Holding in Company

Smith WH PLC
30 August 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 29 AUGUST 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 29 AUGUST 2001

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

     29 AUGUST 2001

12)  Total holding following this notification

     14,782,922
               
13)  Total percentage holding of issued class following this notification

     5.93%

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

     Date of Notification ...30 AUGUST 2001


LETTER TO SMITH (WH) PLC DATED 29 AUGUST 2001

Below are amended 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 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 below 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.

FROM FIDELITY INVESTMENTS

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) (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 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 No 4


                      SHARES HELD   MANAGEMENT   NOMINEE/REGISTERED
                                     COMPANY     NAME
(Ordinary Shares)          
                         512,100     FMRCO       Chase Nominees Limited
                          16,100     FMRCO       State Street Nominees Limited
                          41,000     FMTC        State Street Nominees Ltd
                         161,600     FMTC        HSBC, London
                          36,000     FMTC        National Cities
                          21,100     FMTC        Bank of New York - Europe    
                          17,802     FMTC        Nortrust Nominees
                       5,286,492     FISL        Clydesdale Bank (Head Office)
                                                 Nominees Limited
                         317,450     FPM         RBS Trust Bank
                         287,100     FPM         Bank of New York Europe
                           3,370     FPM         Nordea
                          53,160     FPM         Nortrust Nominees Ltd
                          55,200     FPM         BT Globenet Nominees Ltd
                         120,800     FPM         MSS Nominees Ltd
                         963,500     FPM         Chase Nominees Ltd
                          51,690     FPM         Citibank
                         806,456     FPM         Bankers Trust
                       1,048,949     FIL         RBS Trust Bank
                         149,400     FIL         Clydesdale Bank (Head Office)
                                                 Nominees Limited
                         677,800     FIL         Chase Nominees Ltd
                         474,734     FIL         Nortrust Nominees Ltd
                         207,629     FIL         Morgan Stanley
                          62,100     FIL         NAB-Australia
                          99,360     FIL         Bankers Trust
                         689,733     FIL         Northern Trust
                          81,687     FIL         Citibank     
                           7,300     FIL         State Street Bank & Trust
                           6,000     FIL         Credit Suisse
                         108,600     FIL         Bank of New York Europe
                           3,500     FIL         National Australia Bank
                         198,500     FIL         MSS Nominees Ltd
                       2,049,789     FIL         HSBC, London
                         121,650     FIL         BT Globenet Nominees Ltd
                           3,071     FIL         Deutsche Bank AG, London
                          36,500     FIL         Bank of New York - London
                           5,600     FIL         State Street Nominees Ltd

TOTAL ORDINARY SHARES:14,782,922

CURRENT OWNERSHIP PERCENTAGE:  5.93%

SHARES IN ISSUE:     249,319,145

CHANGE IN HOLDINGS SINCE
 LAST FILING:        (578,694) ORDINARY SHARES