GOT boxes stuffed full of your favourite old magazines in the loft?
They could make you some extra cash, if you’re lucky.
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“Collectability and rarity are the deciding factors for whether a magazine is worth money or not,” says Larry Viner, valuation expert at vintagemagazines.org.uk.
“Bestsellers include Vogue and certain other fashion magazines, underground comics like Oz and Viz, anything with early pictures of Marilyn Monroe, Taylor Swift covers, and first issues of various magazines.”
Another factor for values is generational.
“Magazines that featured huge stars and personalities from the 1940s, 50s and 60s can depreciate as the next generation of younger buyers takes over,” Larry tells The Sun.
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“So dad’s collection of 1960s Playboy magazines and mum’s collection of Woman’s Weekly start to tumble in value, but anything to do with punks or mods from the 70s and 80s are still hot items.”
Add cult collector’s interest in the mix and you could be sitting on a goldmine – the perfect example is Doctor Who.
“Doctor Who is good, because it is still showing on TV, so there’s a new generation of fans, as well as fans in their 40s and 50s – and they’re the ones with the money.”
One old star who still has a remarkable collector’s value is Marilyn Monroe.
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“Generally, as people fade away from the public eye, the price of their magazine covers goes down.
“The big exception is Marilyn among serious collectors,” says Larry.
“For example, there’s a magazine called Razzle, which then was a ‘gentleman’s magazine’ – the 1948 version of it, featuring her on the cover, is very collectible, and worth about £300.”
Nostalgia is also a draw – though that collection of Smash Hits, Just 17 or Cosmopolitan from your youth won’t always fetch the biggest prices.
“They do sell, and they sometimes make quite decent money, but I always tell people to sell them now,” Larry advises.
“Don’t hang on to them because they’re not going to go up in value.”
It also depends on the particular issue.
“If it’s got David Bowie on the cover, for example, it’ll make good money.”
Vogue is also valuable, largely because fashion literally never goes out of fashion – for style fans of style, all sartorial eras are of interest and inspiration, and trends always come around again.
Events, such as the Barbie film, can also boost magazine prices.
“The Barbie magazines will be more collectible and make better money thanks to the film release,” says Larry.
However, some magazines that people expect to net them a pretty penny are worthless – including those marking significant world events, so, that issue featuring 9/11 or Barack Obama becoming the first Black US president isn’t going to make a fortune.
“I get hundreds of emails every week asking for valuations on collections, and I have to disappoint so many of them when I tell them that John Lenon being shot, man landing on the moon and most things to do with the royal family have little or no value,” Larry explains.
“They are the magazines and newspapers that no one threw away, so there are too many of them available to have any real value.”
There are exceptions to this – if it was a magazine with a low circulation, and if you work quickly when important events happen.
“There’s definitely a spike in the first week or so, but then it levels out because everybody puts their old magazines on eBay and that brings the price down,” says Larry.
“A good example was when the Queen died. Old magazines she was on the cover of were selling for up to £400 within 24 hours of her passing.
“Then prices dropped back down to about £15.”
Equally, technical magazines and specialist magazines for DIY, or hobbies such as photography, are only fit for the recycling bin.
“I had someone email me saying they had inherited a large collection of modelling, craft, military and railway magazines and were looking to sell the collection of approximately £3,000,” Larry explains.
“I had to tell them they’re not worth anything because the information is out of date within months of buying them.
If you have magazines that could be valuable, how should sell them?
“eBay is the best and quickest place to get an idea of values, but don’t be misled by the asking prices, which can vary enormously,” advises Larry.
“Look up the item you want to sell but then look at ‘sold items’ to get a more accurate idea of values.”
If you’ve got a box full, Larry recommends putting magazines into groups of the year they were published.
“If you’ve got the time to do the research, to keep looking at the listings and checking the prices, then sell them individually, but if you just want to get rid of stuff, it’s better to sell them as a job lot,” suggests Larry.
Ten of the most valuable old magazines sold
Playboy, December 1953
The first ever edition of Hugh Hefner’s iconic magazine, with Marilyn Monroe on the cover, sold for £3,000.
Oz magazine 1963
The first editor of Oz, the underground magazine about Sixties counterculture fetched £1,500 at auction.
Harper’s Bazaar, April 1965
This famous cover of model Jean Shrimpton has often been reproduced as an iconic image of the Swinging Sixties – a rare copy sold for £500.
Radio Times 1964 Dr Who
This cover of the very first doctor William Hartnell is much sought after by Whovians and can command between £200 and £400 at auction.
Penthouse 1965
The first ever issue of ‘the magazine for men’ sells for up to £300 on eBay.
Dandy Annual 1947
Old annuals from the famous comic can command big prices on eBay – this one sold for £200.
Bitcoin Magazine 2012
The first issue of this piece of Bitcoin history fetches between £50 -£800 – the official store is selling the remaining new copies from the original print run for $2,100 (around £1,650).
Vogue
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Vintage issues of the famous fashion magazine can sell for £100s.
Examples range from the first issue of Italian Vogue selling for £700 at auction to the classic January 1990 cover of UK Vogue featuring supermodels Naomi Campbell, Linda Evangelista, Christy Turlington, Cindy Crawford and Tatjana Patitz – which sold for £275.
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