Almost 3m extra national newspapers were sold last month as the public displayed a voracious appetite for news following the UK’s vote to leave the European Union.
About 90,000 extra newspapers per day were sold in June compared with May, some 2.7 million across the month, according to the latest Audit Bureau of Circulations figures published on Thursday.
Among daily titles the biggest winners were the Guardian, with circulation up 3.63%, and the Times up 2.51%. Johnston Press’s i rose 2.97%.
Pro-Brexit Telegraph rose a more modest 1.12% while the Daily Mail could only manage a 0.28% boost.
Sunday titles showed the biggest sales spikes, particularly during the weekend after the vote on 23 June, when there were double-digit percentage sales increases, contributing to Sunday titles selling on average across June about 111,000 extra copies per edition compared with May.
Major winners included the Observer, up 8.42% month on month, its biggest monthly rise since 2006; the Sunday Times, up 3.67%; and the Sunday Telegraph, up 3.23%.
“Readers have always turned to newspapers at times of national significance and continue to do so,” said Rufus Olins, chief executive of newspaper industry body Newsworks. “The latest ABC data confirms newspapers’ continued influence throughout Brexit and beyond.”
