Was George Osborne sloppy second to City AM editor?

Following the announcement that George Osborne is the new editor of the Evening Standard, the BBC’s media editor Amol Rajan was quick to brand the appointment ‘a remarkable move that will dazzle the worlds of politics and media’.

But — as dazzling as it may or may not be — did Evgeny Lebedev only turn to George Osborne after the editor of London’s rival free sheet rebuffed his advances? Word reaches Steerpike that it was City AM‘s Christian May who was first approached — but decided to stay put in his current role rather than jump ship.

While May has not responded to Mr S’s request for comment — should Osborne need any advice on his new role, Steerpike hopes he will prove more forthcoming. After all, May knows a thing or two about diving in at the deep end in journalism — he worked in communications before being appointed editor of the paper.