Murdoch prepares to pull out of Wapping

Rupert Murdoch is planning to move his newspapers from Wapping, a location he made synonymous with industrial strife and the new technology.

Mr Murdoch revolutionised journalism when he moved The Times, The Sunday Times, The Sun and the News of the World to Wapping in 1986. But, in locking out 4,000 print and production workers, the plant was surrounded by pickets day and night as computers and lower staffing levels took the place of traditional production methods.

A newsletter sent to members of the News International staff association at Wapping, east London, confirmed that the News International chairman was considering relocating the newspapers.

It said: "The company is still exploring options to move from Wapping to another site. An announcement is expected soon but the likelihood is that it will be in the company's interest to move. The timescale is four or five years away, NI management assures us."

A News International spokesman said: "We do not have any firm plans. We are always looking at any opportunity to develop or improve our products."

When News International papers do move, it is likely to be to Convoys Wharf, in Deptford, south London. Earlier this year, it was revealed Mr Murdoch had commissioned Lord Rogers, the architect of the Millennium Dome, to redevelop a 40-acre site there.

While the move of base would cash in on rising property prices in the Wapping area, it would alarm journalists at the four newspapers, who would be moving further from central London.