The People’s new magazine supplement has come under fire from the editor of Britain’s top-selling women’s weekly, Take a Break, who says it is a rip-off of his title.
Take it Easy was launched on Sunday and replaces the People Magazine. It has an emphasis on “true-life” stories about ordinary people rather than celebrities.
Take a Break editor John Dale claims the new People magazine has copied his title’s masthead, cover design and editorial style.
He said: “The People is number one for nicking magazine stories and calling them exclusive. Now it’s gone one step further and tried to nick the magazine.”
A spokesman for The People responded: “The editor of Take a Break should take it easy. We’ve had no trouble bringing in our own great stories – a tradition we’re continuing with the fantastic reallife tales in our new magazine.”
According to Trinity Mirror, Take it Easy was launched as a result of reader research that showed People readers were already buyers of magazines featuring real-life stories.
Edited by Kerry Parnell, the new magazine also features TV listings, fashion, health issues, cookery, beauty products tried and tested by readers and a £1,000 prize crossword.
People editor Mark Thomas said: “Take it Easy is all about our readers and in that respect is quite unique in our market.
“It’s a fantastic read, it offers a real point of difference to our rivals and we’ve already seen that readers love it.”
Phil Hall, Trinity Mirror’s editorial development director for national newspapers, said: “The launch came after painstaking research: instead of telling readers what they want from their magazine, we let them tell us.”
By Dominic Ponsford
Email pged@pressgazette.co.uk to point out mistakes, provide story tips or send in a letter for publication on our "Letters Page" blog
