The four-hour time difference between Rio and the UK, combined with some late evening start times, mean that crucial events involving Team GB athletes or high-profile stars like Usain Bolt have been coming to a conclusion in the early hours of the morning.
Last weekend the Mail on Sunday produced a special 3.30am edition including news of Mo Farah’s dramatic gold medal winning run in the 10,000 metres. Andy Murray’s gold medal match in the tennis also ran on until the early hours of the Monday morning.
Dan Scott, circulation operations director at Mail Newspapers, said: “There’s a lot of background work and it starts with editorial having an agreed plan of later shifts around the big events. We plan ahead to run the presses longer with extra editions, extra delivery vehicles, and an extended agreement for getting the copies into wholesale.”
Scott said that production schedules were effectively “squeezed at both ends”, but the end result was worth it.
“We’re delivering later to retailers but with the best possible stories in the paper. It works very well and helps newspapers stay relevant,” he added.
The Mail titles are being printed at the media group’s own Harmsworth Printing sites in Thurrock and Didcot, as well as being contract printed at Trinity Mirror Oldham and Newsquest in Glasgow.
The Daily Mail has an average circulation of 1.55 million and the Mail on Sunday 1.35 million in the latest ABCs.
News UK has also been producing late editions across its titles to provide coverage of the Olympics.
Steve Whitehead, managing director of the group’s Newsprinters sites in Broxbourne, Knowsley and Motherwell, said: “Our capabilities mean that The Sun, The Times, The Sun on Sunday and The Sunday Times are able to be on the newsstands covering high profile events that the public want to read about."
The Sun is the UK's biggest-selling newspaper with an average daily circulation of 1.73 million.
“Utilising our press firepower at Newsprinters and our distribution capabilities, we have provided 3am print edition coverage during the games, including coverage of the opening ceremony, news of Adam Peaty’s swimming gold medal and an extensive round up of Super Saturday including Mo Farah’s 10,000m triumph," Whitehead added.
Scott said that further special editions were planned for today (Friday 19 August) and to cover the culmination of the games over the weekend as well as Monday’s closing ceremony.
