| Product: |
Company |
| Date: |
18/06/02 (950 review reads) |
| Rating: |
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Advantages: Interesting, Inexpensive, Free Book
Disadvantages: Adverts, Celebrity Knocking
I don't often have time to read magazines completely so rarely buy them. Working in a shop the most I normally see of them is the covers when I'm scanning the barcodes in at the till. Something on the cover of nearly all magazines catches my attention and I think that I must read that. Sometimes I do in my breaks, but as Company comes in a sealed cellophane bag I had to pay £1.80 to read it.
Free with July's issue is a novel of dogs, divas and deviance called Wow! and written by Claudia Patterson. The inside story of life as a journalist to the stars, but I haven't read it yet so I can't say how good this authors first novel is.
Going back to the 208 page magazine, the glossy front cover has a picture of a pretty, skinny and young long dark haired model wearing black jeans and a white boob tube with loose bits where her boobs should be. The background is a great looking aqua blue colour and the headlines are in white, yellow, black and pale blue. The back cover is dedicated to a not so good looking Maybelline advert.
Pages one and two offer a comprehensive list of contents and the next page of interest once you've bypassed the in-your-face adverts is the letters on page ten. The normal type of letters praising the magazine and the articles, nothing different but then they are hardly likely to print criticisms. I’ll go through the rest of the magazine and give my views on some of the sections.
***JENNY FROST***
Moving on quickly, the first article is an interview with ex catalogue model Jenny Frost who replaced Kerry Katona as the singer in Atomic Kitten. Having her nails manicured and her long blonde extensions seen to at the time of the name-dropping interview we are told. My thought there was that it would be more respectful of the journalist who is about to give this 'star' free publicity if she had concentrated on the interview alone. I thought from the photographs that Jenn
y is in her early 30s when she is according to the interview 24, perhaps too many yachts and too much sun.
***CELEB BAROMETER***
With this bit of nonsense you are shown which 4 celebrities are going up in the world and which 4 are going down.
UP
Holly Valance
Patsy Kensit
James Redmond
Shobna Gulati
DOWN
Ally McBeal
Hayley Evetts
Lee from Blue (who isn't bothered about pleasing a girl in bed)
Ex Eastenders Michael Greco, Tamzin Outhwaite, Jack Ryder
***CELEBWATCH***
>Looking good vs looking dodgy
More nonsense with pictures of which celebrities they reckon are looking good or dodgy in their beachwear. Very unfair on those have been snapped looking dodgy, nobody can look perfect all of the time.
>Geri’s holiday does and don’ts
Pictures of Geri Halliwell looking unhealthily skinny with some good advice but some silly comments underneath.
>Don’t leave home without one
Who celebrities take on their holidays from Britney Spears and her bodyguard to Robbie Williams taking his male flatmate.
>Mind the wet patch
Embarrassing pictures of celebrities with sweaty armpits.
>Do you want fries with that?
More embarrassing pictures of celebrities stuffing their faces.
>Battle of the bulge
You are asked if you can match the trouser tent to the celebrity and shown 12 pictures of the interesting areas of short wearing male celebrities bodies and 12 headshots. I got them all right but the written clues underneath were dead easy. For the girls – Jimmy Gulzar looks like he’s got a family sized tent.
>Specs appeal
Pictures of female celebs wearing their sunglasses. Eight supposedly looking crap and four that they approve of.
>Burberry blues
Four pointless pictures of celebs wearing similar looking bikinis.
>Get the look: Summertime
Eight female cel
ebs pictured in their summer clothes with as similar as they can find clothes pictured underneath at more affordable prices. These include a denim mini skirt costing £40 er um.
***HIGH STREET***
>Clothes and undies
Celebwatch over thank goodness we move on to high street fashions, which include a feature on Myla, specialists in sensuality. With knickers at £24.95 they had better be sensuous.
>Beauty
Make up, bath things and cellulite busters – my tip: exercise does it better.
>Hair news
Shampoo, shower caps, conditioners and styling systems.
>Health news
Tone your back, Calorie counting, travel sickness, plastic surgery and advice telling you not to have a tooth out, legs waxed or your belly button pierced the week before your period because it’s more painful.
>Sex news
Advice on the best lubrication, summer bonkbuster sex books, advice about bashed bits, men only begin to grow up when they are thirty – yes it says that. A tip too: Warm 2 tablespoons of clear honey in your microwave for 30 seconds put it in a plastic drinking cup and pierce an hole in the bottom. Get your man to trickle it over your boobs, thighs, tum and bum and then lick it off slowly. Where’s the nearest beehive?
***I DISCOVERED I HAD CANCER ON MY 24TH BIRTHDAY***
A proper article at last. All about Felicity Cain’s battle with Leukaemia from October 2001 to the present where Felicity has just undergone a bone marrow transplant and is waiting to find out if it has been successful, I hope so. Written in diary form I feel sad at reading this, have learned more about Leukaemia and feel lucky to be healthy.
***MY BOYFRIEND HAS A SILICONE TESTICLE***
Lindsay relates how her boyfriend Kit discovered that he had testicular cancer and had one testicle removed and a silicone replacement inserted. Advice about staying vigilant and the good news men: If caught early enou
gh there is a 96% cure rate.
***WE WENT DOWN 9 CUP SIZES***
An article about 2 sisters who had their boobs reduced in size because they were so uncomfortable.
***COSTA DEL DATE RAPE***
Women are warned about letting their hair down too much on holiday and accepting drinks or lifts from strangers. We are told that there are over 2,000 reports of suspected drink spiking rapes a year, many happen abroad.
