I wasn’t going to post on this because it’s essentially bigging up my own work when the weekend has churned out far better headlines (viz the Sunday Mirror’s response to a new checked Manchester United strip, WELL PLAID, SON). However, one that I wrote on Friday for The Times has become more interesting since I heard it read out in church this morning. And not just any old church – St Bride’s on Fleet Street, where worshippers today included one Rupert Murdoch.
We didn’t chat or anything. RM has no idea who I am or what I do, and that’s the way I like it. Still, it was gratifying when the Rector, David Meara, in his sermon on the defence of the Christian faith got a ripple of laughter when he mentioned that “Giles Coren, in yesterday’s Times, called himself a pro-antidisestablishmentarian”.
Because Giles didn’t quite do that. He made a very witty point about mounting a defence of antidisestablishmentarianism in the face of Richard Dawkins’ floccinaucinihipilification, which I quite wanted to use in the pull-quote but would never, ever have fitted there. Then I realised that there was an opportunity to work one of the longest words in the English language into the headline and… well, you know, red rags and bulls. This became WHY I’M PRO ANTIDISESTABLISHMENTARIANISM.
A headline I probably would have remembered even if I hadn’t seen it put a smile on the face of my boss’s boss x 109 and subsequently had a Twitter chat with one of Britain’s best columnists about it (summary: he’s a bit gutted that he couldn’t get a sitter this morning).
Sometimes a silly approach does generate a good line - I’m reminded of one that sub Matt Dupuy recently sent me: NO-GO WOE FOR DOUGHNUT CO AFTER VO VO BLOW. “Cheered up an otherwise dull story about copyright,” he says. (I also like his standfirst: SO NO-SHOW FOR ICED DOUGH-VO.)
So if I started by trying to big myself up, at least I can finish with offering respect to Matt. My decent headline was handed to me on a plate like so many Krispy Kremes. His outstanding one seems to have popped into his head at a moment when most subs would have been half asleep with boredom.
I, too, like clever headlines, but I must say your examples are really not the best and if the anti-pro one made your boss’ boss smile etc, he must be very easy to please.
Rupert Murdoch? Easy to please?? I am glad you’ve raised this, though; I wouldn’t claim that this was a blog about the best headlines ever – it’s just recent ones I like and can ideally find out the story behind. If you want to see some really iconic ones this blog by Peter Sands has some classics: http://sandsmediaservices.blogspot.com/2010/11/20-classic-tabloid-headlines.html Emma
Forgive me, but you might agree with me (tho’ you might also prefer to remain diplomatic and employed) that recent events at Wapping Towers suggest Rupert M hasn’t just lost it, he is way, way, way into is andecdotage. Sad but it happens to all of use. Examples: going way out on a limb to protect Rebekkah Wade at the expense of 100 other NoW staff, allowing that idiot of a son of his anywhere near making decisions more pressing than when to get the teas in, and most recently – he must surely know about it by now – the offer to Sun staff subs of just £100 a shift to work on the new Sun on Sunday. If there is a sure way of telling someone ‘I regard you as a total fuckwit’, that was it.
I have long admired Rupert M, ever since he bought The Times and was asked to ‘give assurances’ that he would not interfere editorially. To which he replied (a man after my own heart) ‘I didn’t spend £5 million on buying The Times NOT to interfere.’ But time is no longer being kind. (I understand Lachlan was being lines up as his heir, but – probably more of a chip off the old block than was comfortable to Rupert, declined and left to run his own show, which left Rupert only with James. Now that was a cruel stroke of fate.\
So if Rupe liked the ‘anti pro’ head (which would be excellent for a student rag but nowhere else) he is beyond hope.
Sorry for delay – I have to moderate comments and have been out today. You sound like a discerning fellow: what is your favourite memorable headline?
What happened to the reply/comment I posted an hour or two ago?
Ah, there it is. What’s happened to the system?
Headlines: two from the Guardian
A Crystal Palace player called Queen (first name, I think, Gerry,) was sent off for fighting. Grauniad headline – ‘Queen involved in Palace brawl’.
Then at the end of some war or other a peace treaty was sealed, signed and delivered but not everyone agreed and so carried on fighting. Headling in the saintly Guardian was ‘All over bar the shooting’. Oh, then there was another, above a review of a rather poor production of Cleopatra – ‘The greatest asp disaster in the world’
My favourite own head (we can all be smug) was one I wrote for the Mail’s letters page, the lead letter from some old fart complaining that the young of today are ill-educated and can’t spell. I came up with ‘A misspelt youth’. Oh, well.