The Sunday Mercury is celebrating after setting the national news agenda for the second week in a row, following its exclusive interview with a gay couple who adopted three children.

The Birmingham-based newspaper, which is owned by Trinity Mirror, published an exclusive interview with the two men after winning their trust.

Dubbing them 'Britain's most remarkable family', the paper ran a non-judgmental splash headlined 'Gay Dads Adopt 3 Kids', which was followed by a three-page report written by reporter Jeanette Oldham.

The story immediately prompted huge interest from the national media, with the Daily Express, Daily Mail, The Sun and The Star all running versions of the Mercury's exclusive.

There was also interest from radio and TV, but the Mercury kept its promise not to reveal the identity of the couple so that the privacy of the children was protected.

The paper's adoption exclusive followed another report about a 20-year-old single mum with six children, which also attracted the attention of the national media.

Reporter Fionnuala Buourke's exclusive was followed up by The Sun, The Star, the Daily Mail and the Daily Express, and the mum later appeared on various television and radio shows.

Sunday Mercury editor David Brookes said: "As a Sunday newspaper we compete with the nationals week in, week out, and we are consistently first with the big Midland stories that go on to make national headlines."

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