The London Weekly launches

Global Publishing Group’s The London Weekly became the latest title to hit the Capital’s streets on Friday.

The new free newspaper, which aims to be a “light hearted paper for light hearted Londoners”, boasted 32 full-colour pages, less than half the size of Friday’s Metro.

The first London Weekly offered a mix of sports, music news, going-out info, a Q&A interview with former England cricketer Phil Tufnell and a front-page lead story about Gordon Brown helping to launch London Wasps’ annual St George’s Day game.

Advertisers included promotions for West End shows Wicked and Thriller, display ads for Sea France, The Big Snow Festival, Southern Comfort as well as a page of classified recruitment ads.

Packard Bell also claimed space in the new title after agreeing a commercial partnership with Global Publishing Group.

The London Weekly, which will be handed out across London on Fridays and Saturdays, aims to distribute around 250,000 copies to reach a readership of 1.5 million, according to the publishing company.

However, reports suggest that the paper was almost impossible to come across on Friday.

John Leitch, executive director of Metro, said: “The fact that it’s so hard to get hold of speaks volumes and makes for an interesting business proposition.”