A regional journalist who moved to Australia has become editor of a daily newspaper.

Gayle Tomlinson has been appointed editor of the Illawarra Mercury, in New South Wales.

Gayle, pictured, worked on titles including the Shields Gazette and Newcastle daily The Chronicle during her career in the UK.

She was most recently head of audience engagement at Trinity Mirror before moving to Australia in 2016, where she has held roles including group editor at Fairfax Media and head of audience at Mercury publisher Australian Community Media.

Gayle told the Mercury: “My vision for the Illawarra Mercury is for a news publication that knows who it represents and meets our audience where they are – be it in print, online, in our apps or on social media.

“It asks the difficult questions, it is fearless in its story-telling and is dedicated to helping people stay informed.”

She added: “Having worked alongside the Illawarra Mercury team for five years, I know how passionate and driven the Mercury newsroom is.”