Ink
Writer · Play · 2017
In October 1969, Australian businessman Rupert Murdoch is in negotiations to purchase the failing British daily newspaper The Sun from its parent paper The Mirror. He approaches the Daily Mails Northern editor Larry Lamb and asks him to be the editor of The Sun for its re-launch. Lamb, a Yorkshire native and former sub-editor for The Mirror, is frustrated over his lack of progress in his career, which he attributes to his working-class background. Reluctantly, he accepts Murdoch's offer. Murdoch and Lamb meet with Mirror chairman Hugh Cudlipp to finalise the sale. The contract stipulates that publication must continue uninterrupted after the handover, giving Lamb mere weeks to assemble the first issue. Cudlipp privately reveals to Lamb that he is selling The Sun (as opposed to shutting it down) only to avoid angering local unions. He expects the paper to fail and discourages Lamb from taking the job. Murdoch declares his intent to prioritise profits and proposes that Lamb strive to overtake sales of The Mirror within one year of the re-launch. Murdoch grants Lamb full freedom on the condition that he make the paper "loud", encouraging him to compete aggressively with other papers. On Fleet Street, Lamb frantically recruits new staff members for The Sun, the former staff having been laid off or re-absorbed into The Mirror. While brainstorming with the new staff, Lamb designs the paper's new logo and proposes new features, several of which are blatant pastiches of The Mirror. He also hires Stephanie Rahn and other models to pose in lingerie for the paper. At the London Press Club, Lamb encounters Cudlipp, who mocks The Suns lowbrow content and attempts to copy The Mirror. Convinced that The Mirror does not reflect the mood or interests of common people, Lamb pushes the re-launch of The Sun in a more populist direction that includes frank discussions of sexuality, a television section, and weekly giveaways. The evening before the re-launch, last-minute problems plague the staff, including a lack of enough "E" keys for the full headline and an interviewee's death. Murdoch and his wife Anna visit the office alongside his deputy Sir Alick McKay and his wife Muriel. A power outage delays printing and prevents that day's distribution in the north. Despite the limited distribution and rushed nature of the issue, the paper is an unprecedented success, worrying Cudlipp. In a televised interview, Murdoch defends The Suns outrageous content as a manifestation of the will of the masses. At a meeting, Lamb explains to Murdoch how the paper's newfound success has sown hostility in its competitors. While the Murdochs are visiting Australia, Muriel is kidnapped for ransom. The staff realise that Anna Murdoch was the kidnappers' intended target; the mistake arose after they stalked a Rolls-Royce the Murdochs had lent to the McKays while they were in Australia. Lamb insists on covering the incident in The Sun and publishing the ransom notes, in doing so defying the wishes of his staff, union leaders, and Murdoch himself. Two brothers are arrested for Muriel's abduction and presumed murder. The Sun is widely criticised for its treatment of the tragedy, though sales surge. In a last-ditch effort to take down The Sun, Cudlipp offers to make Lamb editor of The Mirror, but he refuses. As the one-year anniversary of The Suns re-launch approaches, sales remain behind that of The Mirror. Lamb asks Rahn to secretly pose for a fully-nude photo shoot, to be printed on Page 3 of The Sun. After some discussion, Rahn consents. The anniversary issue sparks public outrage, ruins Rahn's reputation, and infuriates Murdoch, but successfully outsells The Mirror. Conceding defeat, Cudlipp begins planning his retirement. Despite his own disapproval and Lamb's reservations, Murdoch allows the Page 3 feature to continue. At a dinner with Lamb, Murdoch proposes that The Sun start appealing to the new conservative government, confident that the paper has the power to sway public opinion. He also tells Lamb his plans to purchase an American television network and relocate The Suns office off of Fleet Street. He concludes the dinner saying, "People like stories." Lamb imagines that Murdoch will outlive him and someday publish his obituary in The Sun.