15 September 1964: The Sun newspaper is launched

With reader numbers flagging, the once-popular Daily Herald newspaper was relaunched as The Sun on this day in 1964.

First edition of The Sun newspaper © Central Press/Getty Images
(Image credit: First edition of The Sun newspaper © Central Press/Getty Images)

"Good morning! Yes, it's time for a new newspaper", screamed the headline of the first edition of The Sun, dated 15 September 1964. Top of its manifesto was the pledge: "The Sun is politically free. It will not automatically support or censure any party or government". That's a far-cry from the Labour-bashing paper we know today. But, in fact, it was never truly non-aligned; The Sun started life as very much a newspaper of the left.

Its predecessor, The Daily Herald, was part-owned by the Trades Union Congress (TUC), and it was the most-read newspaper in the world during the 1930s, with around two million readers. But by the 1960s, those glory days were long gone, and The Herald was struggling to make ends meet.

Subscribe to MoneyWeek

Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE

Get 6 issues free
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/mw70aro6gl1676370748.jpg

Sign up to Money Morning

Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter

Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter

Sign up
Chris Carter
Wealth Editor, MoneyWeek

Chris Carter spent three glorious years reading English literature on the beautiful Welsh coast at Aberystwyth University. Graduating in 2005, he left for the University of York to specialise in Renaissance literature for his MA, before returning to his native Twickenham, in southwest London. He joined a Richmond-based recruitment company, where he worked with several clients, including the Queen’s bank, Coutts, as well as the super luxury, Dorchester-owned Coworth Park country house hotel, near Ascot in Berkshire.

Then, in 2011, Chris joined MoneyWeek. Initially working as part of the website production team, Chris soon rose to the lofty heights of wealth editor, overseeing MoneyWeek’s Spending It lifestyle section. Chris travels the globe in pursuit of his work, soaking up the local culture and sampling the very finest in cuisine, hotels and resorts for the magazine’s discerning readership. He also enjoys writing his fortnightly page on collectables, delving into the fascinating world of auctions and art, classic cars, coins, watches, wine and whisky investing.

You can follow Chris on Instagram.