i-D, #11, 1983

In his latest look at a vintage magazine, Ian Birch looks back at early i-D, when The ‘Worldwide Manual of Style’ was still in its original landscape format. The pages switch starkly from dayglo to black and white, reflecting the costs of colour printing at the time.

Features are called ‘items’ with typically random numbers. The first spread above is Item 38, an interview with new Manchester band The Smiths: ‘dance music with a heavy bass line and an emphasis on piercing vocals’.

Day-glo fashion cut-out dolls are followed by Steve Johnston’s street photography (Item 138), an interview with DJ John Peel: ‘It’s the audiences who are the destructive factor, they like conservatism with a small c’.

Item 3476: interview with Katharine Hammett: ‘I play it garment by garment.’

The subs offer (‘Free wink and smile’) and back page.

Feel the energy on every page!

Publisher/editor:Terry (i-delegate) Jones.
International publisher: Elio ( i-diffusione) Fiorucci.
Art: Idesu (i-destroy) O’Hayo, Caryn (i-deface) Franklin, Robin (i-derrick) Derrick.
Words: Steve ( i-doxy) Dixon, Nicky (i-defrock) Trulocke, Lawrence Hughes, Nick Knight.
Photography: Steve (i-despair) Johnston, James (i-documenti) Palmer, Robin Ridley, Steve Dixon.
Cover concept Terry Jones. Photo of Fiona by Steve Johnston. Hair by Vidal Sassoon. Make-up by Boots No 7.

Ian Birch is the former editorial director of Hearst magazines. Follow him on Instagram for more cover stories, and look out for his new book ‘Uncovered—Revolutionary Magazine Covers’ (ISBN-13: 9781844039043) which will be published on 4 October.

Ian will be joined by Penny Martin (The Gentlewoman), Paul McNamee (The Big Issue) and Robin Derrick (British Vogue) for a talk about front covers at The British Library on 16 October.