The Bath Chronicle offices in James Street West are to close in a downsizing move which will see journalists and sales staff transfer to space in the neighbouring Bath College.
In a statement issued this afternoon – and credited to Chronicle editor Gavin Thompson and Bath Live editor Emma Slee – it is revealed the move will happen at the end of the month.
The complete statement is as follows:
“The Bath Chronicle and Bath Live teams are to relocate from the existing office in James Street West to a space within neighbouring Bath College.
This move, which we expect to happen by the end of the month, will see our journalists and sales people retain a base in the centre of the city, just across the road from the current office.
At the same time it helps us to operate as efficiently as possible in order to to focus our resources on our journalism.
The Bath Chronicle newspaper and Bath Live website remain very much at the heart of Bath and we are pleased to have been able to work in partnership with Bath College to achieve this.”
The newspaper is now part of Reach – a new name for the Trinity Mirror Group.
According to Wikipedia – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bath_Chronicle:
‘The Bath Journal was published in 1743, and was renamed Boddely’s Bath Journal. It was renamed Keene’s Bath Journal in January 1822, and was eventually taken over by the Bath Herald in March 1916.[3] The newspaper also originated from the Bath Chronicle and Universal Register taking over from the Bath Advertiser which was published from 1755.[3]
By 1919 it had changed its name to the Bath and Wilts Chronicle as a result of a merger with another paper.[4] The Bath Herald was merged with the Bath Chronicle in 1925[3] to become the Bath Chronicle and Herald, amended in 1936 to Bath Weekly Chronicle and Herald.[5][6]
The early 1960s was a time for another minor name change to Bath and Wilts Evening Chronicle.[7] The change took place with the issue of 12 June 1961, but was again changed, with the issue of 1 April 1974 to Bath and West Evening Chronicle, before changing to the Evening Chronicle with the issue of 3 January 1989, remaining with that title until 7 May 1994.[8]
In October 2007, the Bath Chronicle switched from daily to weekly publication, every Thursday.[9]
The paper celebrated its 250th anniversary in October 2010,[10] publishing a special supplement to mark the occasion.[11]
In March 2018 the Trinity Mirror SomersetLive platform began to operate the Bath Chronicle website.[12]
Paul Wiltshire – who reached Deputy Editor during his 19 years with the paper – is now a Senior Journalism Lecturer at the University of Gloucestershire. He writes about his feelings regarding this news on his blog site. Click on this link: https://paulwiltshireblog.wordpress.com/2018/11/05/sad-farewell-to-the-office-that-was-my-second-home/
May I politely suggest that the new office should be equipped with a street map of the area and a dictionary?