British Forces in the Middle East, 1945-1947 E31102

The ''Sunday Dispatch'' was a prominent British

newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, sports a ...

, published between 27 September 1801 and 18 June 1961. It was ultimately discontinued due to its merger with the ''Sunday Express''.

History

The newspaper was first published as the ''Weekly Dispatch'' in 1801, and was owned in the mid-1800s by notable solicitor

James Harmer James Harmer (1777–1853) was an English solicitor, involved in the investigation of miscarriages of justice, radical politics, and local government in London, where he served as an alderman. He served as a model for Jaggers, the Charles Dickens c ...

, who served as a model for Jaggers, the

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...

character from ''

Great Expectations ''Great Expectations'' is the thirteenth novel by Charles Dickens and his penultimate completed novel. It depicts the education of an orphan nicknamed Pip (Great Expectations), Pip (the book is a ''bildungsroman''; a coming-of-age story). It ...

''. The newspaper's name was changed to the ''Sunday Dispatch'' in 1928. In 1903, the Newnes family sold the paper to

Alfred Alfred may refer to: Arts and entertainment *''Alfred J. Kwak'', Dutch-German-Japanese anime television series * ''Alfred'' (Arne opera), a 1740 masque by Thomas Arne * ''Alfred'' (Dvořák), an 1870 opera by Antonín Dvořák *"Alfred (Interlu ...

and

Harold Harmsworth Harold Sidney Harmsworth, 1st Viscount Rothermere, (26 April 1868 – 26 November 1940) was a leading British newspaper proprietor who owned Associated Newspapers Ltd. He is best known, like his brother Alfred Harmsworth, later Viscount Northcl ...

. The new owners then turned it around from

bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor ...

and into the biggest selling Sunday newspaper in Britain at the time. Due to editor

Charles Eade Charles Eade (10 June 1903 – 27 August 1964) was a British newspaper editor. Born in Leytonstone, Eade became a subeditor on the ''Daily Chronicle'' at the age of fourteen, then worked on ''Lloyd's Weekly Newspaper'' and the '' Daily Herald''. ...

's role as Press Liaison officer for

Lord Mountbatten Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma (25 June 1900 – 27 August 1979) was a British naval officer, colonial administrator and close relative of the British royal family. Mountbatten, who was of German ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, distribution of the ''Dispatch'' was up from 800,000 to over 2 million copies per edition in 1947. In 1959, Eade and the editor of the ''Daily Sketch'' were fired due to a comment from

Randolph Churchill Randolph Frederick Edward Spencer-Churchill (28 May 1911 – 6 June 1968) was an English journalist, writer, soldier, and politician. He served as Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) for Preston from 1940 to 1945. The only son of British ...

that

Esmond Harmsworth, 2nd Viscount Rothermere Esmond Cecil Harmsworth, 2nd Viscount Rothermere (29 May 1898 – 12 July 1978) was a British Conservative politician and press magnate. Early life Harmsworth was the third son of Harold Harmsworth, 1st Viscount Rothermere, who had founded the ...

, was "pornographer royal" for his ownership of both the ''

Daily Sketch The ''Daily Sketch'' was a British national tabloid newspaper, founded in Manchester in 1909 by Sir Edward Hulton. It was bought in 1920 by Lord Rothermere's Daily Mirror Newspapers, but in 1925 Rothermere sold it to William and Gomer Berry ...

'' and ''Sunday Dispatch''. Under its last editor,

Walter Hayes Walter Leopold Arthur Hayes (12 April 1924 – 26 December 2000) was an English journalist, and later public relations executive for Ford. Hayes was key in developing Ford's Formula One program, by signing Jackie Stewart and funding the build ...

, the ''Dispatch'' still maintained pre-printed posters with the headline "CHURCHILL IS DEAD", in preparation of the death of Randolph Churchill's father

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 Winston Churchill in the Second World War, dur ...

