It was one of the original lads ' mags famed for its coverage of music and sport - and its shots of scantily-clad women . But the publishers of Loaded have announced the magazine is closing down after 21 years - and its April edition will be the last . At its height , the title – set up in 1994 – was one of the leading players in the booming sector , commanding a six-figure readership . Scroll down for video . End of an era : The publishers of Loaded have announced the magazine is closing down after 21 years - and its April edition ( right ) will be the last . An edition featuring Liz Hurley is pictured left . Deputy editor Lia Nicholls revealed the closure on Twitter in a post which included pictures of the first and last editions of the magazine . At its height , the title – set up in 1994 – was one of the leading players in the booming sector , commanding a six-figure readership . But the most recent edition , which came out on March 26 - featuring Noel Gallagher and novelist Irvine Welsh - is to be its last , bosses have revealed . Deputy editor Lia Nicholls revealed the closure on Twitter in a post which included pictures of the first and last editions of the magazine . She said : ‘ The very first and unfortunately the last issue of @ loadedmag . Sad day . Loved every minute. ’ Glamour models and Page Three girls Lucy Pinder ( left ) and Michelle Marsh ( right ) pose for photographers in a giant cake to help celebrate the 10th anniversary of Loaded , outside the Tate Modern in London in 2004 . At times during its 21 year life , Loaded ran into controversy attracting criticism over the number of scantily-clad women it included in each edition . Circulation fell as it went through a number of different ownership changes , but after a relaunch last year , Loaded said it would be ‘ far more discerning and sophisticated ’ in its depiction of women , the BBC reports . The Telegraph reports that circulation topped 500,000 for its 50th edition in June 1998 . Lads ' mags may have taken off in the mid-1990s , but some of the many titles that became synonymous with the booming sector had already been around for some time . The likes of FHM and Arena had been catering for the male market since the middle of the 1980s and more emerged in the following decade . But although many titles prospered in that era and continue to do so , circulation for some of the best-known magazines started to suffer with the rise of the internet . Men 's monthly magazine Arena was set up in 1986 with the aim of providing a mix of fashion and style . Game changers : Nuts ( left ) and its rival Zoo ( right ) , were launched within weeks of each other leaving more established lads ' mags reeling . But circulation declined in its last decade and it was closed down by publishers Bauer in 2009 . In the same year , it was announced that the UK print edition of Maxim would be closed after 14 years having been launched in 1995 by Dennis Publishing . It was reported at the time that the US version would be sold on British news stands . In 2004 , two new weekly titles , Nuts and its rival Zoo , were launched within weeks of each other leaving more established lads ' mags reeling - but they often encountered controversy for their portrayal of women . FHM magazine ( left ) , is one of the best known lads 's mags . Maxim 's UK print edition ( right ) closed down in 2009 after 14 years . Although many titles prospered in the 1990s and continue to do so , circulation for many of the best-known magazines started to suffer with the rise of the internet . Front pages predominantly featured pictures of scantily clad women and in 2013 it was reported that Co-op would no longer sell Nuts . It came after the title rejected an ultimatum to use 'modesty bags ' or be removed from shelves , it was reported at the time . Despite having a weekly circulation of more than 300,000 at its height , the circulation of Nuts was in decline by 2007 and in 2014 , IPC Media announced that it was closing the title down . Zoo , published by Bauer Media Group , is still operating as it another well known lads ' mag title from the era , FHM , which started in 1985 as For Him Magazine , . But sales plummeted to about 35,000 in 2011 , the last officially audited figures for the magazine . It was one of a number of lads ’ magazines that became popular in the 1990s along with the likes of FHM and Maxim and , later , Nuts and Zoo . The magazine ’ s publisher Simian said in a statement : ‘ As of the current April issue , published on March 26th , Loaded will cease to trade as a printed magazine . ‘ We would like to pay tribute to our customers , staff and especially our contributors and editorial team. ’ One of its initial 1994 launch editors , James Brown , told his Twitter followers that the closure was ' a pity ' adding : 'The last team seemed to have made a real go of it . '
Magazine was set up in 1995 and had six-figure readership at its height . But recent years edition featuring Noel Gallagher and Irvine Welsh will be the last . Lads ' mags Nuts , Arena and Maxim UK have also closed in April .