Sunday Times 200th anniversary

23.10.22: THE SUNDAY TIMES celebrated its 200th anniversary this week by launching Harry, the 'personal journalist' reader service.

The Sunday Times was created in London in 1822 as a competitor to The Observer, then the dominant Sunday newspaper but now long forgotten. It became a pioneer of multi-sectioned newspaper publishing before going on to become a digital multimedia service in the 21st century, offering dozens of channels of information in both electronic form and print.

The "daily me" concept of newspaper information and advertising tailored to each individual's needs is an everyday reality in this booming market. But Harry takes things one step further.

Readers can talk directly to their virtual-reality personal journalist 24 hours a day over a standard videomail connection. After receiving an assignment, Harry produces a confidential, personalised report, which can usually be created and delivered within seconds in written form or in other available multimedia formats.

Although The Sunday Times is still known best for exclusive news stories, specialised Sunday Times services that grew out of the original print edition have gone on to become market leaders in their own right. They include a personal finance manager, jobs channel, travel organiser and education tutors. The newspaper has also launched a range of hosted online video chat rooms, and ST-TV offers behind-the-scenes insights into news stories and investigations. JM