'Politico' Launches London Playbook, Extends Franchise

Politico is bringing its morning politics-focused newsletter franchise to London. It will be the third dedicated city to get the newsletter, called Playbook, following the 2015 launch of Brussels Playbook and the original U.S. Playbook based in Washington D.C. and created in 2007.

Politico Europe executive editor Matthew Kaminski wrote in a May memo that the London Playbook represents “our desire to connect London’s political world — in particular as it looks to build a new future outside the single European market — with America, the EU and beyond (and vice-versa).”

Jack Blanchard, who has previously worked at The Daily Mirror, will author the London Playbook with support from Politico Europe's recently expanded U.K. team, which includes about six journalists.

Blanchard stated: “We plan to create a must-read morning briefing for people working in and around Westminster, which helps set the news agenda for the coming day.”

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The new morning newsletter will focus on London politics, policy and business. It will arrive in subscribers’ inboxes before 7 a.m. each weekday morning.

On Monday, the first edition covered the latest update on Brexit talks, U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May's response to North Korea's nuclear test, and panes of frosted glass erected at a restaurant popular with Parliament members, called The Adjournment, in  to deter snooping eyes.

John Harris, editor-in-chief and co-founder of Politico, told Financial Times the London Playbook launch is, in part, a response to increasing interest in U.K. politics following last year’s Brexit referendum.

In his memo, Kaminski said Playbook is part of Politico’s "steady" expansion in Britain this year. The London office added Annabelle Dickson as a political correspondent this spring, and Pete Cammidge and Rolant Glyn recently came on board on the sales side.

The London team also introduced a UK Election Tracker on the Apple Wallet, following a successful experiment with a similar product during the lead up to the Brexit referendum last June, he added.

Politico claims it has more than a quarter of a million Playbook readers worldwide.

Other publishers have made the leap across the pond with international expansions in 2017. Vox Media’s food site Eater introduced Eater London, its first digital publication based outside of North America, in July, and The Atlantic announced in March it was opening a new, London-based office called the Global Bureau.

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