There’s something so British about Private Eye and something so American about Vanity Fair but I have loved reading them both. I’ve always been a print junkie but even my consumption has declined.
I enjoyed this Jules and Tina Brown is a phenomenon isn’t she?
Yes I've always loved magazines. My earliest subscription was as a child - "Look In" then "Jackie" and "Smash Hits". I can remember the excitement of getting them from the news agent and poring over them! There's nothing like it - either reading end-to-end or going straight to your favourite section first!
Brown still has incredible energy - I really enjoy "Fresh Hell". It retains that mix of incisive political commentary, culture and hot issues - entertaining and enlightening.
Thanks for reading Margaret. My five-year business plan for The Dialectic is to achieve the same circulation as Vanity Fair under Brown's editorship. Do you think that's realistic? 🤔
Funny! It’s a good goal to aim for. Fresh Hell is great.
I started on Whizzer and Chips and Tammy, moved on to Look In, Smash Hits and Just 17 then Vogue and the big guns, The Face. I remember there was even a brief relaunch of Nova magazine which I loved too.
Whizzer and Chips! 😍 I was a Beryl the Peril fan. I once had an annual and I laughed so hard at her antics. "The Beano" and "The Dandy" were Christmas staples. The art work in those comics were tremendous, and I also enjoyed buying Marvel comics on holiday. Great stories.
My friend collected "Vogue" and had all the issues piled up. Beautiful photography, apart from everything else in it.
The Eye is incredible value, and seems to go from strength-to-strength, contrary to current trends. Thank goodness!
Huge respect to Tina Brown. Such an array of editorial accomplishments under her belt, and from such a young age too. A hugely male dominated field, and there she was ☺. So inspiring! Not so much now, but in younger years was an avid print fan, Jackie etc..couldn't wait for each edition to land 😆. Lovely article Jules
Jules! This subject is so near and dear to my heart. I adore print magazines. As a teen I was OBSESSED, mostly with fashion and music mags, or ones that had a cool factor like "Details," "Spy Magazine," "VOX," "NME," "Interview," and "Village Voice." My friends and I would cut them up, make collages, and decorate letters and envelopes that we mailed to each other. In fact, I took a career assessment quiz in High School and was told I should be a creative director at a magazine. I went to college to study magazine journalism and my first job was at a company that published trade magazines. Not quite as sexy as I'd imagined. My career ended up taking a different turn into entertainment marketing, but when I finally decided to give writing a go, the editor who first published one of my essays in a magazine had worked for Tina Brown at "Talk Magazine" back in the day. I still marvel at that couple of degrees of separation. TB is definitely a visionary and it's incredible how instrumental she was in shaping the business at such a young age. Inspiring! These days, we still get the print version of the "New York Times" on Sunday with the "New York Times Magazine" enclosed, "Los Angeles Magazine" (which has really gone down the tubes) and we subscribe to several magazines for Jared's mom, even though she has zero dollars, she loves to read "Town and Country" and see how the other half live. We were getting the physical "New Yorkers" too, but there's just no way to keep up, so we switched to digital only.
That's a wonderful selection of subscriptions - full marks H2! You have inspired me to go down to my local shop and have a good look at the magazine rack and buy something! I know I would subscribe to more if there weren't so much digital material around. I used to love them as a child.
So interesting that you studied journalism and were one degree separated from Tina Brown! It really is amazing what she achieved at such a young age. (Her husband was a great journalist too - Sir Harold Evans. For years he was editor of the Sunday Times and among other things he campaigned for the victims of thalidomide.)
I bet you have way cooler mags in your local shop. Keep me posted if you find anything interesting. A while back, a friend and I talked about starting a print mag. We even took a course where the instructor—the publisher of the mag “Delayed Gratification,—told the students we would make no money on the venture. 😄Not that I was surprised. Printing on paper is expensive. Still sounds fun though!
I'll let you know if I have any success. We went to another town yesterday and I did see what I could find, but the rack was at the back of the shop and a lot of the merch looked well-thumbed! 😆
"Delayed Gratification" is a brilliant name for a mag! 😆
Yes it must be spectacularly hard to keep a print publication afloat nowadays. "Private Eye" is a bit of an outlier. It has a lot of history behind it and is much-loved, but it's had its share of controversy and law suits. They do amazing investigative journalism - the type of stuff that the mainstream press doesn't seem to bother with any more.
Me too. I used to love buying Marvel comics when on family holidays as a child. Totally fascinated by the art work and the stories. Such a vital art form.
it was a little random and short lived but my sister worked in a Magazine shop. Yes a real live one that just sold magazines and so boroughs some trial magazines and lots of NME and Smash Hits too so I love print.
