Top of the Pops double page spread analysis – “I’m so in love with Lou!”

On the left hand side of the double page spread we see a large image of Leona Lewis standing on a merry go round, this immediately tells the audience who the article is about. The publisher has done this because we read from left to right so Leona is the first thing we see. Leona is looking directly at the strapline, “I’m so in love with Lou”, which automatically makes the reader follow Leona’s eyes to see what she is focusing on. The lead, which sits next to the strapline says, “Lucky LEONA LEWIS reveals why she’s head-over-heels for the man of her dreams…” sucks the reader is as it doesn’t tell the audience who “the man of her dreams” is so that they want to read on and find out. The publisher has also used a pun, “in love with Lou”, it sounds like in love with you, which it is supposed to be but Lou has replaced you as it is the name of Leona’s boyfriend. By not telling the reader exactly who the X Factor winner’s boyfriend is, the audience may get the impression that she is “in love” with the X Factor judge Louis Walsh as they both spent a lot of time together on the show, the X Factor.


The layout is very neatly structured and it uses a lot of pink and white, which is also what the colour of Leona’s dress. The questions are well organised in columns and there are secondary images at the bottom of the page which is visual gossip of Leona and her boyfriend Lou. The images are set up like a cartoon strip and young people are into comics so will get on well with and prefer this layout.
The large quotes which are taken from the answers that Leona has given the interviewer have been spaced out around the double page spread to catch the reader’s eye and to lure them in. This works because they are bold and stand out in contrast to the smaller writing on the pages and gives you a snippet of information which then the reader wants to find more about. The questioned asked are printed in different shades of pink. The lighter shade seems to be the more trivial questions which Leona gives shorter answers to and the darker shade of pink questions are the more personal questions.
It is a very chatty and informal interview, which is language that is easier for the children to understand and comprehend. Lots of bold writing and exclamation marks are used, “THE REAL DEAL” which is a form of exaggeration and grabs the reader’s attention. The buy line is in the middle of the two double page spreads and is very small and this gives the impression that Leona is talking directly to her fans and not through an interviewer. This is because the buy line is the only source of the writer so this tricks the reader into thinking that Leona is talking directly to them.
The pink theme links in with love and the creamy white colour on Leona’s dress symbolises purity. Even though Top of the Pops is a music magazine, the interviewer hasn’t discussed Leona’s music with her. Compared to rock magazines, such as Kerrang, there seems to be a much heavier emphasis on image for pop artists whereas rock artists want their music to be the main focus.