Private Eye Private Eye Private Eye is a British fortnightly satirical and current affairs news magazine, founded in 1961. It is published in London and has been edited by Ian Hislop since 1986. The publication is widely recognised for its prominent criticism and lampooning of public figures. It is also known for its in-depth investigative journalism into under-reported scandals and cover-ups. "Private Eye" is Britain's best-selling current affairs magazine, and such is its long-term popularity and impact that many of its recurring in-jokes have entered popular culture. The magazine bucks the trend of declining circulation for print media, having recorded its highest
Punch (magazine) British drawing rooms because of its sophisticated humour and absence of offensive material, especially when viewed against the satirical press of the time. "The Times" and the Sunday paper "News of the World" used small pieces from "Punch" as column fillers, giving the magazine free publicity and indirectly granting a degree of respectability, a privilege not enjoyed by any other comic publication. "Punch" would share a friendly relationship with not only "The Times" but journals aimed at intellectual audiences such as the "Westminster Review", which published a fifty-three page illustrated article on "Punch's" first two volumes. Historian Richard Altick writes