February 4, 2009
Guardian Weekend redesign
Much as I loved the highly praised Guardian redesign, one element always felt weak compared to the rest – Saturday’s Weekend magazine. A strange situation, seeing as how the newspaper became more magazine-like in many respects. How come the magazine itself got lost in the process?
Anyhow, seems the Guardian team, led by Mark Porter, realised that too. So last weekend it became the first part of the Guardian package to receive a revamp since the big 2005 redesign. The front cover is much stronger, with more scope for expression (above), and Mark has further spreads on bis own blog here.
Much improved, I think.
5 Comments
Comment on February 4, 2009 by Thomas says:
Sorry to be so horrible, but I can’t stand it. Its brash and lacks all the sophistication of the main paper and its various sections. We’re still missing that great Weekend magazine in this country I think…
Comment on February 4, 2009 by nitzan says:
I thought about blogging about this actually.
I didnt really think very much of the redesign.
I liked the nice typefaces on some of the headlines but something in the presentation(possibly the grid) seems to be pulling too much towards the times,daily telegraph and likes, which for me for the real tipping point in changing from the times to the observer on sundays.
Comment on February 5, 2009 by Kevin says:
Mm, I had a bit of Times-a-like dissonance, too. It does highlight how quaint the previous design was, but I didn’t really mind it. No to change!
Comment on February 5, 2009 by Matt says:
Hugely disappointing redesign. Ugly and clumsy. It dimply doesn’t work. It feels utterly unconnected to the Guardian and it’s micro-managed identity.
Comment on February 6, 2009 by Tim Holmes says:
I feel the same way as the last commentator. It doesn’t hang together and it reminded me of the Observer magazine. Many years ago the Times’s Saturday magazine was an outstanding example of what a newspaper supplement could achieve but sadly not even that lives up to its own heritage now.
