With its first issue dated January 13, 1869, The People’s Friend is set to be the world's first women’s weekly magazine to celebrate its 150th birthday.

The People’s Friend is famous for its strong relationship with its readers, so editor Angela Gilchrist said they were keen to involve their community in the anniversary.

“The secret of the magazine’s success is due, in no small part, to its connection with its readers, and we want to celebrate that bond by doing what we’re famous for – sharing stories,” she added.

“We want to hear all about what the Friend means to you. Maybe you’ve been a reader for many years, and first picked up the magazine as a young woman? Or perhaps you’ve started buying it quite recently in memory of a much-missed mum or grandma? Does it bring back memories of home, or has it helped you through difficult times in life?

“However you came to find the Friend, and whatever part it’s played in your life, we’d love to hear about it.”

From the start, the mission statement of The People’s Friend has been clear. Its first editorial said: “We intend that fully one half of the Friend shall be devoted to fiction… the Friend being intended for fireside reading, nothing will be admitted into its columns having the slightest tendency to corrupt the morals either of old or young.”

Successive editors have remained true to those principles and to the promise that the Friend should be a magazine for ordinary people, by ordinary people.

The Friend has continued to grow and thrive through social upheaval, wars, strikes, financial crashes and natural disasters.

It is now published by DC Thomson, from its offices in Dundee, and reaches an audience worldwide, with readers in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Canada as well as in the UK.

Aimed primarily at the over-60s market, The People’s Friend features fiction, as well as cookery, craft, puzzles, gardening, travel and health.

To share your stories about The People’s Friend, write to: 150 Years, Between Friends, The People’s Friend, 2 Albert Square, Dundee DD1 9QJ, or e-mail betweenfriends@dctmedia.co.uk, putting “150 Years” in the subject line.