The Newtownabbey Times is a local newspaper which has been circulated around the area for over 100…read moreyears. It is published by Johnston Press plc. (One of the top 3 largest local newspaper publishers in the UK) It's sister papers include the Carrickfergus and Larne Times, each with their own offices in the respective areas. Together they have been reporting news stories around the East Antrim area since the 1860s. Focusing mainly on local news, it is a valuable source of community information and news updates. It is currently published every Thursday and coverage includes news, sports, health and education amongst a number of contemporary news stories or reviews. For more information or to contact the newspaper, email susan.gillen@jpress.co.uk or send your letters to Newtownabbey Times, 14 Portland Avenue, Glengormley, Newtownabbey, BT36 5EY. Telephone: 028 9084 3621

Newtownabbey Times includes stories from all across the area - from Ballyduff to Ballyclare, from…read moreCarnmoney to Templepatrick, and from Glengormley to Jordanstown. It's comprehensive coverage mean that it's a) quite an in-depth paper (certainly not on par with The Sun etc), and b) it takes quite a while to read (not such a good idea when on a hot, stuffy bus from Ballyclare to Belfast, with ten screaming teenagers arguing over whether it's a bikelist or a cyclist...). I did, however, come across a few interesting nuggets of information. For example, who knew that there even was a Women's Rugby World Cup, let alone the fact that one of Ireland's players comes from Whiteabbey? Or indeed that there is a singing group known as the Belfast Phoenix Choir? My life has been greatly enhanced thanks to these wonderful pieces of completely useful information. As well as the news section, the Newtownabbey Times has a rather amusing birthday component (one particular vengeful twin used this to her advantage), as well as a jobs section (Primark are looking Christmas staff already?!), business news, a sports section, property news, a careers / training / education insert, and a lengthy motorcar segment. All in all, not a bad paper.

I'm actually surprised by the fact that I enjoyed the Ulster Tatler so much. I'd always had it down…read moreas an older ladies magazine, which is certainly is to an extent, but I did rather appreciate the variety of articles and information covered. Of course, there's the obligatory photos of just about every social event in Northern Ireland (and that includes a few graduation photos...definitely the place to be seen, especially in relation to the style stakes), and the guides to finding the most exorbitantly priced makeup / beauty salon / restaurant in the province, but there are a few interesting articles that I didn't realise would feature in such a publication. A few interviews with local well-to-do people appear, as well as a focus on a certain town in NI, which happens to be Ballyclare in this month's edition, cultural information and travel news. I doubt they could have fitted in much more if they'd tried... Not quite my cup of tea, but you certainly get your money's worth with a well-packed magazine that features the best of Norn Iron.

I actually bought this magazine just for the smell. Not really...though I do love the smell of…read moreglossy mags. Hmmmm. Anyway, Northern Woman isn't just a great smelling magazine. Oh no. It's a great looking one too. It has all the requirements of a true glossy - fashion pages, reviews, showbiz goss (Northern Ireland style), interviews, lifestyle pages (losing weight, healthy eating and all that jazz), and the all-important competitions (six-place Pure dining set anyone?). The choice of articles, and the information within these are broad enough to appeal to women a wide variety of women from the 20s right through to 50s / 60s. The fashion pages may be geared towards a slightly younger audience, but the rest of the magazine is pretty generic. My favourite article in the summer edition was 'Picture Perfect' - a guide to getting the best photo of yourself possible, from poses to your hair style to accessories. I also loved the feature on festival hair...a handy guide to how to the most of your hair when you're camping and slummin' it. It's great to see that everything in Northern Woman is related to our wee country - Norn Irish celebs, clothing from local shops, local salons, parties etc etc. And, as if that wasn't already reason enough to buy it, Northern Woman is only £1.95! What are you waiting for?!

Auto Trader is Northern Ireland's biggest and best used car directory. It comes out every Thursday…read moreand is reasonably priced at £2.20! Unlike something like the ads for free, where I think the print version is made redundant by its online counterpart, I feel for the Auto Trader both sections are valid and complement each other well. The magazine provides an extensive rage range of every type of vehicle under the sun that will come at a wide variety of ages and prices. The magazine is good be\cause if you get it first thing on a Thursdday morning when it comes out you can hopefully beat off the competition to any bargains. The layout is clear and good, and there is always a great variety on display. Unfortunately the paper can attract a lot of tyre-kickers as my father who regularly advertises in this magazine will profess! Advertising rates are reasonable and the photography teams will come out to you and take pictures of your cars if you don't have the time which is good for a busy bee like my dad!

