# Barbara Boxall

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{{short description|British magazine editor}}{{Infobox person
| name               = Barbara Boxall
| other_names        = Barbie
| birth_date         = {{Birth date|1932|08|14|df=yes}}
| birth_place        = Feltham, West London, England
| death_date         = {{Death date and age|2017|03|14|1932|08|14|df=yes}}
| death_place        = Tenerife, Spain
| occupation         = Magazine editor and writer
| known_for          = Editor of Woman magazine, 1964–1975
}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2017}}
'''Barbara Boxall''' ([née](/source/n%C3%A9e) '''Buss'''; 14 August 1932 – 14 March 2017<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/thetimes-uk/obituary.aspx?pid=184641899 |title=Barbara BOXALL Obituary - London Bridge, City of London &#124; The Times |website=Legacy.com |date=23 March 2017 |accessdate=8 April 2017}}</ref>) was a British magazine editor and writer who spent several decades contributing to women's magazines. She served as the editor of ''[Woman](/source/Woman_(UK_magazine))'' magazine from 1964 to 1975 when the weekly was transitioning from covering mainly fashion, cooking, and homemaking to a wider range of issues of interest to women such as [domestic violence](/source/domestic_violence) and sex advice.<ref name=":0">{{cite news |url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/article/barbara-boxall-rhpzj0jpv |title=Obituary – Barbara Boxall |newspaper=[The Times](/source/The_Times) |date=6 April 2017 |access-date=8 April 2017}}</ref><ref name="mayhew">{{cite web |last=Mayhew |first=Freddy |date=22 March 2017 |title=Former Woman magazine editor Barbara Boxall dies aged 84 –'Barbie was God, a very big deal' |url=http://www.pressgazette.co.uk/former-woman-magazine-editor-barbara-boxall-dies-aged-84-barbie-was-god-a-very-big-deal/ |accessdate=3 December 2024 |newspaper=Press Gazette}}</ref> During her tenure, ''Woman'' magazine was considered "the biggest-selling women's magazine in the UK."<ref name="mayhew" />

== Career ==
In 1952, Boxall began working as a secretary at ''Good Taste'' magazine, later becoming a writer at the publication.<ref name="mayhew" /> She then worked in editorial roles at a series of different women's magazines: In 1956 she landed at ''Woman & Beauty'', in 1957 she moved to ''Woman'', in 1959 she arrived at ''Woman's Illustrated'', and in 1961 she worked at ''[Woman's Realm](/source/Woman's_Realm)''.<ref name="mayhew" /> 

In 1964, Boxall returned to ''Woman'' to become its editor, leading a staff of about 120 people.<ref name="mayhew" /> At the time, ''Woman'' had a weekly circulation of 4 million.<ref name="mayhew" /> The magazine, under Boxall's direction, explored both lighter subjects (such as knitting and infant care) and more complex topics (including [women's liberation](/source/Women's_liberation_movement) and [abortion](/source/abortion)).<ref name=":0" /> Readers frequently turned to the magazine and its editors for advice, submitting 1,000 letters a day and reaching out regularly by phone.<ref name=":0" /> When Boxall left ''Woman'' in 1975, the publication was facing growing competition from other women's magazines, such as ''Cosmopolitan''.<ref name=":0" />

During her career, Boxall also served as fiction editor of the monthly ''Woman's World'' magazine, developing the work of writers such as [Frances Fyfield](/source/Frances_Fyfield) (author of the Helen West series of crime novels), and as cookery editor of a sex magazine called ''Personal''.<ref name="mayhew" />

== Personal life ==
Barbara Buss was born in [Feltham](/source/Feltham), West London, England, and attended London's [Lady Margaret School](/source/Lady_Margaret_School).<ref name=":0" /> She was married to Lewis Boxall, a one-time press officer at an oil company who died in 1983.<ref name=":0" /><ref name="mayhew" /> Her friends called her "Barbie."<ref name=":0" />

== Death ==
Boxall died on 14 March 2017, while holidaying in [Tenerife](/source/Tenerife), Spain.

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boxall, Barbara}}
Category:1932 births
Category:2017 deaths
Category:English magazine editors
Category:English women magazine editors
Category:British magazine writers
Category:People from Feltham
Category:People educated at Lady Margaret School
Category:Writers from the London Borough of Hounslow

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Barbara Boxall](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbara_Boxall) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbara_Boxall?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.