Islington Gazette editor says farewell after 36 years
TONY Allcock, editor of the Islington Gazette for the last 36 years, said goodbye to the newspaper this week.
He stepped down from his post on March 31 after overseeing more than 1,900 editions of the newspaper.
He was the 13th and longest serving editor of the Gazette since the paper was founded in 1856.
Tony, who joined the Gazette as a trainee reporter in 1966, said: “I’ve been honoured and privileged to have served this great newspaper and its readers for so long.
“I would like to thank all the loyal readers who have supported the paper during my time as editor and the hundreds of dedicated members of staff who have helped the paper to flourish.”
Tony, who has also relinquished the post of group editor of North London Newspapers, which also publishes the Camden Gazette and the Journal series in Haringey, added: “I’m sad to be going, but I took the decision to leave because I felt that, at the age of 63, it was the right time for me to move on.
“I think I have earned a rest and want to spend more time with my family – and the Gazette is soon to be relaunched with a new look. It will be the start of an exciting new era for the paper.
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“My time with the Gazette has been very challenging but immensely rewarding and I have witnessed so many changes in the borough.
“I have always tried to live up to the pledge made by the founding editor in the very first edition of the Gazette to ‘stand forth boldly and fearlessly in the great cause of truth’. I was born and raised in Islington and there is no other paper I would rather have edited.”
Keith Archer, Tony’s deputy, has taken over as acting editor of the Gazette.
He joined the Islington Gazette as a trainee reporter in 1982 and has been sports editor and production editor.
He said: “I am privileged to have enjoyed my career under the guidance of a truly exceptional editor.
“The Islington Gazette simply won’t be the same without him.”
