A sister publication to the Hampstead & Highgate Express is to be launched at the end of this week, as new editor Geoff Martin makes his mark.

The Wood & Vale Express will cover some of the most exclusive areas of the capital, including Marylebone, St John’s Wood and Maida Vale, dramatically enhancing the reach of the Ham & High series in these locations.

The new Express will include a significant number of news and features pages covering the area and carry the Ham & High’s popular arts and features section – one of its key selling points.

Its first edition will be 56 pages and will also have its own 40-page property section dedicated to the area.

This is the first significant change to the Archant-owned Ham & High since series editor Geoff Martin joined from the Belfast News Letter last November.

It also publishes the High & I in Highbury and Islington and has a Broadway slip edition covering Muswell Hill and Crouch End.

Geoff said: “It’s great to start a new year with a new initiative. I’m confident the Wood & Vale will be quickly and warmly welcomed by readers in an area which is crying out for the kind of quality journalism the Ham & High is famous for.

“We have a wonderful opportunity on our own doorstep to produce a paper which is vital, relevant and appreciated, in an important area which in truth has not been well-served by the weekly press.”

He said editorial coverage would be issue-driven, with strong emphasis on reader engagement, and backed by a busy schedule of promotional activity.

Strategy for the Wood & Vale launch has been developed by Archant North London & Hertfordshire’s regional director, Garry Matthews, who said: “It is the promise of editorial excellence that makes the launch of this title so appealing to our commercial customers in St Johns Wood and Maida Vale.

“They appreciate that the Ham & High Series delivers readers who are discerning customers, and who make their own judgment about the area in which they live and are prepared to stand up and be counted.”

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