Holding(s) in Company

Smith WH PLC
14 August 2003


                  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 13 AUGUST 2003

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 13 AUGUST 2003

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

     14 AUGUST 2003

12)  Total holding following this notification

     14,076,067
                    
13)  Total percentage holding of issued class following this notification

     5.62%

14)  Any additional information



15)  Name of contact and telephone number for queries

     A LAM [phone]

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

     Date of Notification         14 AUGUST 2003




Letter to Smith (WH) Plc
Dated August 13, 2003


Amendment #24

NOTIFICATIONS UNDER SECTIONS 198 TO 202 -- U.K. COMPANIES ACT

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

2.     Notifiable Interest: Ordinary Shares

           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.)

           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) (h) 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 and efficiency. 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 (WH) Plc                                  Amendment # 24


                   SHARES HELD     MANAGEMENT    NOMINEE/REGISTERED NAME
                                   COMPANY       
(Ordinary Shares)
                     
                         2,300     FMRCO         JP Morgan Chase
                         1,500     FMTC          State Street Nominees Ltd
                     8,953,107     FISL          Chase Nominees Limited
                        89,829     FPM           RBS Trust Bank
                       309,500     FPM           Bank of New York Europe
                       150,359     FPM           Nortrust Nominees Ltd
                        27,700     FPM           BT Globenet Nominees Ltd
                        58,000     FPM           MSS Nominees Ltd
                       175,790     FPM           Citibank
                       597,650     FIL           RBS Trust Bank
                       372,440     FIL           Chase Nominees Ltd
                       375,628     FIL           Nortrust Nominees Ltd
                       229,029     FIL           Morgan Stanley
                        53,700     FIL           Bankers Trust
                       712,504     FIL           Northern Trust
                        45,240     FIL           Citibank
                       817,662     FIL           Bank of New York - London
                       399,010     FIL           JP Morgan
                       408,219     FIL           Chase Manhattan Bank London
                        62,300     FIL           State Street Bank & Trust
                       163,000     FIL           State Street Nominees Ltd
                        73,900     FIL           Bank of New York Brussels



TOTAL ORDINARY SHARES:                 14,076,067

CURRENT OWNERSHIP PERCENTAGE:          5.62%

SHARES IN ISSUE:                       250,437,430

CHANGE IN HOLDINGS SINCE LAST FILING:  (3,247,706) ordinary shares



Letter from Fidelity Management & Research Company


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