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''The Sphere: An Illustrated Newspaper for the Home'' and, later, ''The Sphere: The Empire's Illustrated Weekly'', was a British newspaper, published by London Illustrated Newspapers weekly from 27 January 1900 until the closure of the paper on 27 June 1964.
Background
The first issue came out at the height of the
Boer War
The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sou ...
and was a product of that conflict and the public appetite for images. At the time, it was in direct competition with ''
The Graphic
''The Graphic'' was a British weekly illustrated newspaper, first published on 4 December 1869 by William Luson Thomas's company Illustrated Newspapers Ltd. Thomas's brother Lewis Samuel Thomas was a co-founder. The premature death of the latt ...
'' and ''
Illustrated London News
''The Illustrated London News'' appeared first on Saturday 14 May 1842, as the world's first illustrated weekly news magazine. Founded by Herbert Ingram, it appeared weekly until 1971, then less frequently thereafter, and ceased publication in ...
'', and evidence of this rivalry can be seen in the latter's publication shortly after of a new illustrated paper entitled ''The Spear'' in an attempt to confuse readers. During
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, the weekly issues were called 'war numbers' and over two hundred appeared between 1914 and 1919. In all, it totalled 3,343 issues, plus a special supplement issued in January 1965, entitled ''Winston Churchill: A Memorial Tribute''.
''The Sphere'' was founded by
Clement Shorter
Clement King Shorter (19 July 1857 – 19 November 1926) was a British journalist and literary critic.
After editing the '' Illustrated London News'', Shorter founded and edited ''Sketch'', ''The Sphere'', and ''Tatler''.
Biography
Clement S ...
(1857–1926), who also founded ''
Tatler
''Tatler'' is a British magazine published by Condé Nast Publications focusing on fashion and lifestyle, as well as coverage of high society and politics. It is targeted towards the British upper-middle class and upper class, and those interes ...
'' in the following year. It covered general news stories from the UK and around the world; much of the overseas news features were reported in detail as the title was targeted at British citizens living in the
colonies
In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state'' ...
. It was similar to the ''
Illustrated London News
''The Illustrated London News'' appeared first on Saturday 14 May 1842, as the world's first illustrated weekly news magazine. Founded by Herbert Ingram, it appeared weekly until 1971, then less frequently thereafter, and ceased publication in ...
'', another paper containing many graphic illustrations.
Those featured in ''The Sphere'' were by renowned artists including W. G. Whitaker and
Montague Dawson. Other illustrators included
Sidney Paget
Sidney Edward Paget () (4 October 1860 – 28 January 1908) was a British artist of the Victorian era, best known for his illustrations that accompanied Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories in ''The Strand Magazine''.
Life
Sidne ...
,
Henry Matthew Brock,
Fortunino Matania
Chevalier Fortunino Matania (16 April 1881 – 8 February 1963) was an Italian artist noted for his realistic portrayal of World War I trench warfare and of a wide range of historical subjects.
Life
Born in Naples, the son of artist Eduardo Mat ...
,
Ernest Prater,
Edmund Blampied
Edmund Blampied (30 March 1886 – 26 August 1966) was one of the most eminent artists to come from the Channel Islands, yet he received no formal training in art until he was 15 years old. He was noted mostly for his etchings and drypoin ...
, Victor Coverley-Price and Claude Grahame Muncaster (1903–1974); photographers included
Christina Broom
Christina Broom (''née'' Livingston; 28 December 1862 – 5 June 1939) was a Scottish photographer, credited as "the UK's first female press photographer".
History
Broom's parents were Scottish though she was born at 8 King's Road, Chelsea, Lo ...
(1862–1939); and writers included
Bryher
Bryher ( kw, Breyer "place of hills") is one of the smallest inhabited islands of the Isles of Scilly, with a population of 84 in 2011, spread across .
History
The name of the island is recorded as ''Brayer'' in 1336 and ''Brear'' in 1500.
Ge ...
,
Eleanour Sinclair Rohde
Eleanour (Sophy) Sinclair Rohde (1881–1950) was a British gardener, garden designer, and horticultural writer. She authored thirty books on gardening between 1913 and 1948, and is best known for her book, ''The Scented Garden'', published in 19 ...
, and
Michael Wolff, and Balkans war heroine Dr
Caroline Matthews.
Thomas Hardy
Thomas Hardy (2 June 1840 – 11 January 1928) was an English novelist and poet. A Victorian realist in the tradition of George Eliot, he was influenced both in his novels and in his poetry by Romanticism, including the poetry of William Word ...
's short story ''A Changed Man'' was first published in ''The Sphere'', in two instalments in the 21 and 28 April 1900 editions. During
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
the newspaper was bought by the shipping magnate
John Ellerman.
[W. D. Rubinstein]
‘Ellerman, Sir John Reeves, first baronet (1862–1933)’
''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, Sept 2004; online edn, May 2006, accessed 1 Jan 2008 ''The Sphere'' was very popular 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 ...
.
The
British Library
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom and is one of the largest libraries in the world. It is estimated to contain between 170 and 200 million items from many countries. As a legal deposit library, the British ...
and the
National Library of Scotland
The National Library of Scotland (NLS) ( gd, Leabharlann Nàiseanta na h-Alba, sco, Naitional Leebrar o Scotland) is the legal deposit library of Scotland and is one of the country's National Collections. As one of the largest libraries in the ...
hold copies of the entire publication run of this newspaper. The Sphere is searchable on the
British Newspaper Archive
The British Newspaper Archive web site provides access to searchable digitized archives of British and Irish newspapers. It was launched in November 2011.
History
The British Library Newspapers section was based in Colindale in north London, u ...
.
In popular culture
In the film ''
Three Faces East'' (1930), set in England during
WWI
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, Frances Hawtree (
Constance Bennett
Constance Campbell Bennett (October 22, 1904 – July 24, 1965) was an American stage, film, radio, and television actress and producer. She was a major Hollywood star during the 1920s and 1930s; during the early 1930s, she was the highest-paid ...
) peruses a copy of ''The Sphere''.
References
Sources
''Illustrated London News'' Picture Library websiteInformation on the ''Illustrated London News'' Group
External links
Illustration of trench system from the Sphere magazine Scran
Scran is a Scottish online resource for educational use by the public, schools, further education and higher education. It presents nearly 490,000 (still and moving) images and sounds contributed by museums, galleries, archives and the media. ...
ID: 000-000-475-242-C,
National Library of Scotland
The National Library of Scotland (NLS) ( gd, Leabharlann Nàiseanta na h-Alba, sco, Naitional Leebrar o Scotland) is the legal deposit library of Scotland and is one of the country's National Collections. As one of the largest libraries in the ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sphere
Defunct newspapers published in the United Kingdom
Defunct weekly newspapers
Weekly newspapers published in the United Kingdom
Newspapers established in 1900
Publications disestablished in 1964
1900 establishments in the United Kingdom
1964 disestablishments in the United Kingdom