John Dale – one of the longest serving national magazine editors – has resigned from his role at the helm of Take a Break, its publisher said today.
H Bauer said that Dale, who has edited the women’s weekly title for more than 20 years, had no plans to retire and instead intended to pursue his own business interests when he leaves the magazine in May.
David Goodchild, managing director of H Bauer, said: “John’s decision is one that I have accepted with sadness but am fully supportive of his reasons.
“John has driven Take a Break to become by far the most successful brand in women’s publishing over the past two decades, winning accolades from his peers along the way.
“I look forward to continuing to work with John over the next few months and wish him every success thereafter.”
Despite seeming to remain relatively low-key, Dale’s Take a Break has become the fourth biggest selling magazine in the UK – and the biggest selling women’s magazine – by eschewing celebrities in favour of offering its readers a winning mix of real life stories and smart grassroots campaigns.
According to the Audit Bureau of Circulations it averaged a weekly sale of 848,843 during the first half of the year, down 7.1 per cent on the same period the previous year but almost twice the sale of either Hello! and OK! magazine.
Dale joined Take a Break in 1990 – the year it launched – becoming editor later that year. He had previously worked on newspapers including the Daily Mail and The Observer.
Amongst several awards he has won, Dale was named weekly women’s magazine editor of the year at last year’s BSME Awards and has been nominated for the same honour again this year.
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