Holding in Company

Smith WH PLC
27 October 2000


                  DEALINGS BY SUBSTANTIAL SHAREHOLDERS


1)   NAME OF COMPANY

     WH SMITH PLC

2)   NAME OF SHAREHOLDER HAVING A MAJOR INTEREST

     EDWARD C JOHNSON 3RD
     PRINCIPAL SHAREHOLDER OF FMR CORP, AND
     FIDELITY INTERNATIONAL LIMITED

3)   Please state whether notification indicates that it is in respect of 
     holding of the Shareholder named in 2 above or in respect of a 
     non-beneficial interest or in the case of an individual holder if it is a
     holding of that person's spouse or children under the age of 18

     SEE LETTER BELOW DATED 24 OCTOBER 2000

4)   Name of the registered holder(s) and, if more than one holder, the 
     number of shares held by each of them.

     SEE LETTER BELOW DATED 24 OCTOBER 2000

5)   Number of shares/amount of stock acquired.

     N/A

6)   (N/A %) of issued Class

7)   Number of shares/amount of stock disposed

     N/A

8)   (N/A %) of issued Class

9)   Class of security

     ORDINARY SHARES OF 55 5/9 PENCE EACH

10)  Date of transaction

     N/A

11)  Date company informed

     27 OCTOBER 2000

12)  Total holding following this notification

     7,537,117
               
13)  Total percentage holding of issued class following this notification

     3.01%

14)  Any additional information



15)  Name of contact and telephone number for queries

     C A WHITE [phone]

16)  Name and signature of authorised company official responsible for 
     making this notification
                             
                               I HOUGHTON

     Date of Notification .... 27 OCTOBER 2000



Letter to Smith (WH) Plc
Letter dated October 24, 2000

Below are notifications of disclosable interests under the U.K. Companies Act
1985.  Please note that while this information details the disclosable interests
of more than one entity, the disclosure below constitutes separate notifications
of interest which have been combined solely for purposes of 
clarify and efficiency.  It is not intended to indicate that any of these
entities act as a group or in concert with respect to these interests.

These disclosures are made in the interest of conformity with the Companies Act.
 The Interest detailed herein were acquired solely for investment purposes.  For
disclosure purposes, holdings should be represented as FMR Corp. and its direct
and indirect subsidiaries, and Fidelity International Limited
(FIL) and its direct and indirect subsidiaries, both being non-beneficial
holders.

Letter from Stephen P. Carr
            Compliance Associate

NOTIFICATIONS UNDER SECTIONS 198 TO 202 -- UK COMPANIES ACT

1. Company in which shares are held:    SMITH (WH) Plc

2. Notifiable Interest:      Ordinary Shares

     A     FMR Corp
           82 Devonshire Street
           Boston, MA 02109

           Parent holding company of Fidelity Management & Research Company 
           (FMRCO), investment manager for US mutual funds, and Fidelity
           Management Trust Company (FMTC), a US state chartered bank which
           acts as a trustee or investment manager of various pension and
           trust accounts. (See Schedule A for listing of Registered            
          Shareholders and their holdings.)

     B     Fidelity International Limited (FIL)
           P.O. BOX HM 670
           Hamilton HMCX, Bermuda

           Parent holding company for various direct and indirect subsidiaries,
           including Fidelity Investment Services Ltd (FISL), and Fidelity
           Pension Management (FPM),investment managers for various non-US      
          investment companies and institutional clients. (See Schedule A for   
         listing of Registered Shareholders and their holdings).

3.     The notifiable interests also comprise the notifiable interest of

           Mr Edward C Johnson 3d
           82 Devonshire Street
           Boston, MA 02109

           Principal shareholder of FMR Corp. and Fidelity International        
          Limited.

4.     The notifiable interests include interest held on behalf of authorized
       unit trust schemes in the U.K. notwithstanding the exemption from 
       reporting pursuant to Section 209 (1) (e) of the Companies Act 1985.

5.     These notifications of disclosable interests constitute separate
       notifications of interest in the shares and are combined solely for 
       the purposes of clarity. Nothing herein should be taken to indicate 
       that FMR Corp. and its direct and indirect subsidiaries, 
       Fidelity International Limited and its direct and indirect subsidiaries
       or Mr Edward C Johnson 3d act as a group or in concert in respect of 
       the disclosed interests, or that they are required to submit these 
       notifications on a joint basis.

6.     The disclosable interests arise under section 208(4) (b) of the Act,
       namely where a person, not being the registered holder, is entitled
       to exercise a right conferred by the holding of the shares or to 
       control the exercise of such rights, or under section 203 of the Act
       respectively.


SCHEDULE A

SECURITY:  Smith (W H) Plc

           Shares Held  Management  Nominee/Registered Name
                         Company

(Ordinary Shares)

             1,637,300    FMRCO     Chase Nominees Limited
                55,700    FMRCO     State Street Nominees Limited
                40,000    FMTC      State Street Nominees Ltd.
               325,600    FMTC      Lloyds Bank Nominees Limited
                46,900    FMTC      Bank of New York Europe
                29,902    FMTC      Nortrust Nominees
             3,289,639    FISL      Clydesdale Bank (Head Office) Nominees Ltd.
                31,800    FPM       Gracechurch Nominees
                50,850    FPM       RBS Trust Bank
                36,900    FPM       Bank of New York Europe
                50,160    FPM       Nortrust Nominees Ltd.
                67,200    FPM       BT Globenet Nominees Ltd.
                17,000    FPM       MSS Nominees Ltd.
                84,500    FPM       Chase Nominees Ltd.
               226,800    FPM       RBS Trust Bank
                45,490    FPM       Citibank
                12,100    FIL       Chase Nominees Ltd.
               463,099    FIL       RBS Trust Bank
               149,400    FIL       Clydesdale Bank (Head Office) Nominees Ltd.
                28,600    FIL       Chase Nominees Ltd.
               192,934    FIL       Nortrust Nominees Ltd.
                86,000    FIL       Morgan Stanley
               102,573    FIL       NAB Australia
                67,760    FIL       Bankers Trust
               254,800    FIL       Northern Trust
                36,010    FIL       Citibank
                18,100    FIL       State Street Bank & Trust
                10,000    FIL       Credit Suisse
                72,900    FIL       Bank of New York Europe
                 7,100    FIL       National Australia Bank


Total Ordinary Shares:                    7,537,117

Current ownership percentage:                  3.01%

Shares in issue:                        250,761,932