One of Britain’s longest-running magazines, the People’s Friend first appeared on 13 January 1869 as a ‘Monthly Miscellany in connection with the People’s Journal. The People’s Journal, or the Dundee People’s Journal was the brainchild of newspaper editor and politician Sir John Leng, who had founded the title in 1858, and Leng was to be behind the foundation of the People’s Friend too.

It was indeed thanks to a People’s Journal writing competition that the need for the People’s Friend was spotted. Those behind the Journal were blown away by the number of entries to the contest, which numbered some 633.

As the debut edition of the People’s Friend notes, 157 of these entries came from novelists, 419 of the entries were from poets, and 59 were submitted by ‘juvenile letter writers.’ The People’s Friend, therefore, was to become a place where the writings of ordinary men and women could be showcased, as the title opened its columns ‘to the contributions of the people.’

Meanwhile, the Dundee-based People’s Friend would have a focus on all things Scottish. The inaugural editorial of 13 January 1869 detailed how ‘preference’ would be given to ‘Scottish stories, poetry and other articles, written by Scotchmen.’ Furthermore, the title would publish extracts from books and profiles of literary figures, alongside sections devoted to ‘The Housewife,’ ‘The Gardener,’ and to young readers.

It proved to be a winning formula. With family values at its heart, the People’s Friend became a weekly publication, which expanded to feature illustrations, especially of beautiful Scottish landscapes, pages devoted to arts and crafts, an array of educational pieces, as well as musical scores.

As the decades passed, and particularly during the First World War, the People’s Friend refined its focus to centre on women as its main audience. Still immensely popular to this day, and published by DC Thomson in Dundee, the People’s Friend is remarkable for sticking to its original promise of publishing stories penned by the people. The title continues to publish over 900 original stories annually, providing an important platform for first time authors.