David Sullivan is turning his back on the paper he launched in 1986, the Sunday Sport, and its daily equivalent. He is expected to pick up £40m by selling out to an Aim-listed company, Interactive World, in what amounts to a reverse takeover. Sullivan's partners, Ralph and David Gold, the brothers who control the Ann Summers sex shop chain, are also selling their 50% stake.
The Sport titles have suffered a steep sales decline. In June, the Sunday Sport sold an average of 97,000 copies, 15% fewer than the year before. But the paper's managing director, Andrew Fickling, believes circulation has stabilised and plans to introduce less salacious editorial content.
The paper has relied on a relentless diet of sex after a brief period early in its history when it attracted publicity by running preposterous stories, such as a second world war bomber being found on the moon, and headlines like "Aliens turned our son into a fish finger" and "Donkey robs bank". (Via FT.com)
