How YOU helped the Daily Mail make history: After 125 years, the paper’s army of loyal readers has propelled it to the summit of Fleet St. Now, to celebrate its birthday next week, read the inspiring story of Britain’s favourite newspaper

A shiver of anticipation ran through the British archaeologists as they slowly descended the sand-covered steps and passed through a sealed door.

After five years excavating in the Valley of the Kings, Howard Carter and his sponsor, Lord Carnarvon, had feared their dream of unearthing treasures buried for 3,000 years was doomed.

Now, on this day in November 1922, the pair believed they might, in fact, be on the brink of a remarkable discovery. 

Digging through a rubble-filled passageway, they came across a second door. Cutting a small hole in it, Carter nervously held a candle to the opening.

Possessing an unsurpassed instinct for public opinion, Alfred Harmsworth’s mission was to deliver bright, invigorating, news into millions of homes. To do this, he adhered to a set of fundamental principles. Inform and amuse. Hold forceful views. Embrace family, common sense, sound money and patriotism

At first, there was only darkness. Then, in the flickering light, a wondrous vision: Everywhere the glint of gold. Shrines, chariots, life-sized statues, jewellery. For this was none other than the tomb of King Tutankhamun.

Thousands of miles from Egypt’s sun-baked burial grounds, Britain was shivering in winter gloom. But as news of the discovery broke, the public’s imagination caught fire. 

To the envy of its rivals, one newspaper carried a spellbinding first-person account written by Lord Carnarvon, in which he described locating ‘the most wonderful works of Egyptian art ever found’.

It was a journalistic zinger, marking a milestone in history. And it was on the front page of the Daily Mail.

Indeed, you can read the Earl of Carnarvon’s dispatch in today’s paper, on the front of the eight-page pullout in the centre pages. It’s the first of six special supplements (continuing on Monday) in which we’ll celebrate the finest reporting and iconic photography that have illuminated our pages for more than a century — all presented in the style of the modern Daily Mail.

The story begins at a time when Queen Victoria was entering her seventh decade on the throne. 

Prime Minister Lord Salisbury had ordered a military campaign to thwart French expansionism in Sudan, and Britain’s first car factory opened — as did Blackpool Pleasure Beach.

To the envy of its rivals, one newspaper carried a spellbinding first-person account written by Lord Carnarvon, in which he described locating ‘the most wonderful works of Egyptian art ever found’. It was a journalistic zinger, marking a milestone in history. And it was on the front page of the Daily Mail

It was on the morning of May 4, 1896, that a newspaper revolution began. The first copies of the Mail rattled off the presses and onto the streets. Launched by Alfred Harmsworth, the genius pioneer who later became Lord Northcliffe, it would become one of the greatest success stories in journalism.

Bold, energising and radical, his paper would have a profound impact on life in the UK — shaping and improving it. Indeed, the Mail can genuinely claim to have changed the course of history.

As the 19th Century faded, the newspaper market was torn between two unappealing extremes: the deferential and dull Establishment publications and the lurid sensationalism of the ‘penny dreadfuls’.

Harmsworth seized upon the chance to challenge this mediocre duopoly. His aim? To give a voice to a growing middle class of educated workers — typified by the suburban clerk — who were eager to read and understand the momentous events of the day.

Possessing an unsurpassed instinct for public opinion, Harmsworth’s mission was to deliver bright, invigorating, news into millions of homes.

To do this, he adhered to a set of fundamental principles. Inform and amuse. Hold forceful views. Embrace family, common sense, sound money and patriotism.

As one of his journalistic contemporaries remarked: ‘He saw that very few people wanted politics, while a very large number wanted to be entertained, diverted, relieved a little while from the pressure or tedium of their everyday affairs.’

And what a potent elixir he brewed. By the start of the Boer War, circulation had soared above a million — higher than any newspaper in the world. It now packed a punch of unparalleled power — and was dismissed by the Establishment at its peril.

Like a thread running through a tapestry, Harmsworth’s elemental philosophy remains unchanged over the past 125 years — motivating and propelling the Mail.

In honour of our forebears, we will continue to keep watch over politicians, influence the minds of leaders, tackle the woolly- minded intransigence of penpushers and change the thinking of governments

From our very first edition, we have been in the vanguard of every major story, at home or abroad.

