Jackie (magazine)
Encyclopedia
Jackie was a weekly British
magazine for girls. The magazine was published by D. C. Thomson & Co. Ltd
of Dundee
from 11 January 1964 until its closure on 3 July 1993—a total of 1534 issues.
The name was chosen from a list of girls' names, although it was nearly dropped due to the association with Jackie Kennedy
following her husband's assassination
in 1963. An urban legend
exists that it was named after Jacqueline Wilson
who worked there at the time, before she became a notable children's author. Although the author has attempted to perpetuate this claim, this has been denied by those who were involved in the launch.
Ex-RAF
Engine Fitter Gordon Small was the first editor. TV critic Nina Myskow
was a former editor.
Jackie was the best-selling teen magazine in Britain for ten years, with sales rising from an initial 350,000 to 605,947 in 1976. The best ever selling issue was the 1972 special edition to coincide with the UK
tour of American
singer David Cassidy
. During the 1970s, "Jackie" published a mix of fashion and beauty tips, gossip, short stories and comic strips. The latter were usually illustrated with line drawings or posed photographs, especially if the story involved a "reader's true life experience". Both the comics and the short stories invariably dealt with either romance or family issues. The centre pages of the magazine usually contained a pull-out poster of a popular band or film star.
Jackie became very popular with young teenage girls, not least because of the "Cathy and Claire" problem page, which received 400 reader letters a week and dealt with controversial issues that were nonetheless relevant to the readership. However, the subjects covered in the column were not reflective of the majority of readers' letters, which focused on sex
-related issues—DC Thompson as a result kept the editorial brief, but created a series of help leaflets which they sent to letter writers. In 1974 the NHS
made the contraceptive pill free on prescription, and so under editor Myskow the magazine introduced a "Dear Doctor" column, which covered what were termed as "below the waist issues".
Sales declined after the 1970s, and by 1993 circulation had dropped to 50,000 weekly. Deciding not to follow the more sexuality and high-fashion orientation of newer teenage magazines, DC Thomson chose to shut the magazine down. It was one of several Thomson papers to close that year. More recently, the company has started issuing every year a historic Jackie annual. BBC Radio invited Jackie Clune
to do an epitaph for Jackie Magazine, and in 2007 the BBC produced an hour long programme devoted to the magazine's 70s heyday, called Jackie Magazine: A Girl's Best Friend, with contributions from former readers, writers, staff and publishers.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
magazine for girls. The magazine was published by D. C. Thomson & Co. Ltd
D. C. Thomson & Co. Ltd
D. C. Thomson & Co. Ltd, is a publishing company based in Dundee, Scotland, best known for producing The Dundee Courier, The Evening Telegraph, The Sunday Post, Oor Wullie, The Broons, The Beano, The Dandy and Commando comics...
of Dundee
Dundee
Dundee is the fourth-largest city in Scotland and the 39th most populous settlement in the United Kingdom. It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firth of Tay, which feeds into the North Sea...
from 11 January 1964 until its closure on 3 July 1993—a total of 1534 issues.
The name was chosen from a list of girls' names, although it was nearly dropped due to the association with Jackie Kennedy
Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis
Jacqueline Lee Bouvier "Jackie" Kennedy Onassis was the wife of the 35th President of the United States, John F. Kennedy, and served as First Lady of the United States during his presidency from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. Five years later she married Greek shipping magnate Aristotle...
following her husband's assassination
John F. Kennedy assassination
John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the thirty-fifth President of the United States, was assassinated at 12:30 p.m. Central Standard Time on Friday, November 22, 1963, in Dealey Plaza, Dallas, Texas...
in 1963. An urban legend
Urban legend
An urban legend, urban myth, urban tale, or contemporary legend, is a form of modern folklore consisting of stories that may or may not have been believed by their tellers to be true...
exists that it was named after Jacqueline Wilson
Jacqueline Wilson
Dame Jacqueline Wilson, DBE, FRSL is an award-winning English author, known for her vast and diverse work in children's literature. Her novels have been adapted numerous times for television, and commonly deal with such challenging themes as adoption, divorce and mental illness...
who worked there at the time, before she became a notable children's author. Although the author has attempted to perpetuate this claim, this has been denied by those who were involved in the launch.
