16 OCTOBER 1959, Page 7

THE Sunday Times appears already to be the brighter for

its change of ownership : its leader page this week, instead of producing its quota of ponderous pieces by what the Irish call the 'cod' figures—men who can be relied upon to write tediously on almost any subject—had a sprightly forward-looking piece on 'tasks Parliament ought to tackle' which urged action on betting, Sunday observance, shop hours and licensing laws; good, liberal stuff. All of which suggests that the story that recently went the Fleet Street rounds is true : that Roy Thomson, attending his first editorial conference, told the assembled editors' staff, 'Don't pay any attention to me: I'm just an Observer.'

PHAROS