Exposing corruption, wrongdoing and hypocrisy. Fighting for the causes our readers hold dear. And — while unashamedly flying the flag for the Conservative cause — robustly questioning any government that falls short on its promises or propriety.

Despite sneers from the trendy bien pensant, we have never deviated from championing the underdog.

Strengthened by a hard-fought reputation for reliability and authenticity, we have encapsulated in words and pictures the most shocking scandals, heartbreaking tragedies, dramatic occasions and uplifting triumphs.

We have striven to transport our loyal readers from dining tables, Tube carriages, offices and pubs into the centre of seismic events — wherever on the Planet they occur. With a vitality and panache that outstrips our rivals, we have placed ourselves — on behalf of and thanks to you — at the heart of history.

And what a history! Flick through old, sepia-tinted copies of the Mail and the landmarks stand out. Arguably, though, the paper has most visibly exercised its influence in times of national conflict.

During World War I, for instance, we stood alone on Fleet Street in denouncing complacent politicians and incompetent generals for sending British soldiers to be butchered in their tens of thousands because they had been given the wrong artillery shells.

The result? Unprecedented Cabinet-level condemnation. Copies of the Mail burned by jeering crowds. The Press Lord hanged in effigy. And circulation dropping a million copies in a day.

But the paper’s conviction, in the face of near-universal opprobrium, was justified.

Confronted with mounting public anger, the Government fell. Lloyd George took over, re-equipped the Army and Britain won (and Germany struck a bronze ‘hate medal’ of Northcliffe acknowledging his part in their defeat).

In the century since, we have continued to highlight the frequent appalling betrayal by penny-pinching ministers and top brass of those willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for their country.

Only by poking our nose where it wasn’t wanted did the public learn of soldiers sent into battle with faulty rifles and poorly-protected Snatch Land Rovers in Iraq and Afghanistan. Of the hideously injured being denied proper compensation. Of the relentlessly cruel witch-hunt against veterans.

And from Lady Sarah Wilson, the first woman war correspondent, sending dispatches from besieged Mafeking in 1899, to Richard Pendlebury’s unrivalled accounts of operations in Helmand and Ross Benson’s dazzling reporting from Baghdad, the Mail has brought the carnage and comradeship of the battlefield back home — unvarnished.

Such brilliant writing, intertwined with photographic power, has brought every earth-shaking event in the past 125 years vividly to life.

The Great Depression of the 1930s. The abdication of King Edward VIII. The coronation, 17 years later, of Queen Elizabeth II, who remains the nation’s lodestar.

The assassination of John F. Kennedy. England winning the World Cup in 1966. The jailing of the Krays and the hunt for the Yorkshire Ripper. The toppling of the Berlin Wall, recounted in evocative detail by Dame Ann Leslie.

Our proud record of direct action stretches from airlifting Vietnamese orphans out of the cauldron of Saigon in the 1970s, to raising awareness of prostate cancer and mobilising a volunteer army to rid our countryside of the scourge of litter and help free our planet of the environmental menace of plastic

The peerless Vincent Mulchrone, who wrote of the lying in state of Sir Winston Churchill, ‘Two rivers run silently through London tonight, and one is made of people’. A sublime piece of journalism.

The rise and fall of prime ministers. Notable births, marriages and deaths. The biggest and best scoops, all lit up in journalistic technicolour.

There have also been light-hearted stunts to attract publicity and entertain the public, such as the search for the Loch Ness Monster in the 1930s and the hunt for the Yeti in the Himalayas in the early 1950s.

But as well as 125 years of news, the Mail’s ground-breaking campaigns have made us a formidable force for good.

In 1911, our drive to improve British bread standards saved lives. Since then, our role as the crusading paper has grown.

Our proud record of direct action stretches from airlifting Vietnamese orphans out of the cauldron of Saigon in the 1970s, to raising awareness of prostate cancer and mobilising a volunteer army to rid our countryside of the scourge of litter and help free our planet of the environmental menace of plastic. 

Over years of launching appeals to help those in need or danger, you — our compassionate readers — have never let us down.

Without exception, your generosity — whether donating money or giving up valuable time to volunteer — has been unfailing.

