Everyone Failed Them
The i Paper
And that’s exactly what this one about the Grenfell fire tragedy manages to achieve.
This poster front page tells the story simply, using just three words and 72 images. ‘Everyone failed them’.
It strips back the complexity of the 1,700-page inquiry report that had been published.
The victims were let down by everyone. It could be told as clearly as that. This design puts the human faces of the tragedy front and centre. A familiar but almost forgotten tragedy seven years on from the fire in 2017.
Some other publications used the pictures of victims, but none so powerfully.
The impact and crucial originality comes from splitting the pictures into 2 blocks and running a simple, striking headline in the centre which holds the design together with such clarity. No other publisher did this – they used the pictures in one conventional grid.
The idea was always to mark the publication of the long-awaited Grenfell report with a fitting treatment and gravitas.
Choosing to represent each of the 72 deaths – not just the 65 people whose pictures were released – felt important.
We deliberated at length over the headline, wanting to put the victims at the heart to accompany the powerful but unbearably sad images of their mostly smiling faces. There were so many strong words and lines to choose from on the day but we chose our own original words – a summation of the evidence, rather than the words of the inquiry chairman or campaigners. The ‘white on black’ framing and text treatment lends an appropriately sombre tone.
As we set out to create the most striking design possible, we didn’t want to compromise on the size of the victim images, and resisted the temptation to shrink them to accommodate more words. This design allows for a poster feel, taking out almost the entire front page, but retaining other entry points. The space below i’s unique vertical masthead is elegantly used to promote other content inside the edition. There are also 3 ‘puffs’ at the foot of the page which subtly point readers to strong stories of interest, without detracting from the overall impact of the poster design. The Grenfell front was well received, prompting admiration and debate on television newspaper review shows, and reader engagement on social media channels and on our letters page the following day.
Staff who produce covers every day – often harsh judges - were truly proud of this memorable front page, which really stood out on the news stand.