Guardian To Downsize Early, Observer To Follow

The Guardian will change to its new Berliner format in a matter of months it was announced today, as the paper brought forward its launch date for the new size, never before used by a British newspaper.

The announcement also confirmed the re-launch of the Guardian’s Sunday sister title, the Observer, which will adopt the same mid-size format to become the first Sunday paper to reduce its format.

The changes will see the Guardian become a mid-sized title by autumn this year, while the Observer will make the change in early 2006.

The move has been widely anticipated, with the Guardian making no secret of its intention to downsize. Mockups of the new-look newspaper were seen by senior media buyers as early as March last year (see Guardian Considers Midsize Edition To Boost Sales), although a confirmed time-frame for the shift has, until now, been elusive.

Guardian bosses will be hoping to emulate the success of the Times and Independent, which have both seen circulations rise in the face of an otherwise depressed newspaper market since their switch to compact-only formats last year.

The latest ABC figures show the Guardian shedding 4.3% of its circulation year on year during May – the largest downturn of all Quality daily titles. The paper currently commands sales of 372,562, while the Times and Independent added 5% and 0.8% to their circulations in the same period to total 684,695 and 263,043 respectively.

Meanwhile, the Observer saw sales fall by 0.9% year on year in May, pushing the paper’s total down to 441,802.

Explaining the move, Carolyn McCall, chief executive of Guardian Newspapers, said: “Just over a year ago we made one of the most important decisions in the 184-year history of the Guardian, and the 213-year history of the Observer. To design both papers again completely from scratch. To launch them in a new format never before seen in the UK. To build our own print centre and install the most modern presses in the newspaper industry. To position our papers as the first of a new generation of full-colour national newspapers.”

Guardian Media Group: 020 7713 4452 www.gmgplc.co.uk/