News International (the UK subsidiary of News Corporation)
The
former premises of Rupert Murdoch's News International empire straddles
this parish and that of St Peter London Docks.
Although St Bride Fleet Street, because of its location, has
traditionally been the church of the press and of journalists, and
maintains this role [see below], over the years we have sought to develop good relationships
with those who have worked there, despite the controversial aspects of the manner of their arrival, and more recent events. They
in turn have looked to us as their local church (see below on the carol service), and for a time supported parish work
from their community affairs fund.
'Fortress Wapping'
Older residents remember the arrival of NI in Wapping in 1986, to
printworks built on the site of the 'North Stack' warehouses demolished
in 1979, and the
year-long protests along The Highway, which resulted in serious
violence on several occasions, and one death. New-technology printing
presses had been covertly built to allow
electronic composition of their newspapers (The Times, The Sunday Times, The News of the World and The Sun),
rather than the traditional 'hot metal' process. The
print unions feared, rightly, that this marked the end of a skilled
trade that was replete with 'Spanish practices' and an extended strike
and picket ensued. Members of the electricians' union EEPTU manned the
new presses, and the road hauliers TNT used articulated lorries and
'white mice' vans to get the papers out of the fortified premises
(these drivers were made redundant in 1991). Local roads were closed
each night, and an average of 130 police were on duty, at an overall
cost of £5m. The impact on strikers' families, and local residents, was
serious, and St George-in-the-East offered the facilities of the crypt
for a children's Christmas party. Right is a demonstration in Wellclose Square; here are many other images.
The
action had the support of the government. The strike
eventually collapsed. Whatever one's view of the tactics, the industry
was undoubtedly transformed. Ironically, in 2007 further technological
developments resulted in the presses leaving the area for new premises
in Broxbourne.
An touring exhibition marking the 25th anniversary of the events was
displayed in the church in September 2011, with a public meeting at
which many reminiscences were shared.
Simon Jenkins
Blessing
the offices
In
addition to the massive new building housing the presses and editorial
and management offices, the site included the 280m-long Rum Warehouse,
a Grade 2 listed structure described and pictured here, and used to house the archives and some offices and support services.
Then
in 1998 NI also took over most of La Lumière (named for its distinctive
rooftop), a 7-storey 10,000 m² block between Pennington Street and The
Highway. Designed by Rick Mather, this had been built in 1989-90 as
residential accommodation but failed to find sufficient tenants. Renamed 'Times
House', it was linked to the main building with an overhead walkway and
The Times
journalists moved in. The Rector was invited
to dedicate their premises, in a 30-minute ceremony which included a
personal blessing for the editor Peter Stothard. (The sprinkler system
precluded the use of incense.) I've
blessed people's houses before but never a newspaper, he said. It shows we can
all work closely with the will of God and gain strength and support. I
hope this signals the start of a very good relationship between us and
the newspaper.' Here are some pictures from the house journal The News, the newspaper for everyone at News
International of May 1998 (issue 133) and Ruth Gledhill's subsequent report:
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In
March 2010 the current Rector was invited to The Sun offices to join an
interfaith team - with an imam and a rabbi, both football fanatics - to
bless the World Cup prior to the season's matches. In the event FIFA
ruled that this was not permissible, but they got to see it (though
only past winners, such as George Cohen from 1966, who was present, are
allowed to touch it). The rabbi assumed that George was Jewish, and
promised to tuck a prayer into the Western Wall in Jerusalem, but he
confided to the Rector that he is a 'good Protestant'. See here for how the paper handled the story.
Carol
services
News International held their first carol service at St
George-in-the-East in 1988, organised by John Murray, a counsellor on
the staff. Clergy of three local churches - St Peter London Dock and St
Patrick Wapping - took part, and St Patrick's provided a school choir.
It has become an annual event, featuring in recent years three choirs:
NI's own choir Wapping Great Voices, the professional choir of St Bride
Fleet Street (the press and journalism church) and our own school
choir. We are pleased that they continue to make the deliberate choice
of their local church for this event (the 2012 service was the best-attended for many years). There is also an active News
International Christian Fellowship meeting weekly, and linked to local
churches.
Recent developments
Rupert
Murdoch announced plans to develop the whole site as a 'media campus'
which would have housed about 4,000 staff, including HarperCollins,
MySpace, Dow Jones and related businesses alongside NI. After much
debate about temporary relocation to enable this, many of the editorial
staff moved into premises in nearby Thomas More Street, where they
remain. However, in 2011 NI became embroiled in a massive phone-hacking
scandal, which led to the closure of the News of the World and subsequent redundancies. Court cases and enquiries continue.
The whole site was put for sale, and was acquired by St George Central London Ltd,
a member of the Berkeley Group (who are also developing the Goodmans Fields site). They are consulting on how to develop
and open up the site for a mix of commercial, residential and possibly
educational uses - in which restoration of the Rum Warehouse will be an
important feature. Tower Hamlets has identified the site as a strategic allocation; here is the current draft development plan, under the Local Development Framework (CAB 051/112). network Wapping, a
recently-constituted local group, is taking a keen interest in the
site, seeking to ensure that its future development will help to
benefit and regenerate the local area.
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