''Jackie'' was a weekly

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

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 1,534 issues. ''Jackie'' was the best-selling teen magazine in Britain for ten years, particularly in the decade of the 1970s.

Publication history

The title was chosen from a list of girls' names, although it was nearly dropped due to the association with

Jackie Kennedy Jacqueline Lee Kennedy Onassis ( ; July 28, 1929 – May 19, 1994) was an American socialite, writer, photographer, and book editor who served as first lady of the United States from 1961 to 1963, as the wife of President John F. Kennedy. A po ...

following her husband's assassination in 1963. An

urban legend An urban legend (sometimes contemporary legend, modern legend, urban myth, or urban tale) is a genre of folklore comprising stories or fallacious claims circulated as true, especially as having happened to a "friend of a friend" or a family m ...

exists that it was named after

Jacqueline Wilson Dame Jacqueline Wilson (née Aitken; born 17 December 1945) is an English novelist known for her popular children's literature. Her novels have been notable for featuring realistic topics such as adoption and divorce without alienating her lar ...

, who worked there 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. ''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 single issue was the 1972 special edition to coincide with the UK tour of American singer

David Cassidy David Bruce Cassidy (April 12, 1950 – November 21, 2017) was an American actor, singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He was best known for his role as Keith Partridge, the son of Shirley Partridge (played by his stepmother, Shirley Jones), in t ...

. ''Jackie'' absorbed '' Diana'' (which had been characterized as DC Thomson's answer to IPC's ''

Girl A girl is a young female human, usually a child or an adolescent. When a girl becomes an adult, she is accurately described as a ''woman''. However, the term ''girl'' is also used for other meanings, including ''young woman'',Dictionary.c ...

'') in 1976. Sales declined after the 1970s, and by 1993 circulation had dropped to 50,000 weekly. Deciding not to follow the more sexual 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 a historic ''Jackie'' annual.

Content

During the 1970s, ''Jackie'' published a mix of fashion and beauty tips, gossip, short stories, and comic strips (including ''The

Andy Fairweather Low Andrew Fairweather Low (born 2 August 1948) is a Welsh guitarist and singer. He was a founding member and lead singer of 1960s pop band Amen Corner, and in recent years has toured extensively with Roger Waters, Eric Clapton and Bill Wyman's R ...

Story''). 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. (By the 1980s, the magazine no longer featured comics of any kind.)Kibble-White, Graham (2005). ''Ultimate Book of British Comics''. London: Alison & Busby. p.140. The centre pages of the magazine usually contained a pull-out poster of a popular band or film star. The magazine featured a section called ''Silly Star File'', a humorous interview with figures from the world of pop music. ''Jackie'' became very popular with young teenage girls, not least because of the ''Cathy and Claire''

problem page An advice column is a Column (periodical), column in a question and answer format. Typically, a (usually anonymous) reader writes to the media outlet with a problem in the form of a question, and the media outlet provides an answer or response. ...

, 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 Sex is the trait that determines whether a sexually reproducing animal or plant produces male or female gametes. Male plants and animals produce smaller mobile gametes (spermatozoa, sperm, pollen), while females produce larger ones ( ova, of ...

-related issues —

DC Thomson DC Thomson is a media company based in Dundee, Scotland. Founded by David Couper Thomson in 1905, it is best known for publishing ''The Dundee Courier'', '' The Evening Telegraph'' and '' The Sunday Post'' newspapers, and the comics ''Oor W ...

as a result kept the editorial brief, but created a series of help leaflets which they sent to letter writers. In 1974 the

NHS The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...

made the

contraceptive pill Oral contraceptives, abbreviated OCPs, also known as birth control pills, are medications taken by mouth for the purpose of birth control. Female Two types of female oral contraceptive pill, taken once per day, are widely available: * The combin ...

free on prescription, and so under editor Nina Myskow the magazine introduced a ''Dear Doctor'' column, which covered what were termed as "below the waist issues".

Contributors

Ex-

RAF The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

Engine Fitter Gordon Small was the first editor. TV critic Nina Myskow was a former editor, as well as its first female editor. In the 1970s Rhonda Wilson was the magazine's music editor, stylist, photographer and agony aunt.

Notable writers

Chrissie Glazebrook Chrissie Glazebrook, adopted as Christine Ann Wright (19 March 1945 – 7 December 2007) was a British writer, known for her novel ''The Madolescents'' (2001). Early life and marriage Glazebrook was adopted at 8 weeks by Mary and Ernest Wright ...

, novelist

Notable models

Models and feature story characters in ''Jackie'' included: * Shirley Manson — Singer of band Garbage, actress *

Fiona Bruce Fiona Elizabeth Bruce (born 25 April 1964) is a British journalist, newsreader, and television presenter. She joined the BBC as a researcher for '' Panorama'' in 1989, and has since become the first female newsreader on the ''BBC News at Ten' ...

— BBC newsreader *

Leslie Ash Leslie Ash (born 19 February 1960) is an English actress. She is best known for her roles in ''C.A.T.S. Eyes'' (1985–1987), the BBC sitcom ''Men Behaving Badly'' (1992–1997), ITV drama '' Where the Heart Is'' (2000–2003), and BBC me ...

— actress *

Hugh Grant Hugh John Mungo Grant (born 9 September 1960) is an English actor. He established himself early in his career as both a charming, and vulnerable romantic lead and has since transitioned into a dramatic character actor. Among his numerous a ...

— actor

Legacy

BBC Radio invited Jackie Clune to do an epitaph for ''Jackie'' and, in 2007, the BBC produced an hour-long programme devoted to the magazine's 1970s heyday, called ''Jackie Magazine: A Girl's Best Friend'', with contributions from former readers, writers, staff and publishers. The magazine also inspired a musical.

References

{{D. C. Thomson Comics 1964 establishments in the United Kingdom 1993 disestablishments in the United Kingdom Jackie British girls' comics Jackie Defunct British comics Jackie Magazines established in 1964 1964 comics debuts Magazines disestablished in 1993 Magazines published in London Youth magazines Weekly magazines published in the United Kingdom