The new multimedia news operation housing Trinity Mirror’s Birmingham titles is to receive a royal visitor next month.

On May 26 Princess Anne will officially open the new offices at Fort Dunlop, just outside the Second City, now home to the Birmingham Post and Mail and Sunday Mercury.

Staff underwent a wholesale relocation last November meaning the titles’ main base would be outside the city centre for the first time in 150 years.

BPM Media managing director John Griffith said: “We are really delighted that Princess Anne is to open our new state-of-the-art offices.

“The staff have worked so hard to achieve the successful relocation and have fitted in fantastically well with the new environment. It should be a really nice day for them.

“We have got around 500 people working here at Fort Dunlop in our near 24-hour news operation.

“Around £8m was invested in the move and in new systems. We are now seen as one of the world’s leading multimedia newsrooms.

“Since our relocation visitors from the media industry around the world have visited us to see how we work. The national press, including the Financial Times and the Guardian, have been keen to cast their eye over our work, too.

“A plaque commemorating the visit is being made especially for us in Birmingham’s famous Jewellery Quarter.”

Previous royal visitors to the titles’ newsroom include Princess Margaret, who opened the offices in Weaman Street in 1965, and the Duke of Edinburgh who saw the presses there in 1968.

Mail and Sunday Mercury editor Steve Dyson added: “Investment in our new site, next to our new presses, shows how important local newspapers are to Trinity Mirror and the public at large.

“We are here to stay and the fact that we are being endorsed in this way by Princess Anne shows how important local newspapers are to democracy and community life.”

Comments

Mr_Osato (14/04/2009 07:33:19)
One is to hope she finds time to visit some of those made redundant to help fund this ‘news factory’ experiment – somehow doubt it though.

Northern Snapper (14/04/2009 12:10:06)
What are “state-of-the-art offices”?

Buster Nineshoes (14/04/2009 17:10:53)
Isn’t it against Buck House rules to publish Royal events with dates beforehand? Fort Dunlop 26th May, KABOOM………….

Mr Mobile (15/04/2009 08:42:54)
So Buster Nineshoes, how do you think all the flag wavers and royal greeters find out about the Queen etc coming to their town?!?!? They just stumble across the royal party on a trip to Tesco????

Curmudgeon (15/04/2009 17:25:26)
Who needs subs? Count the number of redundant words in this quote:
“A plaque commemorating the visit is being made especially for us in Birmingham’s famous Jewellery Quarter.”