Time Out (magazine)

Time Out was first published in 1968 as a London listings magazine by Tony Elliott, who used his birthday money to produce a one-sheet pamphlet, with Bob Harris as co-editor. The first product was titled ''Where It's At'', before being inspired by Dave Brubeck's album Time Out. Time Out began as an alternative magazine alongside other members of the underground press in the UK, but by 1980 it had abandoned its original collective decision-making structure and its commitment to equal pay for all its workers, leading to a strike and the foundation of a competing magazine, City Limits, by former staffers. By now its former radicalism has all but vanished. As one example of its early editorial stance, in 1976, London's Time Out published the names of 60 purported CIA agents stationed in England. Early issues had a print run of around 5,000 and would evolve to a weekly circulation of 110,000 as it shed its radical roots. The flavour of the magazine was almost wholly the responsibility of its designer, Pearce Marchbank: Elliott launched Time Out New York (TONY), his North American magazine debut, in 1995. The magazine hired young and upcoming talent to provide cultural reviews for young New Yorkers at the time. Time Outs need to expand to digital platforms led to Elliott, sole owner of the group until November 2010, to sell half of Time Out London and 66 per cent of TONY to private equity group Oakley Capital, valuing the company at £20 million. The group, founded by Peter Dubens, was owned by Tony Elliott and Oakley Capital until 2016, the agreement provided capital for investment to expand the brand. Time Out has subsequently launched websites for an additional 33 cities including Delhi, Washington D.C., Boston, Manchester and Bristol. The London edition of Time Out became a free magazine in September 2012. Time Outs London magazine was hand-distributed at central London stations, and received its first official ABC Certificate for October 2012 showing distribution of over 305,000 copies per week, which was the largest distribution in the history of the brand. This strategy increased revenue by 80 per cent with continued upsurge. Time Out has also invited a number of guest columnists to write for the magazine. The columnist as of 2014 was Giles Coren. In April 2015, the New York edition also moved to the free-distribution model to increase the reader base and grow brand awareness. Time Out increased its weekly magazine circulation to over 305,000 copies, complementing millions of digital users of Time Out New York. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Time Out ceased producing paper copies of the magazine and switched to an online-only model. Temporarily rebranding as Time In, the publication also refocused its editorial content towards virtual events for people staying at home during the lockdown. In April 2022, it was announced that the print edition of London Time Out would finally cease after 54 years, with its last print run distributed on 23 June 2022. The magazine would continue to be published online. ==Editions==