The first issue
+
issue:
numero
of Time Out appeared on the streets of London fifty years ago. A student of French at the University of Keele called Tony Elliott had the idea of “cataloguing what was going on
+
cataloguing what was going on:
catalogare quello che succedeva
in London”. With the help of a few friends, and a £70 birthday present from an aunt, Elliott produced the first magazine – in reality, just one sheet
+
sheet:
pagina, foglio
– on the kitchen table in his mother’s house in the summer holidays. He sold five thousand copies for one shilling each
+
SPEAK UP EXPLAINS
Five thousand copies for one shilling each:
"Cinquemila copie a uno scellino l’una". Fino al 1971 lo scellino era la moneta d’uso corrente in Gran Bretagna (e ancora oggi in molti altri paesi). Una sterlina equivaleva a 20 scellini.
. Fifty years later, Time Out is the most famous listings magazine
+
listings magazine:
rivista di inserzioni, guida agli eventi
in the world and his empire covers 108 cities in 39 countries.
Essential Part
It took just a few years
+
it took just a few years:
bastarono pochi anni per
for Time Out to become an essential part of London life. It quickly established a reputation
+
established a reputation:
si fece una reputazione
for radical politics. The band The Rolling Stones said that reaching the listings section was “like crossing a picket line
+
like crossing a picket line:
come attraversare un picchetto
!” Initially, the magazine’s goal
+
goal:
obiettivo
was to publish the news that wouldn’t appear in the mainstream press
+
that wouldn’t appear in the mainstream press:
che non sarebbero apparse sulla stampa tradizionale
, such as miscarriages of justice
+
miscarriages of justice:
errori giudiziari
, the early gay rights
+
the early gay rights:
i primi diritti dei gay
and the women’s movement campaigns, bad landlords
+
landlords:
proprietari terrieri
or racist behaviour by the police.
Making the News
The magazine itself produced news and the police regularly visited the newsroom
+
newsroom:
redazione
. One reporter was deported as a threat
+
was deported as a threat:
fu deportato per essere considerato una minaccia
to the security of the state and another was arrested on suspicion of
+
on suspicion of:
per sospetto di
being a terrorist. When Time Out used its rooftop for a demonstration on how realistic replica weapons were
+
for a demonstration on... weapons were:
per dimostrare quanto fossere realistiche le armi giocattolo
, armed police raided
+
raided:
fecero un blitz
the magazine. A police helicopter flew over the building telling everyone to drop their weapons
+
to drop their weapons:
di gettare le armi
. In its pages, Time Out supported alternative theatre, film, music and comedy. It helped to make London more attractive for both residents and tourists.
A NEW DIRECTION
By the 1980s, however
+
however:
tuttavia
, Elliott had decided to reduce the political content
+
content:
contenuto
of the magazine. The idea now was to explore the world of guides and export the Time Out name all over the world.
GUIDES GALORE
+
SPEAK UP EXPLAINS
Guides Galore:
"Guide a profusione". Galore è un aggettivo che viene posto dopo il sostantivo, a differenza di quanto accade normalmente, per indicare qualcosa ‘in abbondanza’, ‘a profusione’.
Over the next thirty years, Time Out published guides on food, drink, film, sex, drugs and fashion. City guides on Paris and New York and many other world capitals followed. In recent years, Time Out has expanded online, and the magazine’s business empire now covers
+
covers:
copre
mobile phones, apps, guides and live events. Time Out now has a global audience of 217 million per month. Elliott is still there … but he never finished that French degree
+
he never finished that French degree:
non si laureò mai in lingua francese
.