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Retiring editor tells his top stories from four decades

A journalist who has spent 40 years working on regional and local newspapers in Yorkshire is to retire.

Robert Cockroft, 60, has been editor at the weekly and independently owned Barnsley Chronicle for 17 years covering a huge variety of stories including one about a colour blind horse.

He started his career as a reporter on the Yorkshire Evening Post, then worked as a feature writer, diary columist, and music and restaurant critic on the Yorkshire Post. He then did a stint as features editor before his move to the Chronicle.

Said Robert: “Barnsley is a very newsy town. We have had murders but it’s the human interest stories that stick in your mind. We had someone who found a dead shark that had swum up the River Dearn and a postman that rang us to say he had seen a lion in Lundwood. We put the story in the paper then a woman rang and said she had a huge dog that had mange and had to have its coat clipped – it looked like a lion. The story went around the world.

“We had another story about a guy who was stopped by police and accused of driving through a red light in a horse and cart. He said it was because the horse was colour blind.”

Added Robert: “One of the best stories was when the football club was in a bad state and the mayor bought it. It caused a sensation in the town.”

Robert told HTFP he will miss the open and honest people of Barnsley but will carry on writing freelance when he has retired. A keen pianist and organist he also plans to compose music and do some sailing.

The Barnsley Chronicle is one of the most successful weekly newspapers in the UK. Though he has seen many changes in the industry over the years, Robert, due to finish at the end of November, said that good newspapers with good editorial standards will continue to thrive.