BBC History
BBC History is a magazine devoted to history enthusiasts of all levels of knowledge and interest. Being a British publication, the magazine focuses particularly on British history, but its remit is worldwide. BBC History is the biggest selling history magazine in the UK and is growing in circulation by nearly 7% every year.
About BBC History
- Frequency: 13 issues / year
- Circulation: 69,234 [ABC Jan-Jun 2010]
- Price: £3.80
- Editor: Dr Dave Musgrove
- Publisher: Andy Healy
A brief history
- BBC History magazine was launched in May 2000 by BBC Magazines under the editorship of Greg Neale, an experienced journalist and history graduate.
- In April 2003, Living History Magazine, a competitor title published by Origin Publishing, joined BBC History on the news-stand.
- Following the acquisition of Origin Publishing by BBC Worldwide in February 2004, the two magazines merged. As from the June 2004 issue of BBC History magazine the headline ‘Incorporating Living History Magazine’ was included, and Living History Magazine editor Dave Musgrove, an experienced magazine journalist and doctor of medieval archaeology, was appointed editor of the merged magazine. The addendum regarding Living History no longer exists however. The emphasis on British history and pull-out exploring guides have since disappeared.
- Since the merger, the magazine has prospered, recording successive sales increases and seeing particular success with subscriptions.
- In March 2010, BBC History partnered with Spain's Ediciones Nobel publishing house to launch the Spain edition of the BBC History Magazine, it will be called the BBC Historia and will go on sale on 26 March, 2010. Ignacio Cabal will edit the magazine, which will print 60,000 copies initially.[1]
- In March 2011, the Hungarian edition of BBC History was launched by Hungarian publisher Kossuth Kiadó. Along the original, translated articles of the British edition it also features articles written by Hungarian historians.
Content
- Features: Each issue includes at least 20 pages of features, covering topics from all areas of history. Generally written by academic historians, they are designed to be relevant and topical, and often support historical programming on BBC television and radio.
- News: The magazine includes at least four pages of news each month, along with analyses of the historical background to current events in Britain and around the world.
- Book reviews: A section of book reviews written by historians with experience in the fields concerned.
- Where History Happened: Several pages of guides to historic properties that can be visited around the UK.
In the news
BBC History Magazine regularly attracts media attention with its more provocative features. In the January 2006 issue, the magazine's 10 Worst Britons story was widely reported, as was its 'Day for Britain' feature in the April issue (when a vote suggested that the day on which Magna Carta was signed would be a suitable day for a celebration of Britishness, to the ire of some in Scotland), and then in August 2006, its 'Best British Prime Minister' feature also hit the headlines. In 2008, much media capital was made of the question posed in the magazine, in a feature written by Dave Musgrove, of whether it was the right time to ask for the Bayeux Tapestry to be brought over from France for an exhibition. In November 2009, Radio 4's Today Programme [1] picked up on a story in the magazine about when history ends and current affairs begin.
Advisory board
The magazine has an advisory board of historians including:
Podcast
The magazine launched, in June 2007, its very first podcast. This features interviews with leading historians and has taken off in a big way. BBC History Magazine podcast
External links
References