“It will mean that more Londoners than ever before will be able to read its unrivalled coverage of our city. The number of copies printed will more than double to 600,000.
The Evening Standard will remain the same newspaper with the same award-winning journalism.
All your favourite writers and columnists will be in your Evening Standard as normal. All the daily sections - Trends, Beauty and Fashion, London Life, Film and Music - will stay on the same days. ES Magazine will continue to publish on Fridays and Homes & Property on Wednesdays.
More than twice as many copies will be available of our West End Final edition with the latest news, politics and sports coverage from our experienced team of specialists. Our city editor Chris Blackhurst's acclaimed business team, including Anthony Hilton, will provide the latest reports and analysis. The Evening Standard's much-respected columnists including Simon Jenkins and Anne McElvoy will be writing on their regular pages.
Our influential reviews and arts coverage including Brian Sewell on art, Andrew O'Hagan on film, Henry Hitchings on theatre and Fay Maschler on restaurants will continue to reflect the cultural life of London.
Geordie Greig, Editor of the London Evening Standard, said: “This is an historic moment and great opportunity for the London Evening Standard. Its owners will be funding the circulation of over 600,000 copies of the newspaper, making it available to more Londoners than ever before. And most importantly this will be a quality newspaper.
"The Standard has an exciting and secure future with this new, pioneering strategy of more than doubling our distribution. We will remain the only London newspaper committed to a tradition of high quality journalism with the finest writers and undiminished commitment to the best reporting of news, business and sport.
"I also want the paper to continue being a cheerleader for London, the greatest city in the world. We will celebrate where we can but also criticise and expose those who are not doing what is best for London and Londoners."
Alexander Lebedev, Chairman of Evening Standard Ltd, said: "I am confident that more than doubling the London Evening Standard's circulation and maintaining its quality journalism is what is best for London. An essential fabric of a free and democratic society is high quality journalism. It acts as a deterrent against corruption and is a way to highlight what is beneficial and worth celebrating. I want to invest in newspapers in general for this purpose and in the London Evening Standard in particular. The Standard has been producing exceptional journalism since 1827 and that is not going to change under my ownership. The London Evening Standard is the first leading quality newspaper to go free and I am sure others will follow."
Evgeny Lebedev, Executive Director of the London Evening Standard, said. "I have always wanted the Standard to be far-reaching, bringing news to as many people as possible in the capital with the highest quality reporting and influential comment pieces. This new model with at least 600,000 copies being brought to London every day will make a great newspaper accessible to more Londoners than ever before.
"I especially want to ensure that my family underwrites the continuation of its broad and brilliant coverage of the arts, where London dominates the world with theatre, live performances and the visual arts. It is key to my family's thinking to have a great newspaper, celebratory of London but also fearless in its desire to report the news, business and sport brought to as many people as possible. We are committed to maintaining the quality of the Standard as the premier paper in London but with more than twice its current reach."”