I enjoyed this Jules. I regularly purchased Q magazine, and like you, loved the glossies (when I could afford them!) There’s something gratifying about reading a hard copy. You see the articles you might normally miss when reading online.
Yes, I really look forward to my Private Eye every fortnight, and when I used to get a weekend newspaper I liked the supplements. They were huge - the whole paper would last me a week, but there was a lot of it that I didn't bother to read. I also found pricing an issue. The cost of some of the glossies put me off - just couldn't afford - but having read Tina Brown's book I felt a bit guilty. When you find out just how much work went into it all you can see why advertising was absolutely crucial for successful publications.
I never bought Q, but hubby did. He thought it was really good and bought it regularly.
My two magazine subscriptions are to "Fortean Times" and "Family Tree". I'm not sure either of them are aspirational, but they satisfy my needs for weirdness and research tips!
This is very true. I remember going to the (now closed) enormous WH Smith in Birmingham city centre in the late 90s/early 2000s and there were so many magazines! And Borders had an amazing selection!
Sadly even The Chap magazine isn't going to be a magazine anymore, and it's been running for 25 years. I remember picking up the second issue in a shop in Brighton all those years ago.
It's a shame, really, because I like being able to read off a screen, and the chances to do so are dwindling.
Borders was an incredible emporium. I used to love going there.
Yes I suppose we have to move with the times but I do think it is such a loss. The environmental impact of paper production has been talked about for decades. Now they are talking about the environmental impact of data centres because of the amount of water they use, so even digital publishing has its impact, especially now that the use of AI is increasing. It seems that every solution creates another problem.
There’s something so British about Private Eye and something so American about Vanity Fair but I have loved reading them both. I’ve always been a print junkie but even my consumption has declined.
I enjoyed this Jules and Tina Brown is a phenomenon isn’t she?
Yes I've always loved magazines. My earliest subscription was as a child - "Look In" then "Jackie" and "Smash Hits". I can remember the excitement of getting them from the news agent and poring over them! There's nothing like it - either reading end-to-end or going straight to your favourite section first!
Brown still has incredible energy - I really enjoy "Fresh Hell". It retains that mix of incisive political commentary, culture and hot issues - entertaining and enlightening.
Thanks for reading Margaret. My five-year business plan for The Dialectic is to achieve the same circulation as Vanity Fair under Brown's editorship. Do you think that's realistic? 🤔
🤣🤣🤣
Funny! It’s a good goal to aim for. Fresh Hell is great.
I started on Whizzer and Chips and Tammy, moved on to Look In, Smash Hits and Just 17 then Vogue and the big guns, The Face. I remember there was even a brief relaunch of Nova magazine which I loved too.
I still get my Dad a sub to Private Eye.
Whizzer and Chips! 😍 I was a Beryl the Peril fan. I once had an annual and I laughed so hard at her antics. "The Beano" and "The Dandy" were Christmas staples. The art work in those comics were tremendous, and I also enjoyed buying Marvel comics on holiday. Great stories.
My friend collected "Vogue" and had all the issues piled up. Beautiful photography, apart from everything else in it.
The Eye is incredible value, and seems to go from strength-to-strength, contrary to current trends. Thank goodness!
Huge respect to Tina Brown. Such an array of editorial accomplishments under her belt, and from such a young age too. A hugely male dominated field, and there she was ☺. So inspiring! Not so much now, but in younger years was an avid print fan, Jackie etc..couldn't wait for each edition to land 😆. Lovely article Jules
Yes it is absolutely remarkable what she achieved, and still going strong here on Substack.
I used to love Jackie magazine! I was exactly the same!
Thanks for reading Angie, so glad you enjoyed 😊
Jules! This subject is so near and dear to my heart. I adore print magazines. As a teen I was OBSESSED, mostly with fashion and music mags, or ones that had a cool factor like "Details," "Spy Magazine," "VOX," "NME," "Interview," and "Village Voice." My friends and I would cut them up, make collages, and decorate letters and envelopes that we mailed to each other. In fact, I took a career assessment quiz in High School and was told I should be a creative director at a magazine. I went to college to study magazine journalism and my first job was at a company that published trade magazines. Not quite as sexy as I'd imagined. My career ended up taking a different turn into entertainment marketing, but when I finally decided to give writing a go, the editor who first published one of my essays in a magazine had worked for Tina Brown at "Talk Magazine" back in the day. I still marvel at that couple of degrees of separation. TB is definitely a visionary and it's incredible how instrumental she was in shaping the business at such a young age. Inspiring! These days, we still get the print version of the "New York Times" on Sunday with the "New York Times Magazine" enclosed, "Los Angeles Magazine" (which has really gone down the tubes) and we subscribe to several magazines for Jared's mom, even though she has zero dollars, she loves to read "Town and Country" and see how the other half live. We were getting the physical "New Yorkers" too, but there's just no way to keep up, so we switched to digital only.
