Western Mail

The Western Mail was a Welsh newspaper. (TV: Boom Town, TV: Out of Time) It considered itself to be the national newspaper of Wales, (PROSE: "The Lady Mayor Vanishes") and was in print from as early as 1899. (PROSE: The Baby Farmers)

History
In 1899, William Mayhew was a journalist for Western Mail. (PROSE: The Baby Farmers)

When John Ellis was taken by the Cardiff Rift from 1953 to more than fifty years into the future, he and his companions were taken to a supermarket, where he was surprised to find how much the media had changed. The Western Mail was also among the magazines and newspapers found there. (TV: Out of Time)

The paper reported on Margaret Blaine, the new mayor of Cardiff, in 2006 under the headline "New Mayor, new Cardiff". The Ninth Doctor saw it whilst in a café in Cardiff, revealing to him that Blon Fel-Fotch Passameer-Day Slitheen, who was using Margaret Blaine as a disguise, had survived the destruction of 10 Downing Street in her family's previous plot. (TV: Boom Town) A cutout of this article was displayed on the door to the tourist information entrance to the Torchwood Hub, in Roald Dahl Plass. (TV: Cyberwoman, Reset) The paper later reported on the disappearance of Margaret Blaine under the headline "The Lady Mayor Vanishes: Blaidd Drwg future in doubt". (PROSE: "The Lady Mayor Vanishes")

The paper was worth 40p in 2006. The website for the paper was www.icwales.co.uk. (PROSE: "The Lady Mayor Vanishes")

New Mayor, new Cardiff
The paper reported on the start of Margaret Blaine's tenure as Lord Mayor of Cardiff. (TV: Boom Town, PROSE: The Western Mail)


 * Cardiff's new Lord Mayor, Margaret Blaine, marked the start of her tenure by announcing an unprecedented new development at the heart of the city. In a move which could see the creation of up to 5,000 new jobs, Lord Mayor Blaine, 45, revealed plans to demolish Cardiff Castle, replacing it with a state of the art nuclear power station.


 * Ms Blaine was keen to stress that fears over the safety of the 'Blaidd Drwg' Project were groundless. She also assured environmentalists that ecological considerations were at the top of the agenda, and demonstrated her commitment to green issues by sponsoring a dolphin.


 * Goronwy Sieneyn of the Pan-Wales Culture, History, Sport, Industry and Heritage Institute later issued a supporting statement. He stressed that, while the castle was a notable landmark, it was, nonetheless, a symbol of English oppression.


 * "A lovely brand spanking new power station puts industry - very literally - at the heart of this fine city. Next to all the shops."


 * The outcry that first greeted rumours of the 'Blaidd Drwg' nuclear power project has become considerably more muted in recent weeks.


 * This may reflect the success of a 'softly softly' approach from the new mayor towards local activists and the environmental lobby.


 * However, as reported this week, the 'Summit on the Summit' - a picnic meeting on Snowdonia, where protestors were encouraged to air their views - ended in tragedy when the train carrying the delegates was derailed by an aggressive sheep. Ms Blaine expressed her deepest sympathies.


 * The new Lord Mayor described the project as a 'real coup' for the people of Cardiff. Joking that she had no desire to re-open the notorious divide between North and South Wales, she did want to point out that although Trawsfynydd had been mothballed, North Wales still had Wylfa. A power station in the heart of Cardiff 'made the score one-all!' quipped the new Lord Mayor.


 * She also revealed that at one point, Wales had nearly lost the project to the newly established Independent Republic of Cornwall, which would have been 'unthinkable.'

The Lady Mayor Vanishes: Blaidd Drwg future in doubt
Cathy Salt reported for the Western Mail on the disappearance of Mayor Blaine. The story was continued on page two, with Mayor Blaine's last interview published on the central pages. (PROSE: "The Lady Mayor Vanishes")


 * Police have appealed for anyone with information on the whereabouts of Mrs Margaret Blaine, Cardiff's newly invested Mayor, to come forward as soon as possible. It is understood that additional officers have been drafted in from nearby forces to assist in the extensive search.


 * Mayor Blaine, 56, had earlier hosted a launch party for the Blaidd Drwg nuclear project planned for central Cardiff. While in development, the project has been affected by a series of unfortunate accidents including the death of its architect. Fears were expressed last night that Mrs Blaine may have become the latest victim of the "curse" of Blaidd Drwg.


 * But members of the public and protestors against Blaidd Drwg are already suggesting that the project should be suspended - and Cardiff Castle reprieved - until it is known what has happened to the city's Mayor.


 * Callers to Abigail Crowe's popular Dark Talk radio phone-in show were mostly hostile, with Owen Harper calling Blaine "obviously deranged" and her plan for a nuclear power station in the heart of Cardiff "bonkers".


 * A spokesman for the Mayor's office, Idris Hopper, told the Western Mail that Mrs Blaine...

Behind the scenes
While the majority of the front page featured in Boom Town remains illegible, the complete front page of the paper was uploaded as a graphic to the Series 4 version of the Doctor Who website.