He was the driving force behind MailOnline, which he was responsible for building into the most popular newspaper website in the UK.
[1] Clarke rejoined the Mail group in 2001 as editor of Ireland on Sunday, which had been bought by Associated Newspapers.
[2] He played a part in building MailOnline into the most popular newspaper website in the UK, and second only to The New York Times worldwide.
[1] In December 2021 he said he wanted to leave his role to "pursue new challenges", but that he would "remain available" to the company until the end of 2022 to support it in its search for a new leader.
[2] In March 2023, The New European reported that Clarke was part of a consortium of investors that had unsuccessfully sought to buy MailOnline the previous year.