The Bath Chronicle is celebrating 125 years as a daily paper by throwing a party for staff - and giving readers the chance to enjoy a pint of a special anniversary beer.

The paper also produced a 48-page supplement reflecting the changes of the last century and a quarter.

The Chronicle was known as the Bath Evening Chronicle when it went from a weekly to a daily in 1877 and 125 years later the brand remains a success.

Editor David Gledhill said: "We want to share our success with all our readers. The Chronicle can actually trace its history back to 1760, making it the oldest continuous business in the area.

"In that time it has changed a lot but the most important change was on June 11 1877 when after the abolition of the so called tax on reading, the newspaper became a daily.

"We believe we have something to celebrate and we will be asking as many people as possible to join us in those celebrations."

To mark the occasion, city brewery Abbey Ales is making a one-off beer called Chronicle Ale, with tokens in the paper cutting the price for readers.

Abbey Ales managing director, Alan Morgan, added: "The Bath Chronicle as far as I am concerned is the only paper in Bath, as we are the only brewer.

"It is a great idea to make a anniversary beer and has received an incredible response from publicans who wanted to support The Bath Chronicle."

Yesterday, the day of the anniversary, the paper's 120-plus staff were invited to a party at a city hotel.

The paper has created a special logo for letterheads and put together a package of competitions and reader offers with a 125 theme.

These include 25 return tickets to Paddington, 25 pairs of tickets to Bath Races, 25 £25 Sainsbury's vouchers, 25 family tickets to the Castle Combe racecourse and the chance to ride at 125mph, 25 bottles of vintage champagne and 25 cases of wine.

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