The News of the World has launched a beta version of its website redesign.

The version is being used to test the new look, which introduces a slightly wider page size, an overhead navigation bar and a reduced left-hand navigation menu.

The redesign brings NOTW.co.uk more in line with the recently revamped Sun website.

The ‘below the fold’ section of the homepage is significantly tidier with less content, stronger section headings and clearer dividing lines between them.

A section devoted to six of the best stories from the NOTW’s archive also makes its debut on the right-hand side of the homepage – a feature that used in varying ways across the site’s sections.

Usurping the current ‘sell your story for cash’ ad, is the site’s enhanced video player, which no longer launches in a separate window.

The video player looks striking with its black background and cleaner with a reduced number of content tabs. A built-in video search tool is a welcome addition. Video isn’t yet embedded into the site’s article pages.

There’s more depth to the new design: news, sport and other sections have their own pages and a presence away from the homepage.