Every young boy at some point gets bored and has read an Auto Trader from cover to cover... Don't…read morewe? To be honest I looked at the majority of the pictures and decided there and then if they were worth my Dad showing any interest. Turned out he didn't want to buy a car, nor did he want my opinion. Insert sad face. The Auto Trader is the biggest selling car magazine in all of the country and when you buy it you can see why. It is choc-a-block with any number of cars, lorries, quad bikes etc. All used. All Northern Irish. The internet, as Nick rightly said, is having a much more exciting time with buying and selling cars than it used to so the future of Auto Trader may not be as secure as it used to be. However, from working in a part-time job in which we sold this magazine, there was rarely a time any magazines were returned to the supplier. It has everything you need as well as information about the vehicles and a contact number in case you are interested. Perhaps this time next year magazines will be something of a distant memory like VHS, yo-yos and Destiny's Child. But for now Auto Trader is a great magazine and is definitely worth a look if you are interested in buying or selling any vehicles.

I love this little newspaper. It's published once a month and is the ultimate local bible for mums…read moreof young kids. In fact if you have children you may well have heard of it already as it's widely available in leisure centres, play areas, libraries and some schools even send it home in school bags. Ni for Kids is jammed with features and advice on everything child related, from where to go on wet Saturdays to where to find help with childcare and how to check that you're getting all the tax credits you're entitled to. I have followed loads of the advice on where to go for a great day out and have had some super days at places I wouldn't even have heard of otherwise like Carnfunnock Fun Zone and Delamont Country Park. I especially love the regular feature on how working mums manage to juggle all the demand on their time, very aptly called 'Balancing Act'. It makes me feel like I'm not the only person who is constantly playing catch up. There is so much to read in NI for Kids it's impossible to list everything here but a few other features to give you a flavour of what you can find are: healthy eating for kids, the best board games to buy and how to choose the right school for your child. The web site is excellent too and even more comprehensive. If you have children and need guidance or inspiration on just about anything, then get yourself a copy of NI for Kids. Oh, and the good news is that its totally, 100%, free.

ni4kids is distributed throughout Northern Ireland to primary schools, leisure centres, soft play…read morecentres, tourist information centres, shopping centres and 9 McDonalds Restaurants, and is a really great magazine. The magazine aims to provide parents with useful information on education, health, parenting, entertainment and fun things to do for all the family, whether in the home or out and about around Northern Ireland. Subscriptions to the magazine can be attained for £15 and are well worth it for the quality of the magazine, but it is free to pick up in the areas that I listed above! There are always high quality articles on current issues affecting parents such as how the new government budget will affect families, how to help children with their education and how to sort off time from work when you are a single parent. I am not a parent ( thank you medical science for the pill!) but my mother swears by this magazine and I have got to read it regularly, and it is really an excellent magazine. ni4kids is distributed throughout Northern Ireland to primary schools, leisure centres, soft play centres, tourist information centres, shopping centres and 9 McDonalds Restaurants, and is really great magazine. The magazine aims to provide parents with useful information on education, health, parenting, entertainment and fun things to do for all the family, whether in the home or out and about around Northern Ireland. Subscriptions to the magazine can be attained for £15 and are well worth it for the quality of the magazine, but it is free to pick up in the areas that I listed above! There are always high quality articles on current issues affecting parents such as how the new government budget will affect families, how to help children with their education and how to sort off time from work when you are a single parent. I am not a parent ( thank you medical science for the pill!) but my mother swears by this magazine and I have got to read it regularly, and it is really an excellent magazine.

Despite sounding like it could (and should) be me, Local Shopper is actually a free publication…read morethat provides a 'platform' (their words, not mine) for local businesses to advertise and offer deals to prospective clientele. Good idea, eh? Delivered by the Royal Mail once monthly to 207,000 homes and businesses in the Belfast, Bangor, Newtownabbey and Lisburn areas, there are different versions of the Local Shopper for each particular neighbourhood. For example, the one I receive is delivered to 13,500 homes in the Braniel, Tullycarnet, Gilnahirk and Dundonald areas, and is tweaked to suit our area, with adverts from the likes of Papa Johns in Dundonald, Envy tanning and beauty in Ballybeen and Gilnahirk Tyres and Exhausts. Not only do each of these businesses get a decent sized ad in this eight page magazine, but many of these ads double up as coupons / money-off vouchers for that particular company. Fun Works in Glengormley (one of very few businesses which isn't that nearby) are offering 20% off when you produce their ad, whilst the Green Energy Store in Bangor are promoting their business with £200 off selected energy store systems. Local Shopper is a great idea for local businesses, but also for the prospective customers. Good work!

