Inspired.

The biggest design change I have ever seen is happening on Monday. That the Guardian (heretofore referred to as the best English-language newspaper ever) is switching from its current broadsheet size to the Berliner format has been known for quite a while. What wasn't known was how categorical and extreme the redesign would be.

In a word: Inspired. Brilliant. Extraordinary.

This is a make-or-break gambit for the Guardian; while other upmarket papers in Britain have seen substantial gains in readership when they switch down to the tabloid size, this is still seen as a risky move for the Guardian. Why? Because the Berliner is not a size most people are familiar with; there's concern over how it will fit in boxes and on newsstands; and because in a country filled with several national daily papers that are all now tabloid, it might've made sense to remain the one lasting broadsheet (ie: the Wall Street Journal here retaining its 15" width when everybody else is going the USA Today route down down down to 11.5"). Anyway, I think this is a stunning effort across the pond, and I do hope that the Guardian will have a great Ashes headline to mark the new era on Monday.