He brought in an assistant to the then editorial director, Kim Fletcher Fletcher has gone; the assistant remains. And with all the unsettling (for Newland) talk about the editorship of the daily, now the need for an editor-in-chief has been identified. I doubt whether Newland or Sands spotted this gaping hole.Bryant, who at 61 is much older than the two editors he will supervise, is not the kind of man not to engage. And given where he comes from, it seems likely he is intended to influence the Telegraph in a Mail-ish way We shall see. It is worth noting that the serene upward path of the Mail itself has been disturbed of late.

Its circulation has fallen by 2.7 per cent year on year, the Mail on Sunday by 6.0 per cent. There may be a message in that.What he will make of the fluffy, “spa-like” relaunched Sunday Telegraph also remains to be seen It has not had a friendly reception. Media Guardian sniffily described it as “having a long way to go”.The Telegraph has also raised its price to 65p, the same as The Independent but 5p more than The Times and Guardian. This will not help, although the Telegraph sells a high proportion of copies at a reduced rate.Then there was that other hypothesis, that quality sells while tabloids are less popular than they were. The evidence is this: the four general quality daily titles last month sold 70,000 more copies than they did a year ago, 2.28m. The four general quality Sunday titles last month sold 31,000 more copies than a year ago, 2.75m.This is the only sector of the market where sales are rising. The red-top tabloids are selling 220,000 fewer copies than a year ago.

The mid-market titles, Mail and Express, are selling 169,000 fewer.Have we entered the age of the intelligent newspaper, as long as it’s the right size?Peter Cole is Professor of Journalism at the University of Sheffield. Little Britain, the cult comedy that has now become a catchphrase-spawning mainstream hit, is to take over BBC1 for an entire evening this week. To mark the start of the third series, which begins on Thursday, the couple’s stars, David Walliams and Matt Lucas, have scripted the continuity announcements for the night’s viewing. The voiceover will be provided by Tom Baker.
Unsuspecting viewers will be treated to such lines as: “In half an hour, Jenny Dickens’ classic serial Bleak House. But first let’s see what the poor people are up to in the first of two visits this evening to the EastEnder [sic].”There will be further gobbledygook prior to a Children in Need preview show, The Great Big Bid, when Baker announces: “Hello telly viewers, you’re watching the BBC One. At nine o’clock it’s Little Britain – the greatest show in the history of broadcasting …”It is thought to be the first time BBC1 has tried such a stunt..

Peep, peep! Look out Thomas, there’s a troublesome rival on the tracks. After 60 years of the little blue engine’s supremacy on the rails, a new character is hoping to shunt him out of the affections of fans. Underground Ernie is to be launched by the BBC early next year on CBeebies, its digital channel for toddlers. Ernie, a Tube supervisor, is joined by a fleet of trains, each named after a line on the London Underground – Bakerloo, Circle, Jubilee, Victoria and Hammersmith & City.
With an uncanny similarity to Thomas and his pals, each of the trains has a face, although these are computer-generated animations, unlike the Fat Controller’s engines on the island of Sodor which are model trains.And like Thomas the Tank Engine, which was originally voiced by Ringo Starr (and later by Michael Angelis), Ernie’s show will have big names behind it. Match of the Day host Gary Lineker will provide the voice of the main character and is understood to be in line for a share of the profits.Thomas merchandise has been one of the biggest spin-off hits for children’s TV since the series was launched in the 1980s. A Thomas board game is expected to be one of this year’s biggest sellers.Lineker, aformer England football captain, said: “I’d never done that sort of voiceover work before and it was a fantastic experience I just can’t wait for the train set.”. GENERAL

1 For what achievement did Londoners in the 19th century have most reason to thank Sir Joseph Bazalgette?
2 Of which small organisation, composed of people who have appeared on a certain TV show, is Pass the in-house, periodical magazine?”3 Arnold Hagenbach and Sam Chippendale built which chain of shopping malls in Britain?4 Which electronic children’s toy, first sold by Bandai in 1996, takes its name partially from the Japanese for egg?5 Which notorious New York newspaper proprietor and playboy (1841-1918) has given his name to an expression of shock or surprise?HISTORY/GEOGRAPHY1 Which is the largest island in the world (continents excluded) through which the equator passes?2 What are Bora, F?and Pampero examples of?3 Who was the first US President to have been born (1924) in a hospital?4 The Orteig prize ($25,000) – led to which historic feat of 1927?5 Making a major breakthrough in public health in London in the mid-19th century, with the prevention of which disease is Dr John Snow most closely linked?LITERATURE1 Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys is an account of the life of Antoinette Cosway – a prequel to which famous Bront?ovel of 1847?2 Walt Whitman’s poems “O Captain! My Captain!” and “When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom’d” are a response to his grief over which event of 1865?3 Charlie Higson (TV Comic actor – The Fast Show) has published a children’s book SilverFin.