In the beginning (From Times Series)

In the beginning

12:47pm Friday 22nd January 2010

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There were two personal highlights in my 17 years as group editor of the Times Series — proudly presiding over the 100th anniversary edition of the paper in 1975 and launching the Barnet Borough Times 25 years ago.

In the post Second World War boom period, the Hendon & Finchley Times, as it was, reigned supreme over its large patch and was a quality broadsheet newspaper renowned for training journalists to move on to Fleet Street, TV or radio.

Barnet, to me, in those days was a town in Hertfordshire, eight miles from Hendon — until some bureaucrats at the town hall decided to throw us in together in the misnamed borough of Barnet. Much planning went into the launch of the Barnet Borough Times and I recruited Bill Todd, a promising talent with bright ideas, to join my 30-strong staff and head the new operation. The reporters, too, were hand-picked for the job at hand and many went on to long and distinguished careers.

At the time, ‘freesheets’ were proliferating and, to my mind, lowering standards. What made the Barnet Borough Times unique was that it was a quality broadsheet, but was free.

Bill Todd and his team soon made a mark on the local scene. My principle was newspapers were so named because news was paramount. I recruited "fire engine chasers" who clamoured to get the front page lead each week and enjoyed being one of a team of pioneers.

I am proud to have played a leading role 25 years ago. May the Barnet & Potters Bar Times continue to prosper.