 1934. He then bought the short lived London Daily Recorder [ [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,819189,00.html?promoid=googlep The Promising Editor - TIME ] ]
*Collin Brooks - editor, 1930s. [ [http://www.history.bham.ac.uk/pubs/c.htm Departments of Medieval and Modern History ] ]
*Randolph Churchill - political columnist. Resigned in 1936 following papers refusal to publish one of his articles. [ [http://aolsvc.timeforkids.kol.aol.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,897052,00.html Randolph's Resignation - TIME ] ]
*Charles Eade - editor, Press Liaison officer for Lord Mountbatten during the Second World War
*Alastair Forbes - wrote weekly column called "Behind the World Political Scene" from 1945, but he was fired in 1956. [ [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/05/21/db2102.xml&sSheet=/portal/2005/05/21/ixportal.html Alastair Forbes - Telegraph ] ]
*Walter Hayes - editor, 1957-1961. Later Ford PR Vice President. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1088808.stm BBC News | UK | Aston Martin creator dies ] ]
*Gerald McKnight - editor. Later founder of News Shopper [ [http://www.newsshopper.co.uk/aboutus/ourhistory/ News Shopper: About/Contact Us: Our History ] ]
*Reverend Marcus Morris - first feature he ever wrote. Later founder of "The Eagle" comic
*Max Miller - the comedian wrote a weekly column. [ [http://www.nicklewis.org/great-writings/george-orwell/the-art-of-donald-mcgill The Art of Donald McGill | Nick Lewis: The Blog ] ]
*Bill Tidy - cartoonist [ [http://opal.kent.ac.uk/cartoonx-cgi/artist.py?id=184 Tidy, Bill ] ]
*Margaret Williams - reporter. Went to Berlin in 1946 with the first batch of British Army wives to rejoin their husbands serving in Germany. [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/ww2peopleswar/stories/97/a4460997.shtml BBC - WW2 People's War - The Williams at War ] ]
*Ian Wooldridge - journalist [ [http://news.independent.co.uk/people/obituaries/article2332011.ece Ian Wooldridge - Obituaries, News - Independent.co.uk ] ]

References

*N.J.Crowson - "Fleet Street, Press Barons and Politics" Cambridge University Press/Royal Historical Society. ISBN 0-521-66239-7

External links

* [http://www.tonyhancock.org.uk/ham2art2.html Article by comedian] Tony Hancock on how he was discovered