Victoria Newton
| Victoria Newton | |
|---|---|
| Born |
9 March 1972 Liverpool, England |
Victoria Newton (born 9 March 1972 in Liverpool, England) is the editor of The Sun on Sunday[1] She ran the "Bizarre" showbiz column of Rupert Murdoch's The Sun and then became deputy editor of the paper.
Early life
She attended Rushcliffe School, a comprehensive in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, where her father, Don, was deputy-headmaster. She went to Newnham College, Cambridge.
Career
Newton started in Fleet Street in 1993 at the Daily Express, and then started the showbiz beat at The People. In 1998, she became an assistant to Dominic Mohan on The Sun's "Bizarre" pages, before becoming the paper's Los Angeles correspondent in 1999. Newton returned to the UK in 2002 to become the Daily Mail's showbiz editor, but returned to The Sun in 2003 to become editor of "Bizarre" replacing the departing Mohan.[2] She described it as her "dream job" in September 2005[3] although an anonymous critic began a Vickywatch blog detailing her mistakes.
Under her direction, "Bizarre" was known for presenting awards like 'Shagger of the Year' or 'Caner of the Year' and various other awards. However, it was revealed that the 2006 winners of the "Bizarre" readers' poll awards - who included Justin Timberlake and Madonna - were presented with their awards before readers had the opportunity to vote.[4] From 2006, Newton started producing a weekly podcast featuring many celebrity friends and musicians. Newton's column often contradicted her News International colleague Rav Singh's then-showbiz column in the News of the World.
"Bizarre's" biggest rivals were the Daily Mirror's "The 3AM Girls" Eva Simpson and Caroline Hedley, which was billed as the column packed with "proper showbiz exclusives". Newton frequently made appearances in Private Eye's "Street Of Shame".
In November 2007, it was announced that Newton would be leaving Bizarre and had been promoted to Head of Features and Entertainment. She was replaced by her assistant, Gordon Smart.[5] Newton remained in this job until her appointment as the deputy editor of the News of the World in October 2009,[6] a position she retained until the paper's closure in 2011, Newton was the paper's deputy editor. In September 2013, she was appointed the editor of The Sun on Sunday after being deputy editor of The Sun's whole 7 day operation. Her immediate superior remains David Dinsmore, The Sun's editor.[7]
Awards
- British Press Awards 2006 - Show Business Writer of the Year
See also
References
- ↑ Gavriel Hollander "New look Sun on Sunday launched this weekend with Victoria Newton as editor", Press Gazette, 13 September 2013
- ↑ Tara Conlan "Former News of the World deputy Victoria Newton rejoins the Sun", theguardian, 14 September 2011
- ↑ "Victoria Newton: My Life In Media", The Independent, 12 September 2005
- ↑ Greenslade, Roy (2007-01-07). "Blogger exposes Sun columnist's Bizarre 'mistakes'". Blogs.guardian.co.uk. Retrieved 2013-07-02.
- ↑ Stephen Brook (2007-11-16). "Senior executive reshuffle at the Sun". Guardian. Retrieved 2013-07-02.
- ↑ Dominic Ponsford "Victoria Newton is News of the World dep ed", Press Gazette, 15 October 2009
- ↑ Lisa O'Carroll and Josh Halliday "Sun on Sunday appoints Victoria Newton as editor", theguardian.com, 13 September 2013
External links
| Media offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Jane Johnson |
Deputy Editor of the News of the World 2009–2011 |
Succeeded by Position abolished |
| Preceded by New position |
Editor of the Sun on Sunday 2013–present |
Incumbent |