How much does Spectator (1828) Limited(The) make?

Spectator (1828) Limited(The) reported revenue of £18.1m and a loss of £6.6m in the year to 31 Dec 2024, according to its accounts filed at Companies House.

How many employees does Spectator (1828) Limited(The) have?

Spectator (1828) Limited(The) reported an average of 97 employees in the year to 31 Dec 2024.

Is Spectator (1828) Limited(The) profitable?

No — Spectator (1828) Limited(The) reported a loss of £6.6m in the year to 31 Dec 2024.

Company No. 01232804 · Incorporated 7 Nov 1975

Spectator (1828) Limited(The)

Registered name: SPECTATOR (1828) LIMITED(THE)

Part of Old Queen Street Ventures Ltd group

Spectator (1828) Limited(The) made £18.1m revenue and a £6.6m loss in the year to 31 Dec 2024. read from filing text

Spectator (1828) Limited(The)’s revenue fell 2% to £18.1m in the year to 31 Dec 2024, with a loss of £6.6m and 97 employees. The company is classified under “publishing of consumer and business journals and periodicals”; we hold 2 years of its filed accounts.

Full P&L filedSection J · Information and communicationSIC 58142Publishing of consumer and business journals and periodicals

Status: Active
Location: London
Age: 50 yrs · since 1975
Type: Private Limited Company

Part of a group. The filing indicates this company sits within a group structure, so its results may depend on intra-group trading and it may be hard to replicate independently. From the filing: “The parent company of the company is Old Queen Street Ventures Limited and its registered office is 6 Old Queen Street, London, SW1 9HP.”

Latest accounts · year to 31 Dec 2024

Key figures

Capital-light

Revenue

£18.1m

Growth ▼1.7%

Profit

−£6.6m

Growth —

Profit margin

−36.4%

Gross 56.5%

Employees

Change ▲14.1%

Profit / employee

−£68.1k

Revenue/employee £187k

Profitable streak

0yrs

Consecutive profitable years in our data

Badges are automated estimates derived from the filed figures — not statements of fact about the company.

2 filed years

Financial history

Multi-year financials, oldest to newest
Year to	31 Dec 2023	31 Dec 2024
Disclosure	Full P&Lread from filing text	Full P&Lread from filing text
Profit & loss
Revenue (turnover)	£18.4m	£18.1m
Cost of sales	£7.5m	£7.9m
Gross profit	£10.9m	£10.2m
Operating profit	−£6.9m	−£6.6m
Profit before tax	−£6.9m	−£6.6m
Profit after tax	−£6.9m	−£6.6m
Profit (best available)	−£6.9m	−£6.6m
Staff costs	£5.6m	£6.3m
Employees (average)	85	97
Ratios
Profit margin	−37.5%	−36.4%
Gross margin	59.2%	56.5%
Revenue per employee	£217k	£187k
Profit per employee	−£81.4k	−£68.1k
Growth (year on year)
Revenue growth	—	▼1.7%
Headcount growth	—	▲14.1%
Balance sheet — indirect signals, not revenue
Cash at bank	£488k	£553k
Net assets	£9.8m	£3.2m
Fixed assets	£1m	£1.1m
Current assets	£15.3m	£8.1m
Debtors	£648k	£548k
Deferred income	£5.3m	£3.7m
Source	FullAccounts · bulk data Mar 2026	FullAccounts · bulk data Mar 2026

Derived from the latest filing

How the business works

Profit margin: −36.4%; Profit ÷ revenue.
Gross margin: 56.5%; Gross profit ÷ revenue. High for software and services.
Revenue per employee: £187k; Revenue ÷ average employees.
Profit per employee: −£68.1k; Profit ÷ average employees.
Cash conversion: —; Cash generated from operations ÷ operating profit. Needs a cash-flow statement.
Fixed assets ÷ revenue: 6.2%; Capital intensity. Low = capital-light, cheaper to start.
Deferred income ÷ revenue: 20.2%; Customers paying upfront (subscriptions, deposits). Approximate when combined with accruals.
Debtors ÷ revenue: 3%; Money owed by customers. Low = customers pay quickly.

Indirect — not revenue

Balance-sheet signals

Year-on-year changes in filed balance-sheet items. They can hint at momentum (or investment) but are not revenue or profit and must not be read as such.

Net assets: ▼67%; Now £3.2m
Cash at bank: ▲13%; Now £553k
Headcount: ▲14%; Now 97
Deferred income: ▼31%; Now £3.7m
Fixed assets: ▲11%; Now £1.1m

Deferred income is reported together with accruals in this filing (“accruals and deferred income”), so it is an approximate signal only.

Corporate ownership

Group structure

Ownership chain

Old Queen Street Ventures Ltdultimate parent75–100%
Spectator (1828) Limited(The)this company

Bands show the share of ownership each company holds in the one below it.

Sister companies (3)

2-4 Oqs LimitedFigures not disclosed
Coeditor LimitedFigures not disclosed
Unherd LimitedRev. — · Profit −£2.2m

From the Persons with Significant Control register (corporate controllers only).

Same industry, similar size

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Sources

Companies House profile Filing history & original accounts

Latest figures from FullAccounts for the year to 31 Dec 2024 (profit −£6.6m), from the Companies House accounts bulk data published Mar 2026. Spotted an error? Request a correction.

Contains public sector information from Companies House licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Data from Companies House, © Crown copyright. View the licence.