From the USA to Europe and Chester to Carlisle, it has been a long journey for the Lancashire Evening Post’s new editor, Simon Reynolds.

He was a late-comer to the hectic world of reporting, waiting until his mid-20s to take the plunge.

Looking forward to his new role he said: “I start there on June 25, with the paper in a very healthy position, with award nominations and increasing sales figures.

“I am looking forward to seeing if I can take it further. It’s my first editorship, so it’s a nice position to be.”

After gaining a biology degree from Salford University in his hometown of Manchester, Simon decided to travel.

“I decided to see a bit of the world after university so I travelled around America and Europe, before returning to England to face the future.

“I plumped on a career in journalism and at the age of 25 did a pre-entry course in journalism at Darlington College.”

With the necessary qualification in hand, Simon began his career as a trainee reporter at the Cheshire Observer, before moving on to his first daily paper, the Chester Evening Leader.

Simon spent 15 months there before getting itchy feet again and taking up a news reporter role at the Carlisle Evening News.

It was here that Simon’s career began to prosper, rising from reporter to crime and then chief reporter, as well as doing shifts for the Sunday Sun in Glasgow.

The next destination was the bright lights of London and a spell at the Daily Mail.

The opportunity to move back to his North-West roots took him to Liverpool and the Daily Post, where he helped launch the Cheshire edition.

It was during this time that Simon dealt with the story which will forever be etched in his memory.

“I was there in 1989, when the Hillsborough Disaster took place, that was something I will never forget, it was such an emotional time for the whole city,” he said.

His next job also touched on tragedy, when as news editor at the Edinburgh Evening News in 1994, the Dunblane tragedy occurred.

He said: “It was something we had to deal with properly without appearing to be cashing in on such a tragedy, again it was an emotional time as it happening on the city’s doorstep.”

In Edinburgh, Simon again helped re-launch the paper as a tabloid, something his predecessor in Lancashire knows all about.

“Roger Borrell has done a fantastic job following the re-launch of the Lancashire Evening post as a tabloid,” he said.

Now at 42, Simon is again returning to the North-West after climbing to deputy editor in Edinburgh. Iain Stewart, currently at Scotland on Sunday, takes over the position at the Evening News.

Do you have a story for us?
Ring the HoldTheFrontPage newsdesk on
01332 291111 x6022, or to e-mail us now – click here