Sunday Telegraph Archive: Back Issue Newspapers

Sunday Telegraph Archive: Back Issue Newspapers

Why Should I Bother Reading Old Newspapers?

Reading back issue newspapers gives you a chance to better understand the world and community around you. In a world of tweets and baseless blog posts, newspapers still offer one of the most reliable sources of information for researchers, scholars, and members of academia. By cracking open an old issue of the Sunday Telegraph, for example, you can learn about the issues affecting England on a given weekend.

The History of the Sunday Telegraph

The first printing of The Sunday Telegraph earned five minutes of airtime on the BBC.  It wasn’t the what of The Sunday Telegraph that was a big deal, but, the when.  It came into being at a time where closing publications were commonplace. First published on February 4th of 1961, The Sunday Telegraph, especially when compared to its sister paper, The Daily Telegraph, is a spring chicken in the newspaper industry.  Why were these papers published nearly 100 years apart? It's a family matter.

In 1961, the Berry family owned a variety of papers including The Daily Telegraph, The Financial Times, and The Sunday Times.  Though Michael Berry, the owner of The Daily Telegraph, wanted a Sunday edition of his paper, he held off for decades. However, on 10th of 1959, an uncle sold the Sunday Times to Canadian magnate Roy Thomson. Now that he no longer had to worry about cannibalizing a family publication, Michael launched his dream paper. With healthy advertising revenue and a uniquely popular version of city pages, The Sunday Telegraph proved an overnight success.

A series of longstanding columnists and editors helped the Sunday Telegraph develop a unique voice all its own. Famous writers of these times include Peregrine Worsthorne, Nigel Lawson, Robert Peston, Patrick Hutber, and Egon Ronay.  In its time, the paper has pushed Tory values, voluntary repatriation, and liberal ideals. After the introduction of colored ink in the late 80s, The Sunday Telegraph remained relatively unchanged. You can read current Telegraph articles by visiting http://www.telegraph.co.uk/.

Interesting Facts About the Sunday Telegraph

  • The Sunday Telegraph’s first printing was broadcasted live on the BBC starting at 8:30 PM on February 4th of 1961.
  • In 1999, The Sunday Telegraph won the UK’s National Newspaper of the Year.
  • About 32-percent of The Sunday Telegraph readers identify themselves as Londoners.

Sunday Telegraph's archives

To find back issues of The Sunday Telegraph you can visit the UK historical newspaper archive page.