Do you know any ex-Bridport and Lyme Regis News reporters?

Editor Margery Hookings is attempting to round them up and probe them for their memories of life on the Dorset weekly.

She is compiling a special book which is due to be published for the newspaper's 150th anniversary next year.

She said: "I am particularly interested to hear stories from former members of staff over the years. I would also like photographs to illustrate the book."

Were you there when the office burnt down - because the editor had knocked his pipe out in the waste paper bin? Were you a member of staff who was making the most of the fact that the newspaper had been put to bed and was on the beach at the time it happened?

Or maybe you remember sports reporter/legend the late Roger Bailey, his penchant for blow up dolls and his prowess for remembering people's birthdays?

The title is owned by Newsquest but has had a number of proprietors over the years.

Margery, (42), herself started with the News in 1982 after training with Mirror Group Newspapers in Plymouth. She's left three times - but has always come back.

"It's that kind of paper," she said. "It's a great little local weekly that is well respected by its readers because it reflects and records the diverse things that happen in this corner of West Dorset.

"The paper even has its own nickname - the Wip Wop.

"The small team that produces it each week has had its share of characters and it's stories about them, and by them, that I would especially like to hear."

If you've ever worked for the Bridport and Lyme Regis News, drop Margery a line by e-mail to: margery.hookings@bridportnews.co.uk.

Do you have a story about the regional press? Ring 0116 227 3122/3121, or
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