***HOW SAFE IS YOUR SUNBED**
We are told in detail that sun beds are not safe and that by using them we risk skin cancer, cataracts and premature ageing. Tanning salons do not always advise you on how safe sun beds are for your skin type.
***LOVE ME LOVE MY PIG***
The story of Rachel who when drunk bought a young pig at an auction. Named Cuthbert, the pig lodges on a farm paid for by Rachel who visits it at weekends. Her favourite chat up line is “You’ve got a great arse but it’s not as nice as my pigs”.
***I WENT ON HOLIDAY AND NEVER CAME BACK***
An interesting feature about 4 women who fell in love with the places that they visited on holiday and stayed.
***SUDDENLY SINGLE***
This article I found silly. Advice for twenty somethings on getting back into the dating game, written to assure these youngsters that they are not past their sell by date. In my forties I don’t feel past my sell by date and I certainly can’t remember feeling that way in my twenties.
***DO I LOOK BIG IN THIS?***
Probably the headline that caught my eye. Here we are given the top ten list of things that men worry about – a category for Caio maybe.
1. The walk to the loo: in the buff of course.
2. Bodily functions: those things that we women complain about
3. Awkward positions: not being up to the job
4. Bad timing: being unsure about when we want it – so tell or show them girls.
5. Well-hung exes: they don’t want to
know if your ex was hung like a rhino
6. Being man enough: they get sexual performance anxiety
7. Making a racket: embarrassed about being overheard
8. Stinking: men do not want to be though of as crusty and minging – so get a scrub then
9. Making a sex face: worrying about us women seeing their faces screwed up at the point of no return – why?
10. Party hat prowess: worrying about putting a condom on – practice makes perfect boys!
***MY SEXIEST MOMENT EVER***
Eight women describe their favourite moments of passion – mmm a few evocative memories came to mind when reading that.
***FOREFINGER PLAY***
Does and don’ts about text messaging – disappointing huh?
***FILM PHWOAR***
Pictures and details of 6 gorgeous male filmstars, all fully clothed I didn’t want to add.
***HOW DO YOU SCORE***
Pictures of 8 women who rate their own looks out of ten and then a panel rates them. A bit like Ciao rating but crueller.
***48 HOURS IN THE LIFE OF A CLUB REP***
Sounds like hard work to me.
***CONTRACEPTION Q&A***
All about third generation pills and less side effects.
IN BETWEEN BITS
After many pages of clothes that I would have a job on fitting into you are advised on what make up colours should suit your complexion. Then comes make up advice on ‘how to get the look’ and it’s pretty clear that you would have to take out a bank loan to pay for their suggestions.
***CELEB HAIR TRIED AND TESTED***
Here some Company employees and readers are treated to copy cat hairstyles at the salons celebrities use. Did you know that if you’ve got curly hair and want it straightened you can be Yuko-ed. With the Yuko system they put 2 different chemical smelling solutions on your hair and iron it strand by strand. Four hours later and £120 lighter you have healthy looking straight hair. It do
esn’t say how long the effect lasts but at that price I didn’t want to know.
***PRACTICE SAFE SUN***
Advice about pre sun, on the beach and after sun care with details of products that 6 female celebrities should use for their skin types.
***ME TIME***
>Reviews of the months best films.
>Book reviews and ten free copies of each book reviewed.
>Videos for girls to watch instead of football with 10 free copies of each to give away.
>Recommended TV viewing, as the list included Big Brother taste isn’t paramount.
>Summer sounds with ten copies of each of the CDs to give away.
***YOUR SEVEN DAY GUIDE TO IBIZA***
Clubs to visit every night of the week and details of the bars that celebs like to frequent.
***MY FAVOURITE HOLIDAY***
Six TV stars tell us about their favourite holiday spots.
***DEAR FLIC***
A problems in the sack letters page where the featured letter writers win £25 Anne Summers gift vouchers. Ok I’ll tell you more about this page but if you are a child or easily offended close your eyes. The first letter is asking about how to give a blow job, the next about a broken condom and the risk, then an internet sex addict – a woman who wonders if it’s dangerous to use her vibrator if the talk gets dirty in chat rooms. Finally a girl wants to know what to do about her boyfriend’s hairy gorilla bum.
***DEAR JOHN***
On this page women can ask a mans point of view about other men. Why is my boyfriend a slob and what can I do? How can a woman with a very high sex drive get men to stick around? Why do men find talking dirty during sex a big turn on? How can I get rid of my boyfriend’s boring mates? If you want to know the answers to these and the previous questions buy the mag.
***DEAR SAM***
A make up question and answer page with advice on the brands that they recommend.
***DEAR MARIE***
Advice on work and money problems.
After many more pages of advertisements for nearly everything under the sun we come to the horoscopes. Mine, Scorpio wasn’t that good for July. My favourite bit was: A few wild nights and too much booze are pushing you to be something you’re not. If you dare to be yourself from the 23rd, you’ll have him begging for more – I can live in hope!
Company is obviously intended for women in their twenties, a tad younger than me. I enjoyed reading through this magazine and I learned a few things - so you can teach old dogs new tricks. I doubt I’ll buy it again now that my curiosity has been satisfied, but I will pass it on to my daughter and if she happens to like it and buys it in the future I won’t mind copies being passed on to me.
I think that it’s a pretty good magazine for that age group despite the masses of adverts and the embarrassing celebrities bits. As having a go at stars seems to be standard for many publications nowadays it is hard to avoid.
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