Ill news comes apace

Proverbial Meaning: Bad news travels fast.

Literal Origins: People have a tendency to enjoy spreading bad news amongst the people they know, especially if the news is about someone they know. Apace is an old-fashioned way of saying quickly.

Common Usage: This proverb is used fairly often as the more modern variation, "Bad news travels fast" and usually quoted by the person who the bad news is about when  they try to tell someone their bad news and discover that their friend has already heard the bad news.