Ex-RAF
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
Engine Fitter Gordon Small was the first editor. TV critic Nina Myskow
Nina Myskow
Nina Myskow is a British journalist and TV celebrity who appeared on New Faces and was also a columnist for The Sun and The News of the World under the byline "The Bitch on the box" in the 1980s...
was a former editor.
Jackie was the best-selling teen magazine in Britain for ten years, with sales rising from an initial 350,000 to 605,947 in 1976. The best ever selling issue was the 1972 special edition to coincide with the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
tour of American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
singer David Cassidy
David Cassidy
David Bruce Cassidy is an American actor, singer, songwriter and guitarist. He is best known for his role as the character of Keith Partridge in the 1970s musical/sitcom The Partridge Family. He was one of pop culture's most celebrated teen idols, enjoying a successful pop career in the 1970s, and...
. During the 1970s, "Jackie" published a mix of fashion and beauty tips, gossip, short stories and comic strips. The latter were usually illustrated with line drawings or posed photographs, especially if the story involved a "reader's true life experience". Both the comics and the short stories invariably dealt with either romance or family issues. The centre pages of the magazine usually contained a pull-out poster of a popular band or film star.
Jackie became very popular with young teenage girls, not least because of the "Cathy and Claire" problem page, which received 400 reader letters a week and dealt with controversial issues that were nonetheless relevant to the readership. However, the subjects covered in the column were not reflective of the majority of readers' letters, which focused on sex
Sexual intercourse
Sexual intercourse, also known as copulation or coitus, commonly refers to the act in which a male's penis enters a female's vagina for the purposes of sexual pleasure or reproduction. The entities may be of opposite sexes, or they may be hermaphroditic, as is the case with snails...
-related issues—DC Thompson as a result kept the editorial brief, but created a series of help leaflets which they sent to letter writers. In 1974 the NHS
National Health Service
The National Health Service is the shared name of three of the four publicly funded healthcare systems in the United Kingdom. They provide a comprehensive range of health services, the vast majority of which are free at the point of use to residents of the United Kingdom...
made the contraceptive pill free on prescription, and so under editor Myskow the magazine introduced a "Dear Doctor" column, which covered what were termed as "below the waist issues".
Sales declined after the 1970s, and by 1993 circulation had dropped to 50,000 weekly. Deciding not to follow the more sexuality and high-fashion orientation of newer teenage magazines, DC Thomson chose to shut the magazine down. It was one of several Thomson papers to close that year. More recently, the company has started issuing every year a historic Jackie annual. BBC Radio invited Jackie Clune
Jackie Clune
Jackie Clune is a British entertainer, noted as a woman journalist, actress, voiceover artiste and radio/TV broadcaster. She performs cabaret, and is known for her one-woman shows and late Karen Carpenter tribute act...
to do an epitaph for Jackie Magazine, and in 2007 the BBC produced an hour long programme devoted to the magazine's 70s heyday, called Jackie Magazine: A Girl's Best Friend, with contributions from former readers, writers, staff and publishers.
Models
Models and feature story characters in Jackie included:- Shirley MansonShirley MansonShirley Anne Manson is a Scottish recording artist and actress, best known internationally as the lead singer of the alternative rock band Garbage. For much of her international career Manson commuted between her home city of Edinburgh to the United States to record with Garbage but now lives and...
— Singer of band GarbageGarbage (band)Garbage are an alternative rock band formed in Madison, Wisconsin in 1994. The group consists of Scottish singer Shirley Manson and American musicians Duke Erikson , Steve Marker and Butch Vig . All four members are involved in songwriting and production...
, actress - Fiona BruceFiona BruceFiona Elizabeth Bruce is a British journalist, newsreader and television presenter. Since joining the BBC in 1989, she has gone on to present many flagship programmes for the corporation including the BBC News at Six, BBC News at Ten, Crimewatch, Call My Bluff and, most recently, Antiques Roadshow...
— BBC newsreader - Leslie AshLeslie AshLeslie Ash is an English actress, best known for her role in the sitcom Men Behaving Badly. Her book My Life Behaving Badly: The Autobiography was published in 2007....
— actress