WH SMITH PLC PURCHASES OF SHARES DURING CLOSED PERIOD

WH Smith PLC (the "Company") announces that it has entered into an arrangement with J.P. Morgan Securities plc, acting through its UK investment bank ("J.P. Morgan Cazenove"). The arrangement allows J.P. Morgan Cazenove to purchase, together with any other ordinary shares in the Company (the "Shares") purchased on the Company's behalf pursuant to its buyback programme, ordinary shares in the Company up to £5,000,000.  The buy-back will occur during its closed period commencing on 02 January 2019 and ending on 22 January 2019. The Company has entered into an agreement with J.P. Morgan Cazenove under which it has issued an irrevocable instruction to J.P. Morgan Cazenove to manage the share buyback programme. J.P. Morgan Cazenove will carry out the instruction through the acquisition of ordinary shares in the Company for subsequent repurchase by the Company.

Any share purchases effected pursuant to the arrangement will be subject to the terms of the arrangement with J.P. Morgan Cazenove and in any case will be effected in a manner consistent with both the general authority vested in the Company to repurchase shares and Chapter 12 of the United Kingdom Listing Rules, which require that the maximum price paid be limited to be no more than the higher of (i) 105 per cent of the average middle market closing price of the Company's ordinary shares for the five business days before the purchase is made, and (ii) the higher of the price of the last independent trade and the highest current independent bid on the trading venue where the purchase is carried out. The sole purpose of these share purchases is to reduce the Company's share capital.