Clare Balding's equine foot in mouth disease

1704826 — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 14:28:00 GMT

Unlike me, Clare Balding presumably didn't win her office sweepstake or put any money on Grand National winner Mon Mome judging by her spectacularly inappropriate comments to the horse's jockey Liam Treadwell.

‘You can afford to get your teeth done now,' was hardly the most gracious thing to say to the man who should have been congratulated for making me just that tiny bit richer. Also, on the looks front Balding could also be described as ‘found wanting'.

Nonetheless, in a weekend that saw my viewing torn several ways given CountryFile's welcome move to a slot apposite the excellent Austin Healey's Big Tackle (for more on this show watch an exclusive interview with Healey on marketingmagazine.co.uk later this week), as well as Lewis and Piers Morgan interviewing Richard Madeley, it was a blip on an otherwise good weekend of telly.

Incidentally as well as picking the winner, I also picked up second place. So well done me.

Daily Mirror as a free sheet?

255762 — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 12:35:00 GMT

Piers Morgan has a plan for the survival of the Daily Mirror: make it a freesheet.

Writing in the British Journalism Review Morgan says that every national newspaper will be free within 10 years and that the Daily Mirror should be the first.

Sounds radical doesn't it? But with the Daily Mirror's sales continuing to steadily fall away (1.42m in October down 1.48% for the month) it could happen.

Former Mirror editor Morgan argues that Trinity Mirror chief executive Sly Bailey needs to make the radical decision before The Sun beats it to the punch.

"I would make the Daily Mirror free tomorrow, because I don't see any future for it otherwise. If The Sun were to go free tomorrow it would kill the Mirror. It's a horrific position to be in and I'm sure that if Sly Bailey could find a buyer at the right price she'd sell the national titles like a shot."

I'm pretty sure that Bailey has more than a little time to play with. 1.42m is still a big pile of newspapers and the Sun won't be going free any time soon.

It seems likely if any paper will be first to go free it will be the Evening Standard, which continues to face a costly battle against the London freesheet newspapers.

The Evening Standard's circulation might have jumped above 300,000 for the first time in four months in October, but bulks make up more than 40% of its circulation.

Just how much longer can Associated continue to poor money into producing two London evening newspapers? It has already shed staff and stories are shared with London Lite as it battles News International's Thelondonpaper.

As media jobs are cut left right and centre, advertising dries up, it seems highly unlikely that London can continue to sustain three evening newspapers.

I'm convinced that the next seismic shift in British newspapers will come in that market (unless the Independent suddenly gets sold by Independent News & Media to the Daily Mail & General Trust).

Hat tip Press Gazette

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Clare Balding's equine foot in mouth disease

Daily Mirror as a free sheet?