Birmingham Mail to give away 50,000 free copies in city centre

The Birmingham Mail is to give away 50,000 free copies of the paper on Fridays in the city centre in a bid to increase readership.

Publishers Trinity Mirror said the initiative was part of wide-ranging plans to boost circulation including the launch of a tablet e-edition and improvements to its recently redesigned website.

The move mirrors plans by Trinity sister-title the Western Mail to give away up to 5,000 copies of the paper in Swansea as it looks to take on Local World's South Wales Evening Post.

Trinity promised the new-look Birmingham Mail would have:

“Extended local news and sport coverage, including more grassroots content.
“More family-focused sections including topics on health, education and consumer.
“A revamped Saturday edition with a brand new TV magazine and leisure section.”

The company added in a statement this morning:

“The bumper Friday edition of the paper will include sections aimed at complementing city life, including where to eat and shop, what to wear and what to do.

“A newly-designed what’s on pull-out, called Friday Live, has also recently been launched and features comprehensive listings, events news, film, music and theatre reviews, city centre attractions and contributions from readers.

David Brookes, editor-in-chief Trinity Mirror Midlands, said: “I am really proud of these new initiatives for the Birmingham Mail – a lot of dedicated journalists have worked hard getting the content and style just right.

"Whether its online, on mobile, in print or in e-edition format, I believe that the Birmingham Mail’s journalism will better represent the dynamism and diversity of our great city.”