Fashion, pop stars and problems were part of Jackie's top offering

Fifty years ago, almost every teenage girl in the country was an avid reader of magazines about fashion, pop stars and problems, and in terms of sales Jackie was well ahead of the pack - and it's now available online.

- Chloe Keenor

Chloe Keenor leafs through some back copies and talks to former readers.THE year is 1976, and Suzanne is darting up Shaldon Road to her friend's house, that week's copy of Jackie clutched in her hand.

Her friend answers the door and they run upstairs, away from parents' prying eyes, ready to spend their Saturday afternoon poring over the pages.

For many young girls like Suzanne, Jackie was a significant part of their lives.

Running from the 1960s through to the 1990s, it peaked in popularity in the 1970s when around 600,000 copies were flying off the shelves every week.

It's likely that the number of actual readers was even higher, as looking through the latest edition with school friends was the highlight of a dull Monday morning for many.

"We'd share our copies around the class and laugh at the photo stories," remembers Jane from Clifton.

Reading Jackie was a rite of passage for girls entering secondary school, a fun and approachable introduction to landmarks of adolescence, particularly romance. Even the name Jackie was modern and fashionable, a promise that the reader will be transformed into the perfect teenage girl.

It was the ideal companion for those who has outgrown Bunty and The Beano but weren't quite ready for the world of Honey or 19, never mind Woman's Own. Jackie was by far the most popular teen magazine in the 70s, even outshining big names like My Guy, Mates and Mirabelle.

By the 1970s, girls were growing tired of stodgy over-organised youth clubs. Jackie filled this void, appearing to prioritise fun and entertainment whilst its publishers kept things responsible behind the scenes.

Dundee-based D.C. Thomson was very conservative, which explains why Jackie rarely mentioned anything that might even vaguely allude to sex.

Jackiemade it easy for girls to be in the know about fashion and pop culture, giving them something in common to talk about at school.