. In December 1960, the paper had a respectable circulation of 1,500,000 copies. Despite this, the ''Sunday Dispatch'' was merged with the ''Sunday Express'' in 1961. The ''Dispatch'' is prominently featured in Philip Norman's 1996 novel ''Everyone's Gone to the Moon''. The novel is centred on the reporting of the

British pop invasion The British Invasion was a cultural phenomenon of the mid-1960s, when rock and pop music acts from the United Kingdom and other aspects of British culture became popular in the United States and significant to the rising "counterculture" on b ...

of America in the 1960s.

Famous stories and headlines

*September 1927 – In light of the trial verdict of the murder of PC Gutteridge of the

Metropolitan Police The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), formerly and still commonly known as the Metropolitan Police (and informally as the Met Police, the Met, Scotland Yard, or the Yard), is the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement and ...

, the headline read "Hanged by a microscope". An early case of

ballistics Ballistics is the field of mechanics concerned with the launching, flight behaviour and impact effects of projectiles, especially ranged weapon munitions such as bullets, unguided bombs, rockets or the like; the science or art of designing and a ...

science, it reflected the fact that microscopic examination of the

Smith & Wesson Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. (S&W) is an American firearm manufacturer headquartered in Springfield, Massachusetts, United States. Smith & Wesson was founded by Horace Smith and Daniel B. Wesson as the "Smith & Wesson Revolver Company" in 1856 ...

gun cartridge cases had provided the crucial evidence to convict car thieves Frederick Browne and Pat Kennedy of the

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person wit ...

. *1933 – published

Harry Price Harry Price (17 January 1881 – 29 March 1948) was a British psychic researcher and author, who gained public prominence for his investigations into psychical phenomena and exposing fraudulent spiritualist mediums. He is best known for ...

's book ''Leaves From a Psychist's Case-Book'' in a series of 10 articles *1945 – the first

Miss Great Britain Miss Great Britain is Britain's longest running beauty contest held annually in Britain since 1945. Owner and CEO John Singh made history crowning his first winner and to this date only the first black Miss Great Britain 1996. Singer and dancer A ...

contest was held by Morecambe and Heysham Council in association with the ''Dispatch'', which as a preliminary to the personal appearance heats at

Morecambe Morecambe ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the City of Lancaster district in Lancashire, England. It is in Morecambe Bay on the Irish Sea. Name The first use of the name was by John Whitaker in his ''History of Manchester'' (1771), w ...

, photographic heats held in the newspaper attracted contestant from all over the country. The first prize was seven guineas and a basket of fruit. *2 December 1945 – broke news that British spy

John Amery John Amery (14 March 1912 – 19 December 1945) was a British fascist and Nazi collaborator during World War II. He was the originator of the British Free Corps, a volunteer Waffen-SS unit composed of former British and Dominion prisoners-o ...

was dying of

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...

. A post mortem revealed after his conviction and execution for

high treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...

that he had not been suffering from the disease. *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." The counter article was co-written by the Reverend

Marcus Morris Marcus Thomas Morris Sr. (born September 2, 1989) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The forward played college basketball at Kansas before being drafted 14th ...

, later founder of ''

The Eagle The eagle is a large bird of prey. Eagle or The Eagle may also refer to: Places England * Eagle, Lincolnshire, a village United States * Eagle, Alaska, a city * Eagle Village, Alaska, a census-designated place * Eagle, Colorado, a statuto ...

comic a Media (communication), medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of Panel (comics), panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, Glo ...

''The Eagle'' comic
/ref> *1950 – in late summer, the ''Dispatch'' was partly responsible for launching the

Flying Saucer A flying saucer (also referred to as "a flying disc") is a descriptive term for a type of flying craft having a disc or saucer-shaped body, commonly used generically to refer to an anomalous flying object. The term was coined in 1947 but has g ...

debate in the UK, when in a circulation battle with the ''

Sunday Express The ''Daily Express'' is a national daily United Kingdom middle-market newspaper printed in tabloid format. Published in London, it is the flagship of Express Newspapers, owned by publisher Reach plc. It was first published as a broadsheet i ...

''. Both papers competed to serialise the seminal books by Major Donald Keyhoe ''Flying Saucers are Real,''

Frank Scully Francis Joseph Xavier Scully; (April 28 1892 – June 23 1964) was an American journalist, author, humorist, and a regular columnist for the entertainment trade magazine ''Variety''. Career Scully studied journalism at Columbia University, ...

