Day one of the new-look Leicester Mercury – and the first edition rolled off the presses with a tribute to its readers’ generosity on page one.

Headlined “WE’RE THERE!”, the splash told how readers had contributed to a massive £120,000 raised for the county’s RSPCA Kennel Appeal.

The money will be used to replace dilapidated kennels at the RSPCA’s centre in Scudamore Road, Leicester.

Every penny had to be raised by Leicestershire people because the charity fails to qualify for government support or National Lottery windfalls.

Inside, an index on page two told readers that the first seven pages are “breaking news”. It also directed readers to features, business, the TV guide – now in the centre of the paper – national news, family announcements, classified and sport.

The back page contained news to gladden the heart of Leicester City fans – with a story about new contracts for the Wembley heroes.

Manager Martin O’Neill – who was 48 yesterday – was pictured with a framed copy of a photograph taken at Sunday’s Worthington Cup final by Mercury staffman Alistair Langham.

The special gift from the evening paper showed the manager leaping off the Wembley bench at to celebrate Leicester’s cup win.

A vox pop in Leicester yesterday, by HoldTheFrontPage, found that readers were happy with the changes to their Mercury.

“It’s got a fresh outlook. The print appears to be clearer and the layout is great” – Hajra Makda

“It reminds me of the Daily Mail. It looks more modern and up-to-date” – Gaynor Johnson

“It looks better, more modern, but the changes are subtle” – Nicole Smith

“It looks a lot better. I’m very impressed” – Dave Thompson

Now we want your verdict. What do you think of the new-look Leicester Mercury? To see yesterday’s front and back pages click here

For a flash movie showing the new-look Leicester Mercury click here
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