Celebrating our 700th Edition

Introducing the 700th edition of Lincolnshire Life – proud to be the county’s favourite magazine.
Lincolnshire Life is the only magazine in the county that can draw on such a rich heritage of publishing.

For nearly six decades Lincolnshire Life has been recording the characters, landmarks and landscapes of our glorious county.

In this edition we are pleased to be joined by many of the independent Lincolnshire businesses who have been part of this journey too.

Lincolnshire Life – first choice for our readers and first choice for our advertisers.

1960s
The magazine was founded in Grimsby in 1961, initially as a quarterly but its popularity saw this quickly move to bi-monthly editions and within two years it was appearing monthly. Editors were able to draw on the rich history, heritage and folklore of the county.

Although the front cover was in full colour the inside pages were for much of the decade in black and white. The illustrations of Lincolnshire street scenes and characters drawn by artist Colin Carr have become collector’s items and are still much sought after.

1970s
Lincolnshire Life was under the ownership of ex-Bomber Command airman Geoff Lenthall and his wife, Joan for the latter part of this decade. David Robinson had progressed to be editor and his contributions to the magazine included pieces in every edition for the first 50 years. His last piece appeared in April 2011.

After local government reorganisation in 1974, Lincolnshire Life continued to make clear, as we do today, that we cover the ancient Yellowbelly boundary – Humber to the Wash. Regular columns such as Poachings and Homes and Gardens were establishing the magazine as not only a favourite read but also a growing archive for the county.

1980s
A new gateway to Lincolnshire opened on 24th June 1981 as the first public traffic crossed the Humber Bridge. Lincolnshire Life was on the move too. Ownership passed to the Lincolnshire Standard Group and the title was relocated to Lincoln. Later in the decade, Anthony Robinson brought the title under the ownership of County Life Ltd, where it has remained.

Contributors to Lincolnshire Life have ranged from passionate local writers and specialists in their field, to budding media superstars. One such was a certain Jeremy Clarkson, who supplied motoring reviews in the latter part of this decade. The magazine sometimes still gets mentioned in his editorials.

1990s
Lincolnshire Life has grown as the county has developed, always reflecting the lifestyle and opportunities the county offers for work, family and leisure. Based in the heart of Lincoln, on Newland, the magazine witnessed the University of Lincolnshire and Humberside welcoming its first students in 1996.

The fertile fields of Lincolnshire have made the county an important national food supplier and our ‘Taste of Excellence’ Awards which were launched in 1997 remain the county’s premier industry accolade. Organised to celebrate the best of Lincolnshire Food, Drink and Hospitality, the annual competition has gone from strength to strength.

2000s
Lincolnshire was one of the few counties which did not have a flag. In partnership with BBC Lincolnshire the magazine held a competition to correct this, with a people’s vote finally deciding the winning design. The Lincolnshire Flag is especially flown on 1st October each year, which was adopted as Lincolnshire Day.

Lincolnshire Life was again on the move, to offices on Sadler Road. New owners of County Life Ltd, Caroline Bingham and Geoffrey Manners continued to build the company with the establishment of the Lincolnshire Life website, new Eating and Drinking publications as well as the growth in contract magazines, tourism publications and newspapers.

2010s
Our valued regular contributors bring so much depth of knowledge and vibrancy to Lincolnshire Life. Our thanks to gardening guru Steffie Shields; Kate Chapman and her ability to bag the best interviews; Dom Franks cooking up a storm from his Belleau Kitchen and Maxim Griffin walking the Wolds. Our market towns are brought to life by Glynis Fox, Mel Burton, Julie Sayed and the pictures of Mick Fox – thank you to them and all our other regular writers.

As an independent business itself, Lincolnshire Life has always appreciated our close relationships with fellow county businesses and organisations. Their prosperity and love of serving the people of Lincolnshire fuels our passion and commitment. We look forward to our 60th anniversary in 2021.

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