''City Limits'' magazine was an alternative weekly event listings and arts magazine for

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, founded in 1981 by former staff members of the weekly London listings magazine '' Time Out'', after its owner Tony Elliott abandoned running ''Time Out'' on its original equal pay principles. ''City Limits'' was edited in its prime by jazz writer

John Fordham John Fordham (died 1425) was Bishop of Durham and Bishop of Ely. Fordham was keeper of the privy seal of Prince Richard from 1376 to 1377 and Dean of Wells before being named Lord Privy Seal in June 1377. He held that office until December 1381 ...

and former '' Oz'' writer

Nigel Fountain Nigel Christopher Fountain (born 1944) is a British writer, journalist, editor and broadcaster. He has been a contributor to many publications including ''The Guardian'', ''The Observer'', ''The Sunday Times'', ''New Statesman'', '' The Oldie'', ...

. The magazine continued to be run as a

co-operative A cooperative (also known as co-operative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically-control ...

for most of its existence, then underwent a chaotic final period of three owners within two years before it finally ceased publication in 1993. Among other journalists, it launched the careers of

Melissa Benn Melissa Ann Benn (born 1957) is a British journalist and writer. She is the daughter of Tony Benn and Caroline Benn. Biography Benn was born in Hammersmith, London. She has three brothers, including Hilary Benn and Stephen Benn, 3rd Viscount S ...

Kim Newman Kim James Newman (born 31 July 1959) is an English journalist, film critic and fiction writer. Recurring interests visible in his work include film history and horror fiction—both of which he attributes to seeing Tod Browning's ''Dracula (1931 ...

and

Suzanne Moore Suzanne Lynn Moore (born 17 July 1958) is an English journalist. Early life and education Moore is the daughter of an American father and a working-class British mother, who split up during her childhood. As a child, she was told that her mo ...

. It was also an early site for the writings of

Matt Preston Matt Preston (born 21 July 1961) is an English-Australian food critic, writer and television presenter. He is best known for his role as a judge on Network Ten's ''MasterChef Australia'' between 2009 and 2019, and for his weekly national food ...

and the art critic

Matthew Collings Matthew Collings (born 1955) is a British art critic, writer, broadcaster, and artist. He is married to Emma Biggs, with whom he collaborates on art works. Education Born in London in 1955, Collings studied at Byam Shaw School of Art, and Goldsmi ...

.Collings, Matthew, ''City Limits'', October 1991.

References

External links

RIP City Limits
London R.I.P.

Magazine Forum 1981 establishments in England 1993 disestablishments in England Alternative magazines Visual arts magazines published in the United Kingdom Defunct magazines published in the United Kingdom Listings magazines Local interest magazines published in the United Kingdom Magazines published in London Magazines established in 1981 Magazines disestablished in 1993 {{UK-culture-mag-stub