ABSTRACT
In August 1832, Edward Lloyd published his first periodical: the Weekly Penny Comic Magazine; or, Repertory of Wit and Humour. The youngest son of a labourer and serial bankruptee, Lloyd rose to become the bestselling publisher of his day. Lloyd’s publications were aimed primarily at a working- and lower-middle-class audience. A working-class lad made good, Lloyd might have sought to group himself among the readers of Sir Walter Scott – many of whom had cultural aspirations beyond their means. From the written word to the final packet, costs were incurred at every stage and when reading audiences were so discerning few could afford to take the risk; yet Lloyd approached it with relish. Lloyd successfully circumvented the newspaper stamp tax for most of his career by claiming that publications like the Penny Sunday Times contained only fiction and fabricated news.