For all those former glories, the extraordinary response to Mail Force has possibly been the finest hour. The total raised to provide life-saving PPE to frontline health and care workers during the pandemic, and more recently to give laptops to deprived youngsters via Computers for Kids, has reached a truly staggering £25 million in cash and equipment — making it the most successful newspaper campaign in history.

And the one before that? The Mail campaign to help Sri Lanka get back on its feet after being pulverised by the 2004 tsunami.

Together, down the decades, we have taken the powerful to task, made them sit up and take notice of injustice, and — crucially — right scandalous wrongs.

The number of lives touched and changed for the better is immeasurable. From the beginning, the Mail has also helped to set the social and technological agenda.

A quarter of a century before the Black Lives Matter protests took to the streets, this paper battled to bring justice for murdered teenager Stephen Lawrence.

The Mail’s memorial issues include the death of Princess Diana in 1997 and 9/11 in September 2001

Our very first edition had a women’s page — derided by other journals who regarded female readers as beneath consideration.

But as modern life blossomed, it gave women an influential voice.

From the Suffragettes campaigning for equal rights, to the increasing influence of women in politics, science, business and sport, we have been with them every step of the way.

No paper has been as far-thinking on innovation. As the telegraph gave way to the radio, television and internet, we embraced every advance in communication.

By installing the latest equipment in the Mail’s offices we could be first with news and pictures — domestic and international.

In our inaugural issue we predicted, with striking foresight, the rise of the motor car — then much mocked. But within years, it would be — and remains — the essential means of transport for the vast majority of Britons. (Indeed, when in 1909 motor taxis began to deprive hansom cab drivers of their livings — not unlike the modern battle between black cabbies and Uber drivers — the Mail raised money for their families and organised instruction in handling a car for 500 first-time drivers.)

In aviation, this paper’s influence was insuperable. Recognising the importance of this fledgling technology, Lord Northcliffe offered cash prizes to encourage rapid progress.

Bleriot, who flew the Channel in 1909, and Alcock and Brown, who crossed the Atlantic ten years on, did so to claim the money.

Later, we would commission a prototype of the Blenheim Bomber that made a valiant contributon to winning the Battle of Britain — one of this country’s defining hours.

It is no idle boast: no other newspaper has contributed more to progress.

Indeed, MailOnline was launched in 2003, and thanks to its dynamic, engaging, exclusive content and editorial excellence, it has grown to be one of the world’s largest English-speaking newspaper websites; read by hundreds of millions of global unique users every day.

Meanwhile, the Daily Mail launched Mail Plus, a digital subscription in October 2013, bringing a new way of reading the daily newspaper on a digital device.

The Mail’s digital edition now has more than 70,000 digital-only subscribers who read for more than 20 minutes a day, and can play dozens of interactive puzzles on their tablet. The newspaper’s member loyalty programme, MyMail, has more than 400,000 active members.

And so to today — 125 years after Alfred Harmsworth set the printing presses rolling, the Mail is still going strong.

Cracking exclusives. Unmissable columnists. Brilliant features and analysis. And trail-blazing sport. Award after award.

Last year, we surged past The Sun as the nation’s favourite newspaper — a seminal achievement. It is, above all, a glorious endorsement from our cherished readers.

But we cannot — and will not — rest on our laurels. In recent weeks alone, we have uncovered a string of controversies that have left Boris Johnson and No 10 reeling.

We have held ministerial feet to the fire on the vaccine rollout and the roadmap out of lockdown to freedom.

We have highlighted the scandal of heartless and illogical Covid rules causing distress at funerals and care homes. And much, more besides.

In honour of our forebears, we will continue to keep watch over politicians, influence the minds of leaders, tackle the woolly- minded intransigence of penpushers and change the thinking of governments.

And to tackle the unknown challenges of the future, we’ll stay adaptable, fleet-footed — and fearlessly tenacious.

At the paper’s Golden Jubilee, Winston Churchill paid tribute to ‘this enormous, lasting, persuasive and attractive newspaper’.

He declared: ‘A new chapter was opened when the Daily Mail was founded.’

With you, our wonderfully loyal army of readers, we look forward to the next successful chapter.

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