Britain's News of the World went to press for the last time on Saturday, ending its 168-year history of scoops and scandal with the headline "Thank You and Goodbye."
In a full-page editorial published online, Britain's top-selling weekly tabloid apologised to readers for the phone hacking scandal that caused its closure, saying: "Quite simply, we lost our way."
But the row is far from over, and as owner Rupert Murdoch headed to London to take personal charge of dealing with the crisis, it was reported that police would soon be questioning one of his top British executives, Rebekah Brooks.
After an emotional final day on Saturday, News of the World editor Colin Myler led staff out of its offices in Wapping, east London for the last time.
"I want to pay tribute to this wonderful team of people here, who, after a really difficult day, have produced in a brilliantly professional way a wonderful newspaper," Myler told reporters outside.
More than 200 staff at the News of the World now face an uncertain future, and while Myler's comments sparked cheers, some people were in tears.
"As I said to staff this morning, this is not where we wanted to be and it not where we deserved to be. But as a final tribute to 7.5 million readers this (paper) is for you, and for the staff, thank you," Myler said.
"And now, in the best traditions of Fleet Street, we are going to the pub."
He held up the final front page, a wrap-around montage of some of the paper's best-known splashes and a simple message saying: "After 168 years, we finally say a sad but very proud farewell to our 7.5 million loyal readers."
Inside, a editorial highlighted a long history of scoops and campaigns, but admitted: "Phones were hacked, and for that this newspaper is truly sorry.
"There is no justification for this appalling wrong-doing. No justification for the pain caused to victims, nor for the deep stain it has left on a great history."
Meanwhile, Murdoch was due to arrive in Britain on Sunday, a source at his News Corp. said, to take charge of the phone hacking crisis which has threatened to contaminate other parts of his media empire.
The British government is due to decide soon on News Corp.'s controversial bid to take full control of satellite broadcaster BSkyB, but it was reported Sunday that opposition Labour leader Ed Miliband will try to hold a vote in parliament this week to suspend the deal.
Murdoch may also need to step in to defend Rebekah Brooks, the chief executive of his British newspaper division, News International.
The Sunday Telegraph reported that police wanted to question Brooks over what she knew about phone hacking and alleged illegal payments to police while she was editor of the News of the World from 2000 to 2003.
She has always denied wrongdoing and Murdoch has strongly backed her.
Her successor as editor, Andy Coulson, was arrested on Friday on suspicion of involvement in phone hacking and illegal police payments.
His arrest put pressure on Prime Minister David Cameron, who employed Coulson after he quit the News of the World in 2007, following the jailing of one of the paper's journalists and a private investigative over hacking.
Coulson has always denied wrongdoing, but he was forced to resign as Cameron's director of communications in January this year because of ongoing revelations. After his arrest on Friday, he was bailed until October.
The "Screws", as it is affectionately known, made its name with sensational scoops about sex, crime and celebrities, from kiss-and-tell stories by call girls to the revelation of corruption among Pakistani cricket players.
But it has been dogged by allegations of phone hacking for years and this week it was claimed that staff there hacked the voicemails of a murdered girl and the families of soldiers killed in Afghanistan and Iraq.
The fresh claims sparked widespread revulsion, led by Cameron, and proved the final straw for Murdoch, who made the shock announcement on Thursday that the newspaper would close.
Despite public anger, Britons are expected to the snap up the final copy of the paper as a souvenir and a News International source said the print run had been substantially increased. It normally sells some 2.6 million copies a week.
