Legendary journalist, broadcaster and thriller writer Freddie Forsyth announces his retirement from the Daily Express today after more than two blockbusting decades writing one of Fleet Street’s best-informed and most widely-read columns.

The Day of the Jackal author, who will file his final column on Friday as he marks his 85th birthday, admitted it was with a sense of regret that he was bidding farewell to Express readers.

He said: “It is now time to step back and retire and that must include saying a fond goodbye to the column.”

While the Friday column will pass to fellow Express stalwart Leo McKinstry, Forsyth hopes to remain a contributor to this newspaper, for which he has filed since the Sixties when his dispatches from the Nigerian Civil War revealed the suffering of the Biafran people.

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Gary Jones, Express editor-in-chief, said: “I know readers will join me in wishing Freddie all the best for the future and thanking him for his long-service on behalf of the Daily Express.

“His brilliant, incisive weekly column, and frequent dispatches and features, have been a must-read in the corridors of power and everywhere else for more than two decades.

“It’s the end of an era and we wish him and his family well.”

McKinstry said: “The Express has been an integral part of my life for more than 28 years, ever since I wrote my first column back in January 1995 and it is wonderful to have a new platform to continue writing for the paper.

“I join readers and the Express staff in wishing Freddie the very best wishes for his retirement.

“He leaves behind a rich, inspirational legacy.”

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