Independent talent

The Independent has appointed 21 year old Mark Hughes, who is a University of Central Lancashire graduate, to be their northern correspondent.

Mark, who won a clean sweep of Press Gazette's awards earlier this year, graduated from UCLan with a BA in Newspaper Journalism.

He also spent his free time working for the News & Star in Carlilse. While at the paper he managed to sell his stories to a number of national titles, much to the amazement of his colleagues.

The Independent is currently edited by Simon Kelner, who also studied journalism at UCLan.

Mark's appointment can only add to the reputation of UCLan's journalism department, which last year sent a batch of newspaper graduates straight into The Sun.