Holding in Company

Smith WH PLC
23 February 2001

                  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 21 FEBRUARY 2001

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 21 FEBRUARY 2001 

5)   Number of shares/amount of stock acquired.



6)   ( N/A %) of issued Class

7)   Number of shares/amount of stock disposed



8)   ( N/A %) of issued Class

9)   Class of security

ORDINARY SHARES OF 55 5/9 PENCE EACH

10)  Date of transaction



11)  Date company informed

23 FEBRUARY 2001

12)  Total holding following this notification

15,361,616
               
              
13)  Total percentage holding of issued class following this notification

6.18%

14)  Any additional information



15)  Name of contact and telephone number for queries

W J THOMAS
01793 562919

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

     Date of Notification      23 FEBRUARY 2001
                               I HOUGHTON


LETTER TO SMITH (WH) PLC DATED 21 FEBRUARY 2001

Enclosed are amended notifications of disclosable interests under the UK
Companies Act 1985. Please note that while this information details the
disclosable interests of more than one entity, the enclosed disclosure
constitutes separate notifications of interest which have been combined solely
for the purposes of clarity 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 was 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.

For queries contact Stephen P Carr at [phone], fax: [phone].

LETTER FROM FIDELITY INVESTMENTS


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

(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 UK, 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. 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 Johnston 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.


Eric D Roiter


Schedule A  
Security: Smith (W H) Plc
                                  MANAGEMENT
                   SHARES HELD     COMPANY    NOMINEE/REGISTERED NAME
(Ordinary Shares)
                         1,207,100  FMRCO     Chase Nominees Limited
                            45,100  FMRCO     State Street Nominees Limited
                            40,000   FMTC     State Street Nominees Ltd
                           373,200   FMTC     HSBC, London
                            50,400   FMTC     Bank of New York- Europe
                            32,302   FMTC     Nortrust Nominees
                         5,805,740   F1SL     Clydesdale Bank (Head Office)     
                                              Nominees Limited
                            42,500    FPM     Gracechurch Nominees
                            64,950    FPM     RBS Trust Bank
                            55,500    FPM     Bank of New York Europe
                            63,160    FPM     Nortrust Nominees Ltd
                            91,600    FPM     BT Globenet Nominees Ltd
                            89,700    FPM     MSS Nominees Ltd
                           756,600    FPM     Chase Nominees Ltd
                           293,500    FPM     RBS Trust Bank
                            61,190    FPM     Citibank
                           456,941    FPM     Bankers Trust
                            95,300    FIL     Chase Nominees Ltd
                           929,699    FIL     RBS Trust Bank
                           152,580    FIL     Clydesdale Bank (Head Office)     
                                              Nominees Limited
                           378,900    FIL     Chase Nominees Ltd
                           458,734    FIL     Nortrust Nominees Ltd
                           136,200    FIL     Morgan Stanley
                           142,100    FIL     NAB-Australia
                           105,460    FIL     Bankers Trust
                           725,383    FIL     Northern Trust
                            95,387    FIL     Citibank
                            18,100    FIL     State Street Bank & Trust
                            14,600    FIL     Credit Suisse
                           104,600    FIL     Bank of New York Europe
                             7,100    FIL     National Australia Bank
                           288,600    FIL     MSS Nominees Ltd
                         2,082,219    FIL     HSBC London
                            90,000    FIL     BT Globenet Nominees Ltd
                             7,171    FIL     Deutsche Bank AG, London

Total Ordinary Shares   15,361,616

Current ownership percentage: 6.18%

Shares in issue:       248,725,626

Change in holdings since last filing:  +2,525,168 ordinary shares