’s ''Behind the Flying Saucers'' and

Gerald Heard Henry FitzGerald Heard (6 October 1889 – 14 August 1971), commonly called Gerald Heard, was a British-born American historian, science writer, public lecturer, educator, and philosopher. He wrote many articles and over 35 books. Heard was a g ...

's ''Riddle of the Flying Saucers.'' Eade had been encouraged to promote "flying saucer" stories by his friend

whom he had served as Press officer during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. The ''Dispatch'' later reported on the 1951 Mount Kilimanjaro incident and the

West Freugh Incident RAF West Freugh is a former Royal Air Force station located in Wigtownshire, south east of Stranraer, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. It has always been an armaments training school, either for handling or deployment of Ammunition, ordnance. ...

in April 1957 *June 1953 – serialisation of ''"

The Rommel papers ''The Rommel Papers'' is the collected writings by the German World War II field marshal Erwin Rommel published in 1953. Background and publication The book included Rommel's writings of the war, edited by the British journalist and historian B ...

"'' edited by military historian

Basil Liddell Hart Sir Basil Henry Liddell Hart (31 October 1895 – 29 January 1970), commonly known throughout most of his career as Captain B. H. Liddell Hart, was a British soldier, military historian and military theorist. He wrote a series of military histo ...

. *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 Smoking is a practice in which a substance is burned and the resulting smoke is typically breathed in to be tasted and absorbed into the bloodstream. Most commonly, the substance used is the dried leaves of the tobacco plant, which have bee ...

and

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...

. The article was later cited in 2000 by Gallaher Tobacco to the UK Parliamentary Health

select committee Select committee may refer to: *Select committee (parliamentary system), a committee made up of a small number of parliamentary members appointed to deal with particular areas or issues *Select or special committee (United States Congress) *Select ...

showing that such risks had been known for some while *1954 – broke the story that racing driver

Mike Hawthorn John Michael Hawthorn (10 April 1929 – 22 January 1959) was a British racing driver. He became the United Kingdom's first Formula One World Champion driver in 1958, whereupon he announced his retirement, having been profoundly affected by the ...

was not called up for

National Service National service is the system of voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act 1939. The l ...

because he cited that he was not in the country, while actually he was *1959 – exposed a story about

Scientology Scientology is a set of beliefs and practices invented by American author L. Ron Hubbard, and an associated movement. It has been variously defined as a cult, a business, or a new religious movement. The most recent published census data indi ...

founder

L. Ron Hubbard Lafayette Ronald Hubbard (March 13, 1911 – January 24, 1986) was an American author, primarily of science fiction and fantasy stories, who is best known for having founded the Church of Scientology. In 1950, Hubbard authored '' Dianetic ...

, 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."

Former journalists and editors

Gordon Beckles Gordon Dudley Beckles Willson (9 April 1902, Paddington, London – 4 August 1954, London) was a British journalist who wrote under the name Gordon Beckles. Family background Gordon Dudley Beckles Willson was the eldest son of Henry Beckles Wi ...

– became assistant editor at age 25 in 1927, journalist, editor and author *

Ursula Bloom Ursula Bloom (11 December 1892 – 29 October 1984) was a British novelist, biographer and journalist. Biography Ursula Harvey Bloom was born on 11 December 1892 in Springfield, Chelmsford, Essex, the daughter of the Reverend James Harvey Bl ...

– reporter. Later a novelist who wrote under numerous

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...

s, she published over 500 books in her lifetime, an achievement that won her recognition in the

Guinness Book of Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

. *William Brittain – editor from 1931 to 1934. He then bought the short lived ''

London Daily Recorder London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

'' * Collin Brooks – editor, 1930s. *

– political columnist. Resigned in 1936 following paper's refusal to publish one of his articles. *

Dorothy Crisp Dorothy Crisp (1906–1987) was a right-wing English political figure, writer and publisher. Biography Dorothy Crisp was born in Leeds, England on 17 May 1906. She was the only daughter of Albert Edward Crisp, an examiner, and Annie Beckwith ...

