DWA and DWM celebrate circulation success
Thursday, 13 February 2014 - Reported by John Bowman
Doctor Who Magazine and Doctor Who Adventures have both seen huge rises in circulation over the past six months, with DWM recording its best-ever figure and DWA reversing a slump in readership.The latest figures - for July to December 2013 - were published at midday today by the Audit Bureau of Circulations and showed that DWM, which is published by Panini, had a total average net circulation of 36,151 per issue - up by 4,459 and a 14.1 per cent rise on the previous six months. This includes an extraordinary individual sale of 50,000-plus for the 50th-anniversary edition - issue 467.
Meanwhile, DWA, which is brought out by Immediate Media Co, posted a total average net circulation of 28,443 per issue for the same period - an increase of 3,946 and representing a rise of 16.1 per cent on the Jan-Jun 2013 period.
The new figures equal a 25.8 per cent year-on-year increase for the four-weekly DWM, but a 10.9 per cent drop year-on-year for DWA, although it should be noted that in the previous figures, released last August, DWA posted a 23.2 per cent fall year-on-year, so the latest result is actually a massive turnaround over the same period for the fortnightly publication. The consumer magazine market as a whole has recorded a year-on-year drop of 6.3 per cent.
DWM editor Tom Spilsbury said:
Doctor Who Magazine has been running non-stop for more than 34 years. With the general downturn in sales across the magazine industry it's extraordinary to see that DWM has just recorded its highest circulation figures since 1980. The 50th anniversary edition - DWM 467 - ended up selling more than 50,000 copies and had to be reprinted to try to meet demand.
The six-month average figure for the magazine is an incredible 36,151 copies, which is also the best average figure for more than 33 years. Thank you to all of our loyal readers who have stuck with us over the years, as well as to all the new readers who have joined us more recently.
The next challenge will be to try to maintain these excellent numbers now that Doctor Who's 50th anniversary celebrations are over! But with a new Doctor waiting in the wings, in the shape of the brilliant Peter Capaldi, I'm sure the future is going to be very bright for both the show itself and its official magazine.
Katie Wilkinson, the circulation manager at Panini, added: The six-month average figure for the magazine is an incredible 36,151 copies, which is also the best average figure for more than 33 years. Thank you to all of our loyal readers who have stuck with us over the years, as well as to all the new readers who have joined us more recently.
The next challenge will be to try to maintain these excellent numbers now that Doctor Who's 50th anniversary celebrations are over! But with a new Doctor waiting in the wings, in the shape of the brilliant Peter Capaldi, I'm sure the future is going to be very bright for both the show itself and its official magazine.
It has been a fantastic year for Doctor Who. At a time when many magazines are struggling to maintain their circulation figures it is really exciting to be able to post great growth in sales both on the newsstand and in subscriptions.
Doctor Who showrunner Steven Moffat commented:Huge congratulations to Panini and Doctor Who Magazine. This is a stunning achievement. It's hard to remember now the dark days when Doctor Who was off the air, but DWM kept the fires burning through those long wilderness years. That makes it especially pleasing to see their loyalty, dedication and endless creativity rewarded. Hooray and onwards. Year 51, that's the big one!
DWA spokeswoman Jaynie Bye said: We're absolutely thrilled with our 16 per cent period-on-period increase. The hard work of the team, fronted by editor Moray Laing, is really paying off. The title has recently undergone a complete editorial overhaul and is looking stronger than ever. This, coupled with the excitement that surrounded the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who and the imminent arrival of Peter Capaldi as the new Doctor, puts Doctor Who Adventures magazine on a sound footing for the future.
For detailed breakdowns of the new figures, click on the relevant links in the table below.| Jul-Dec 2009 | Jan-Jun 2010 | Jul-Dec 2010 | Jan-Jun 2011 | Jul-Dec 2011 | Jan-Jun 2012 | Jul-Dec 2012 | Jan-Jun 2013 | Jul-Dec 2013 | |
| Doctor Who Magazine | 29,000 | 35,374 (+22%) | 33,554 (-5.1%) | 30,682 (-8.6%) | 30,614 (-0.2%) | 27,089 (-11.5%) | 28,743 (+6.1%) | 31,692 (+10.3%) | 36,151 (+14.1%) |
| Doctor Who Adventures | 44,664 | 53,559 (+20%) | 56,648 (+5.8%) | 50,013 (-11.7%) | 48,470 (-3.1%) | 31,903 (-34.2%) | 31,935 (+0.1%) | 24,497 (-23.3%) | 28,443 (+16.1%) |
(All figures are from the Audit Bureau of Circulations apart from the Jul-Dec 2009 figure for DWM, which is an estimate provided by DWM and included for comparison purposes. ABC figures for DWM only started being calculated in 2010. Percentages shown are the change on the previous six months.)
The circulation figures for the first six months of this year are currently due to be published on Thursday 14th August.
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