Read All About It! (Metro)

Member Name: lynton1983

Product:	Metro
Date:	22/05/09 (23 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: It saves me buying another paper in the morning,

Disadvantages: Not being available on the one weekend in six I have to work.

The Metro is a free newspaper available daily throughout the regular working week (not weekends or bank holidays) that is generally aimed at commuters using public transport. The paper is listed as being distributed in Bath, Birmingham, Brighton, Bristol, Cardiff, Derby, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Nottingham, Newcastle and Sheffield however I pick up my copy in Coventry so it is also available in other areas.

It is generally found at various train stations as well as tube stations on the London Underground and I am able to get my copy from most busses in Coventry.

I have to say that as far as free newspapers go it is absolutely brilliant and generally provides me with enough material to fill the two to three hours I spend travelling each day. This is providing I get a copy as I sometimes find that if I leave for work later than usual (nearer 10am) then all copies have gone and I have to hope someone has left one lying around on the train (although this is littering!). This issue is however a distribution matter and only goes to show how popular the paper is.

In general I feel the paper is written with the intention of appealing to everyone. In my opinion it tends to be more light hearted than most main stream papers and has few in depth articles on serious matters. This is in no way meant as a criticism as the paper does manage to convey all news stories in an informative way.

A personal favourite aspect of the paper is the sports section. Football does tend to take up the majority of this section but the papers does cover all mainstream sports and I often find myself reading about sports I would ordinarily have no interest at all. This I take as a reflection of how well the paper is written and how interesting the vast majority of the articles tend to be.

As with most papers, the Metro has a number of sections that appear daily. These include:

60 Second Interview - a brief question and answer session, usually with a celebrity but sometimes with somebody who might be deemed as having something interesting to say - such as Ed Cooke, a "memory grandmaster" (Metro 20/05/09). It is very rare that I don't read this section and it is usually informative and interesting.

The Ridiculant which includes pieces on "stuff we found down the back of the internet". This is not one of my favourite sections as they seem to have some fixation with cats (!?) and feature a number of articles on them - something which I generally have no interest in whatsoever.

Guilty Pleasures - Usually a 2 page spread on the important events and issues surrounding celebrities. A good section if you're interested in that kind of thing!

Metrocosm - An article on science and discovery that is often very interesting and sometimes quite confusing.

A TV guide that not only includes TV listings but reviews some programmes from the previous evening as well as some programmes due to be aired that day. I find the reviews well written and informative and often read them about programmes I didn't watch or having any intention of watching.

Start The Day - Includes cartoon strips, a sudokus and other puzzles as well as a mini quiz and your horoscope or "Metroscope" as they cleverly put it!

There is also another personal favourite of mine - the letters page. It's always interesting to read people's views on matters (!) and there are usually a few humorous and witty comments to read.

The paper also regularly includes reviews on new film releases, music, travel, the arts and local restaurants. The film release and restaurant reviews I particularly take interest in and as a result I have watched films and eaten in restaurants that I might not have done and have yet to be disappointed.

The paper does contain a large amount of adverts and I guess this is how it is funded. However I don't think this is a particularly negative aspect and I find a lot of them relevant to me and worth a read.

Overall I think this is an excellent all round paper leaving me with absolutely no need to buy another in the morning. Although not quite the end of the world, I am always disappointed when I don't manage to get a copy on the bus or before getting on the train and I miss it on the odd weekend that I have to work.

Summary: An excellent paper at no cost.