That's a wonderful selection of subscriptions - full marks H2! You have inspired me to go down to my local shop and have a good look at the magazine rack and buy something! I know I would subscribe to more if there weren't so much digital material around. I used to love them as a child.
So interesting that you studied journalism and were one degree separated from Tina Brown! It really is amazing what she achieved at such a young age. (Her husband was a great journalist too - Sir Harold Evans. For years he was editor of the Sunday Times and among other things he campaigned for the victims of thalidomide.)
Long live the print magazine! 😊
I bet you have way cooler mags in your local shop. Keep me posted if you find anything interesting. A while back, a friend and I talked about starting a print mag. We even took a course where the instructor—the publisher of the mag “Delayed Gratification,—told the students we would make no money on the venture. 😄Not that I was surprised. Printing on paper is expensive. Still sounds fun though!
I'll let you know if I have any success. We went to another town yesterday and I did see what I could find, but the rack was at the back of the shop and a lot of the merch looked well-thumbed! 😆
"Delayed Gratification" is a brilliant name for a mag! 😆
Yes it must be spectacularly hard to keep a print publication afloat nowadays. "Private Eye" is a bit of an outlier. It has a lot of history behind it and is much-loved, but it's had its share of controversy and law suits. They do amazing investigative journalism - the type of stuff that the mainstream press doesn't seem to bother with any more.
Print may be struggling, but your reflections remind us why it still matters. I remember the Demi Moore part too. Love a printed magazine.
Me too. I used to love buying Marvel comics when on family holidays as a child. Totally fascinated by the art work and the stories. Such a vital art form.
Good choice. I loved Smash Hits and a random kids comic called Oink.
Yes I loved Smash Hits. I've never heard of Oink. Superb title!
it was a little random and short lived but my sister worked in a Magazine shop. Yes a real live one that just sold magazines and so boroughs some trial magazines and lots of NME and Smash Hits too so I love print.
I enjoyed this Jules. I regularly purchased Q magazine, and like you, loved the glossies (when I could afford them!) There’s something gratifying about reading a hard copy. You see the articles you might normally miss when reading online.
Yes, I really look forward to my Private Eye every fortnight, and when I used to get a weekend newspaper I liked the supplements. They were huge - the whole paper would last me a week, but there was a lot of it that I didn't bother to read. I also found pricing an issue. The cost of some of the glossies put me off - just couldn't afford - but having read Tina Brown's book I felt a bit guilty. When you find out just how much work went into it all you can see why advertising was absolutely crucial for successful publications.
I never bought Q, but hubby did. He thought it was really good and bought it regularly.
Canada's answer to Private Eye, The Beaverton, is only online, sadly...
I have investigated, and I must thank you for signposting me to this headline:
"Elizabeth May says she won’t lead Green Party in next election after Green Party tells her same thing" 🤣
Yup - just like Private Eye!
What a fabulous name for a magazine! Thanks, David, I'd not heard of The Beaverton. I shall investigate...
My two magazine subscriptions are to "Fortean Times" and "Family Tree". I'm not sure either of them are aspirational, but they satisfy my needs for weirdness and research tips!
There used to be a magazine for every hobby, interest or whatever else. There are probably far fewer of them now, sadly.
This is very true. I remember going to the (now closed) enormous WH Smith in Birmingham city centre in the late 90s/early 2000s and there were so many magazines! And Borders had an amazing selection!
Sadly even The Chap magazine isn't going to be a magazine anymore, and it's been running for 25 years. I remember picking up the second issue in a shop in Brighton all those years ago.
It's a shame, really, because I like being able to read off a screen, and the chances to do so are dwindling.
Borders was an incredible emporium. I used to love going there.
Yes I suppose we have to move with the times but I do think it is such a loss. The environmental impact of paper production has been talked about for decades. Now they are talking about the environmental impact of data centres because of the amount of water they use, so even digital publishing has its impact, especially now that the use of AI is increasing. It seems that every solution creates another problem.
"Off a screen" as in "not on a screen"!