They were royal times but more women needed at the helm today
It was a delight to hear the booming announcement of the birth of Prince George from the steps of St Mary's Hospital in Paddington, even if the self-appointed town crier, Tony Appleton, was an interloper and a sort of overdressed streaker with a voice bigger than anything else.
I'm sure that we will all remember and associate his traditional words "Oyez, Oyez, Oyez" with the birth of the prince.
"Isn't it treason to announce an English prince with an old French word for listen up?" asks Louise.
Disputing the message with the town crier was made a treasonous offence by royal decree centuries ago, hence the phrase "don't shoot the messenger". I'm sure the media wish something similar was still in force.
In this digital world it is easy to forget that the advertising industry began with the town crier, and it was great to see the florid Tony in his scarlet and gold robes bring us a flashback to London before the arrival of the printing press.
Royal family news has always been big news, and in the golden era of women's magazines a couple of decades ago, the Women's Weekly was the centre of the coverage for the births of Prince William and Prince Harry. And who will ever forget the coverage of the "Diana years" and the controversies about the wayward new royal generations led by Fergie. New Idea and Woman's Day also lived for these very moments and reported them from cover to cover. It was the great time for magazines, with the combined circulation of these three at 2.6 million copies, and the Women's Weekly alone selling 1.2 million copies every week. Almost 50 per cent of women and a large proportion of men read them. Today that number has dropped to just on half.
It seemed then that the royal family coverage, particularly births, was the glamorous reflection of our own family aspirations.
Prince William got his first front page of the Women's Weekly on October 20, 1982, but in the next edition the cover went to the Irwin quadruplets, with the headline "Bedlam but fun". It was gold, gold, gold and more gold, for the Weekly when Queen Elizabeth met the Sara quadruplets on her visit to Australia in 1954. The Queen was on every front cover of the magazine from January 27 to March 17 that year. Multiple births were always big news for the magazines.
"What's all this talk about royals, babies and women's magazines of the past?" huffs Louise. "We need to move on!" She's right. And we have. But although things are changing, they need to move more quickly.
It's a very good sign that if the new royal baby had been a princess, she would still be third in line to the throne thanks to recent changes in royal accession.
The popularity of Sheryl Sandberg's new book Lean In: Women, Work and the Will to Lead is further evidence of these welcome changes.
Sandberg's day job is chief operating officer of Facebook and she has real cred with young women in particular. She makes a clear case for how and why more women need to take their place at the table. "For decades, we have focused on giving women the choice to work inside or outside the home. But we have to ask if we have become so focused on supporting personal choices that we're failing to encourage women and inspire leadership. It is time to cheer on girls and women who want to sit at the table, seek challenges and lean in to their careers."
We all need to embrace these changes and pay attention to the well-founded claims by women.
Frequently Asked Questions about this Article…
Royal births and high‑profile royal moments were prime content for women's magazines. The article notes that titles like The Women's Weekly, New Idea and Woman's Day once had a combined circulation of about 2.6 million, with The Women's Weekly selling roughly 1.2 million copies weekly — driven in part by royal coverage and celebrity stories.
Yes. The article says readership that once reached almost half of women (and many men) has dropped to about half of that level. For everyday investors, this highlights the shifting audience for print media and the importance of tracking digital transition and changing consumer habits when evaluating media-related investments.
The town crier (notably Tony Appleton in the Prince George example) is used as a historical reminder that mass communication and advertising began with public announcements. The piece links that past to how media evolved into magazines and, later, digital platforms — a useful context for investors thinking about long‑term shifts in how audiences are reached.
The article cites several examples: coverage of Prince William and Prince Harry's births, the 'Diana years' and Fergie controversies, the Irwin quadruplets, and Queen Elizabeth's 1954 visit to Australia. These high‑interest events regularly graced magazine covers and drove sales.
Sheryl Sandberg is identified as the chief operating officer (COO) of Facebook. Her book 'Lean In: Women, Work and the Will to Lead' is mentioned as evidence of growing interest in encouraging women into leadership roles — a trend the article frames as positive and relevant to social and corporate change.
The article notes a recent change in royal accession rules: if the new royal baby had been a princess, she would still be third in line to the throne. This is presented as a positive sign of progress toward gender equality in high‑profile institutions.
While the article doesn't provide investment advice, it highlights the cultural shift toward encouraging women into leadership — championed by figures like Sheryl Sandberg. For investors, this underscores that governance and leadership diversity can shape company culture, public perception and potentially long‑term performance, so it's something to watch when assessing companies.
The article suggests that media consumption has shifted from print‑dominated eras (when royal and celebrity stories drove huge magazine sales) to a more digital world, and that social change — including greater emphasis on female leadership — is reshaping content and audiences. Investors should pay attention to changing readership, digital adaptation and social trends when evaluating media and consumer‑facing businesses.
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