– a regular contributor of provocative articles. One edition in 1943 was banned in Ireland because it contained her criticisms of the de Valera's government. *

– editor, Press Liaison officer for

during the

*Alastair Forbes – wrote weekly column called "Behind the World Political Scene" from 1945, but he was fired in 1956. * Charles Graves – journalist brother of

Robert Graves Captain Robert von Ranke Graves (24 July 1895 – 7 December 1985) was a British poet, historical novelist and critic. His father was Alfred Perceval Graves, a celebrated Irish poet and figure in the Gaelic revival; they were both Celtic ...

– editor, 1957–1961. Later

Ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...

PR Vice President. *Gerald McKnight – editor. Later founder of

News Shopper The ''News Shopper'' titles are local newspapers published in South East London and North West Kent by Newsquest. The newsroom is in Orpington. There are five local editions: Bexley Borough, Bexley & North Kent, Bromley, Dartford & Gravesend, ...

*Reverend

– first feature he ever wrote. Later founder of ''

* Max Miller – the comedian wrote a weekly column. *

Bill Tidy William Edward "Bill" Tidy, Order of the British Empire, MBE (born 9 October 1933), is a British cartoonist, writer and television personality, known chiefly for his comic strips. Tidy was appointed Member of the Most Excellent Order of the Brit ...

–

cartoonist A cartoonist is a visual artist who specializes in both drawing and writing cartoons (individual images) or comics (sequential images). Cartoonists differ from comics writers or comic book illustrators in that they produce both the literary and ...

*Margaret Williams – reporter. Went to

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

in 1946 with the first batch of British Army wives to rejoin their husbands serving in Germany. *

Ian Wooldridge Ian Edmund Wooldridge, Order of the British Empire, OBE (14 January 1932 – 4 March 2007) was a British sports journalism, sports journalist. He was with the ''Daily Mail'' for nearly 50 years. Biography Born in New Milton, Hampshire, Wooldridg ...

– journalist

Editors

:1801: Robert Bell :1815: George Kent :1816: Robert Bell :1818: Williams :1838:

and Joseph Wrightson :1856: Sydney French :1862:

Thomas James Serle Thomas James Serle (1798–1889) was an English dramatist and actor. He was also a journalist with the '' Weekly Dispatch''. Early life Serle was born in Gracechurch Street, London, on 28 October 1798, and educated for the Bar. Between the ages o ...

:1875:

Ashton Wentworth Dilke Ashton Wentworth Dilke (11 August 1850 – 12 March 1883) was an editor, British traveller and radical Liberal politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1880 to 1883. Life Dilke was the younger son of Sir Charles Dilke, 1st Baronet, and w ...

:1876:

Henry Fox Bourne Henry Richard Fox Bourne (24 December 1837 – 2 February 1909) was a British social reformer and writer. Early life Henry Fox Bourne was born at Grecian Regale, Blue Mountains, Jamaica, on 24 December 1837, one of eight children of Stephen Bou ...

:1883: W. A. Hunter :1892: Frank Smith :1895:

Charles John Tibbits Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English and French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*karilaz'' (in Latin alphabet), whose meaning was "f ...

:1903:

Evelyn Wrench Sir John Evelyn Leslie Wrench (29 October 1882 – 11 November 1966) was a British author and journalist who was editor of ''The Spectator''. He was the founder of the Royal Over-Seas League and the English-Speaking Union, both to foster intern ...

:1911: Montagu Cotton :1915:

Hannen Swaffer Frederick Charles Hannen Swaffer (1 November 1879 – 16 January 1962) was an English journalist and drama critic. Although his views were left-wing, he worked mostly for right-wing publications, many of them owned by Alfred Harmsworth, 1st Visco ...

:1919: Bernard Falk :1933: Harry Lane :1934: William Brittain :1936: Collin Brooks :1938:

:1959: Bert Gunn

References

Bibliography

*N.J.Crowson - ''Fleet Street, Press Barons and Politics'' Cambridge University Press/Royal Historical Society. {{Defunct UK newspapers Publications established in 1801 Publications disestablished in 1961 Defunct weekly newspapers 1801 establishments in the United Kingdom 1961 disestablishments in the United Kingdom Defunct Sunday newspapers published in the United Kingdom