Textual Analysis: Magazine front covers;
As I have analysed three different film covers for my brief of creating a film magazine cover, I am also analysing a T.V magazine as sometimes films can be featured on the covers, and it also helps me understand the conventions of other magazine covers, rather than just film magazine covers, I am analysing Radio Times.

The covers of Radio Times follow conventions of magazine covers, as they have masthead, image, cover lines and the date and issue number, and my magazine cover will also follow these conventions.

Radio Times:
This magazine is the BBC's weekly T.V guide and radio magazine, and is bought by many people.
Masthead: The masthead is at the top of the cover, a convention of magazine covers, and in all the magazines I have analysed the masthead has been at the top, this makes it easier for the audience to see the masthead and buy the magazine. The masthead is in bright white letters against the blue background, this makes it stand out, and when you look at the cover the masthead is the first thing you see as it is very bright, the colour also represents the theme of colours on the cover, blue white and red, and this also represents how it is a British magazine, using the colours of the British flag, I have found that on all the covers I have analysed there is a colour theme on the cover, and this is a convention of magazine front covers, as most magazines follow a colour theme. The white also represents how the doctor is a good person, as white is associated with good people, and it conveys how he is a good, kind person, also as it is a Christmas issue, the white represents Christmas and snow, and it also suggests that the rest of the magazine will be about Christmas listings, and this is a convention of most front covers, as the cover conveys what will be in the rest of the magazine. They also have the website above the masthead, and this is to promote the website, but also if someone doesn't have enough money to buy the magazine they can look on the website, and this still brings revenue to the website, and it is also a way of appealing to the younger people, as most young people use the Internet now, and it is a way of diversifying the audience.

Image: The image follows the conventions of magazine front covers, as it takes up the whole cover, and in all the magazine covers I have looked at the images all take up the whole cover. The image is a medium shot of The Doctor and he is staring straight to the camera, so it is like he is looking at you and this immediately attracts the audience, as it connects with you, and it is almost like the Doctor is looking personally at you, so it makes the readers want to buy it, and it attracts the fans of David Tennant and Doctor Who, as the audience for Doctor who is massive, and includes children to elderly people, so they will all buy it to see what happens to the Doctor, as the Christmas episodes are very popular, people want to see if there is a sneak peek. The Doctor is also wearing the iconic costume, and this makes it seem like it is the Doctor on the cover not David Tennant who plays him, so people buy it to find out more about the Doctor, and his stance reflects the subheading, as it says 'Death of a Doctor' he is stood like he is facing it head on, and like a hero, and this makes people warm to him, and buy the magazine as they think he is brave, and he is also clenching his fist, suggesting how he is going to fight whatever is coming, and this subtly conveys to the audience, that the episode is going to be very action packed and exciting, and full of drama. The image is also against a blue background, and this represents the colour of the Tardis, and is the colour associated with Doctor Who and as the image is just on his own, the colour blue in the image represents how he is alone in fighting whatever is coming, and the colour blue is sometimes associated with misery, and this suggests how the audience are going to be upset when the episode is finished, also the blue represents nighttime, and how he is alone. The Tardis is also in blue and is almost disappearing in the colour of the sky, and this suggests how The Doctor is disappearing.

Subheading: The subheading reflects the image of the cover, and the it is quite a striking subheading as it uses the word death, death is a very harsh word and it always catches peoples attention as death effects everyone, and is a very final word, and it suggests how this is the final of the Doctor, that he can't be replaced. The subheading also says 'a Doctor', and this makes him sound like a person, not the man we rely on for everything, but someone who can die, and by making him seem less important it affects the audience more, as they start to think of him who can feel something, and as he can regenerate by using the words 'a Doctor' it suggests to the audience that he is just a Doctor in a line of other Doctor's and there is another one coming. The subheading is also in white, conveying again how the doctor is a good person, and it contradicts the subheading as the subheading says death, death is usually represented in the colour black, and it almost conveys to the readers how death is going to be a good thing, as there is another Doctor coming, and not to worry about the Doctor dying.

Cover lines: Cover lines are a convention of magazine front covers, and are seen on all front covers, and they're usually representative f the theme of the cover and magazine. The cover lines feature Alan Bennet a playwright, and Darcey Bussel a famous dancer, and these coverlines help identify the audience as the people who will want to read about these are older people, and this shows the main readers of the magazines to be maturer, older people and not young people, but the magazine is trying to create a wider range of audience by putting Doctor Who on the front, because many people who watch Doctor Who are quite young, so they may buy this to read about him, and therefore the magazine diversifies their audience. The other cover lines just mention peoples names at the top of the cover, and these people appeal to the regular readers as they're older people, so the older people can relate to them. The cover lines are also in white, again representing the colour theme, and they also draw your attention to them, as the cover lines are what encourage people to actually buy the magazine, because if they like the look of the stories they will buy the magazine so they can read them.

Date/issue number: The date is at the top of the cover under the masthead, and the date is a convention of covers, but this cover doesn't have the issue number on going against conventions. The date helps both the readers and audience if they need to look back at a particular episode, the date is also in white, representing the colour theme, but as it is a Christmas issue, the whit reflects the snow in the image and Christmas. The price is also on the top of the cover, and as it is weekly it is much cheaper than a monthly magazine and it is £1.10, this is quite cheap representing how it is a magazine for everyone and not just people who can afford to buy an expensive magazine every week. The barcode is also not on the cover, and again this goes against conventions, as most covers feature the barcode, at the bottom left corner.