A former Times of Malta editor has shared his memories of ‘Black Monday’, when political arsonists set the newspaper’s building ablaze while staff were still inside.
Victor Aquilina, who worked at the newspaper from 1963 to 2003, was present at Strickland House when a mob of Labour supporters stormed in and set the premises on fire in October 1979.
“Many of the workers climbed down the ladder… literally, the main staircase was falling,” recalled Aquilina, now 83, in an interview with journalist Marc Galdes.
He vividly remembers the bravery of one colleague who rolled away large drums filled with chemicals before the flames could reach them, an act that may have prevented a deadly explosion.
But what cut deepest, Aquilina said, was the reaction outside. “People I knew, leading party men, were genuinely satisfied the paper was burning. We were met with Labour supporters clapping. And that, to them, was the end of the Times of Malta.”
State broadcaster Xandir Malta described the blaze – the largest since World War II – merely as “a small fire.”
Victor Aquilina sharing a light moment with journalist Marc Galdes.Aquilina also reflected on another dark episode: the day he was thrown into a police cell and treated “like a criminal” after refusing to reveal his sources following an incident in Floriana.
Rising through the ranks, Aquilina became editor in 1993, earning a reputation for pushing local news to the forefront of the paper’s coverage. He later authored a book on Black Monday.
Times of Malta is marking its 90th anniversary with a series of interviews featuring former staff and prominent people.