The Local Shopper is a little advertisement free sheet which is popped in the door of of over…read more200,00 Belfast homes every month. It is quite informative and is tailored to suit your area. The businesses are actually quite useful, they'll let you know about skips for hire in your area, great deals on electrical goods and some great deals and vouchers for pizzas. As far as most advertisement free sheets go, this is a quality one worth reading instead of chucking in the bin.

MSM magazine is published and produced by The Rainbow Project and is a specialist magazine for gay…read moremen (men who have sex with men hence MSM) Now, before you go thinking I'm about to review some sleazy porno mag, think again! MSM is a great (and free!) magazine which features interviews and articles exploring all aspects of physical, mental and emotional health, there's reviews and fashion pages (how could there not be!) there's great informative advice and support as well as photo galleries from the gay scene. It's compacted in to a handy pocket size mag and even includes the brilliant 'Gay O Scopes' for those astrology buffs out there. I'm 100% behind this fabulous and funny publication. I'm proud of the open and accepting gay culture we have in Belfast, long may it continue!

In! is essentially a Northern Irish version of Ok! / Hello! magazines (what is with all these…read moreexclamation marks?!), specialising in reports on local social activities and gatherings, with plenty of photos to boot. Except, most of these people aren't even famous... In the July / August edition, the focus is on the Down Royal (stunning outfits galore), Miss Northern Ireland (I just looked in the mirror and cried...)., the opening of a new restaurant / bar / lounge in Belfast, the opening of a new salon (also in Belfast), etc etc. It's generally filled with pictures of beautiful girls who are very much 'In!' these social circles, or just so happen to be at a prestigious event and get their photo taken. There are also celeb interviews - Christine Bleakley and her sister Nicola are in the current edition - as well as lifestyle / beauty pages, plenty of plugs for the latest in where to eat, where to visit, where to get that hideous cellulite seen to...you get the picture. After reading, you may feel a slight inferiority complex. Don't worry, you will eventually overcome this problem, though it may take a few days. The overwhelming glamour is enough to make even the best looking person feel a bit paranoid. I assure you...

I'm a big fan of this magazine. Having worked in the media industry in Northern Ireland for a few…read moreyears, I actually think that IN! has taken an original concept for NI and made it a real success. The people who go to the events in Northern Ireland love getting their photograph taken, and hence will love to see it printed in a glossy magazine. I think its a really interesting read as well, and having a local focus is brilliant too - how many times to you see things in OK! Mag that you can't get in Northern Ireland?! At least you know that what you see in this magazine, you'll be able to get on your doorstep. Every interview may not feature a celebrity, but I don't think thats what the essence of this magazine is about - its more about celebrating talent and if they can be the first stepping board for some of these people to let NI know what they're doing, where they're going and why they want to be heard, then why not? I definitely look forward to the latest edition each month and I hope it continues for a long time - it can only get better!

I had the pleasure of doing an internship at The Irish Times Belfast office earlier this year…read more Fanum house, even with it's gray industrial exterior, broken lifts and air conditioning, still holds a certain charm for me. It was here I had the pleasure of working with Gerry Moriarty, Northern Editor and Dan Keenan, Northern News Editor, in the events running up to the devolution of policing and justice powers back in February 2010. The Irish Times northern correspondents have been based there since the seventies. Generally, the northern office contributes about seven stories or commentary pieces to the paper each day. The Irish Times, which is based in Dublin was established in 1859 and focuses on Irish news and politics, as well as international news, sports, arts and culture. The northern office mainly focuses on political issues in the province. The paper is published 6 days a week, Monday to Saturday. It is regarded as the most reputable newspaper in Ireland. The office is run by a super lady named Faye. If you ring with any queries, Faye will sort you out. Like most newspaper offices, the Irish Times Northern HQ (referred to the editor as 'The Rat Pit') has it's quirks. Most notably- an office which is painted completely green, yes even the radiators, the exuberant and charming cleaning lady from the Falls road and an old Jewish businessman who calls in every week with a pair of scissors to cut out sections of the previous days paper.

With the usual amount of tabloid rubbish taking up way too many pages, at least we can always rely…read moreon a newspaper ending in "times" to provide something of a journalistic approach to their job. When it comes to news papers, if it ends in "times" or "telegraph" 9 times out of 10 it probably has something to do with current affairs on their front page, and not something to do with Ashley Cole taking photographs of his bits and pieces to send to prostitutes. The Irish Times, though not my first choice in newspapers, certainly has me interested whenever I see it lying about. The journalism is focused on "important" events, usually politics but unlike a lot of the English press, the Irish Times relies heavily on local events, and local news stories. If it is a solid newspaper with it's head in the right place that you are after, then this is certainly worth a read. However if you want to find out about some X Factor winner going on a date with someone who once played football for Bristol City, then you probably will not find it in this paper. And rightly so.