Archive intro
The eyebrow, title, and standfirst on the homepage archive header, sourced from a Ghost page with slug archive-intro. Optional — falls back to the built-in copy when the page doesn't exist.
The archive intro is the header that sits above the chronological story grid on your homepage — a small uppercase kicker, a large title, and an italic standfirst line beneath it. Out of the box it reads "Earlier reporting / The newsroom, day by day / A chronological archive of every story filed by our reporters and columnists." You can replace all three from Ghost without touching theme code, by creating a single page.
This is entirely optional. If you never create the page, the built-in wording shown above stays exactly as it is.
How it's composed
The header has three parts, all sourced from one Ghost page with slug archive-intro:
| Page field | Slot in the header | Notes |
|---|---|---|
title | Main heading | Required — a Ghost page always has a title, so this is always used. |
meta_description (Meta description) | Eyebrow kicker | Optional — falls back to "Earlier reporting" when left blank. |
custom_excerpt (Excerpt) | Italic standfirst | Optional — falls back to the built-in sentence when left blank. |
The page itself is just a content source for the homepage header — you don't need to link it anywhere.
Setting it up
The page in Ghost
Previewing the header
Create the page
In Ghost Admin, go to Pages → New page.
Set the title
The page title becomes the large heading on the archive header. Type the heading you want, e.g. "The newsroom, day by day".
Set the slug to archive-intro
In Page settings, set the Page URL to archive-intro. The page does not need to be linked from your navigation.
Set the eyebrow and standfirst
Still in Page settings:
- Meta data → Meta description — the small uppercase kicker above the heading. Leave blank to keep "Earlier reporting".
- Excerpt — the italic standfirst line below the heading. Leave blank to keep the built-in sentence.
Reverting to the built-in copy
There's no theme setting toggle — the Ghost page is the toggle:
- Set the page to draft — the header reverts to the built-in copy until you re-publish.
- Delete the page — the built-in copy returns permanently.
- Clear a single field (Excerpt or Meta description) — just that part falls back to its built-in default, while your custom title stays.
What's not here
The archive intro is intentionally three short fields. If you want more:
- A note in the homepage sidebar — use the Editor's note panel.
- Rich rows with images and cards — use a homepage section.
- A section archive heading — tag pages take their title and standfirst straight from the tag's own name and description in Ghost, so edit those on the tag itself.
Editor's note
A short italic note in the homepage secondary aside, sourced from a Ghost page with slug editors-note. Optional — hides itself when the page doesn't exist.
Persistent video player
Keep a started video playing in a mini-player as readers move between pages — how it works, the settings, members-only videos, accessibility, and analytics.