Achtung! Mirror surrenders in war of red tops

The rivalry between The Sun and The Mirror, which has enlivened Fleet Street for over 30 years, is officially over.

Philip Graf, the chief executive of The Mirror's parent company, Trinity Mirror, said yesterday that research undertaken by The Mirror showed that far fewer readers switched from one tabloid to another than was previously thought.

Speaking at the announcement of the group's results in London, he said that the real battle was to persuade occasional Mirror readers to buy the paper more often, rather than to expend energy on fighting The Sun.

That energy resulted in one of the best knockabout battles in recent newspaper history, between the Mirror editor Piers Morgan and The Sun's David Yelland. To the bewilderment of Mirror readers, Yelland, a B-list celebrity in the great scheme of things, has been ridiculed in the paper in stories such as "We've beamed up the alien" and a series focusing on famous bald people who "resemble" David Yelland.

The Sun, meanwhile, has puzzled its readers in turn by bringing out all its campaigning resources and thundering editorials over the matter of Mr Morgan's share dealings.

Mr Morgan said last night: "We have done research which shows that, contrary to popular mythology, we don't nick each other's readers. The problem is persuading existing readers to buy the paper more often. Also we are developing a strong brand of our own, quite radical and campaigning. I suppose we are a Daily Mail with a heart."

However, he added that the paper would still attack Mr Yelland for "knockabout" purposes. "I would hate to lose him as a figure of fun from the paper."

David Yelland said last night: "I have to say I think it's an admission that they have lost. Since 1969, when Rupert Murdoch and Larry Lamb set up The Sun, The Mirror have said they would overtake it. But the gap remains as big as it has been for years."

Trinity Mirror research showed that out of the 21 million total "red top" readers, only 0.6 million are long-term switchers.