The New Day tabloid newspaper will print its final edition on Friday, just nine weeks after its launch, due to falling sales figures.
The publisher Trinity Mirror confirmed this morning the decision to close the UK’s first new standalone national newspaper in three decades.
It had previously said the newspaper could turn a profit at the end of the year following the announcement about its launch in February.
Trinity Mirror’s AGM takes place at the Museum of London today. In a statement, the company said: “Whilst disappointing, the launch and subsequent closure have provided new insights into enhancing our newspapers and a number of these opportunities will be considered over time.”
In a statement on Facebook, Alison Phillips, the editor, admitted “we just haven’t reached the sales figures we needed to make it work financially”.
Advertisement
She added: “The response over the 50 issues we have published has been extraordinary. I have never worked on a title with such engagement from readers.
“There clearly were many people who truly loved the idea of a different kind of newspaper which spoke to them. But the reality was we didn’t have enough of them on a daily basis.”
The introduction of The New Day came after The Independent and Independent On Sunday newspapers announced they were shutting down after three decades and switching to digital.
The title was given out free as a promotion before having a starting price of 25p, which later increased to 50p. Sales peaked at 150,000 copies in March but reportedly plummeted below 40,000 in recent weeks.
It was the first new national paper since the launch of the i, a slimmed-down version of The Independent, went on sale in October 2010.
Advertisement
The New Day was intended to be politically neutral and its publisher said it was aimed at readers who no longer bought a newspaper.
It had a social media presence and a tablet edition but it did not have an accompanying website.
The New Day’s first front-page covered the plight of the UK’s 40,000 infant carers and included an article by David Cameron making the case for Britain to remain in the European Union.