Richard Byham has retired as publisher of the East London and West Essex Guardian group.

He has worked for parent company Newsquest – including service with Reed Regional Newspapers – for 36 years

Richard, (56), joined the company as an advertisement sales executive at Essex County Newspapers in Colchester in February 1970, working on the successful launch of the Evening Gazette that October.

He has held a direct management responsibility at some time in his career for more than 20 newspaper titles covering Essex – including the metropolitan parts of the county – including two evenings, 11 weekly paid-fors and 13 frees.

He was winner of the first Reed Regional Newspapers advertisement supplements Award for “Junior Weekly News” in 1990 – an idea teaming schools with local advertisers which he did on four occasions producing new revenue and, hopefully, through speaking to more than 40 classes in mid-Essex schools, enthusing some newspaper people for the future.

He was advertisement manager of the Braintree and Witham Times from 1977 to 1979 and held management positions in the advertisement departments of Essex County Newspapers in Colchester, Maldon, and Clacton and with London and Essex Guardian Newspapers in Harlow and Walthamstow in the early 1990s.

Richard joined Echo Newspapers in Basildon upon the Newsquest acquisition of Westminster Press in 1996 as Group Ad Manager.

He was appointed advertisement director of Newsquest Essex in 1998 transferring to the senior management team of Newsquest London in September of the following year upon appointment as general manager – subsequently publisher – of Newsquest East London and West Essex at Highams Park responsible for the East London and West Essex Guardian series covering Walthamstow and Epping.

In that role he was responsible for launching an edition of the Guardian into Stratford – home of London’s successful Olympic bid.