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Paper reproduces first edition to mark 200th year

A weekly newspaper has published a 16-page supplement as part of celebrations to mark its 200th birthday.

The Macclesfield Express published its first edition on 2 February 1811, when it was then called the Macclesfield Courier.

For the anniversary, it published a bumper 96-page edition which included a supplement charting the history of the paper, including a reproduction of the first edition.

The title also had a special ale brewed for its bicentenary and the anniversary coincided with the opening of a new office for the newspaper in the heart of the town.

  • The paper’s supplement included a copy of the very first edition.
  • Its supplement is the first of five looking back over the last 200 years and was compiled by MEN Media Communities Editor Dave Lafferty, a former editor of the Express, and communities reporter Bethany Abbit.

    Editor Judy Gordon said: “The supplement is a real celebration of the newspaper, the town and the people it has served for 200 years.

    “The next ones will look at the growth of the town, the impact of two world wars and the personal stories of people who have worked on the paper through many decades of change.

    “We’ve even had a special ale brewed locally, named Bicentenniale by a reader in a competition. So now everyone can drink to the health of our proud newspaper.”

    The first of the supplements carried features by current Express reporters as well as former legendary ‘names’ including Doug Pickford and Gerry Henshall.

    And local station Canalside Radio also marked the anniversary by holding a Macc Express Day, where well-known names from the past and present spoke about what the paper means to them.

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    • February 3, 2011 at 4:01 pm
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      First they came for the editors and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t an editor. Then they came for the district reporters and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a district reporter. Then they came for the specialist correspondents and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a specialist correspondent. Then they came for the subs and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a sub. Then they came for the online editors and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t an online editor. Then they came for the staff photographers and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a staff photographer. Then they came for me…but when I offered to do all of these jobs, they said, “OK, but we need you to work Saturdays as well.”

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