What Little White Lies does

Little White Lies is an independent film criticism publication founded in 2005 in London, United Kingdom, operating as a brand under The Church of London Ltd (TCOL). Its core product is a bi-monthly print magazine that combines design, illustration, and journalism to cover cinema, distinguished by a unique tripartite review ranking system (Anticipation, Enjoyment, In Retrospect) that frames each film across multiple time horizons. The magazine is distributed globally through stockists and digitally via Zinio, Readly, Pocketmags, and Apple News+, supplemented by direct subscription e-commerce on its own website.

The company monetises through four primary streams: one-time print magazine sales, recurring digital subscriptions across third-party newsstands, the Club LWLies membership program that provides exclusive essays, prints, monthly film recommendations, and Deep Cuts content, and advertising or sponsorship within its free weekly newsletter (LWLies Weekly) and podcast. Its editorial surface extends to features, filmmaker interviews, festival coverage (Cannes, Venice, SXSW London, Queer East), a podcast, and active social channels on Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

The primary audience is cinephiles and dedicated film enthusiasts seeking editorial-quality criticism and cultural analysis beyond mainstream commercial coverage, with a secondary, broader audience of general movie consumers reached through digital editions and the free newsletter. The company has no disclosed external investment, no patents or AI/ML capabilities, and operates with a small team in the 11–50 employee band shared with sibling TCOL brands Huck, TCO, and 71a.

Name

Little White Lies

Legal name

The Church of London Ltd

Website

https://lwlies.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Little White Lies is an independent film criticism publication founded in 2005 in London, publishing a bi-monthly print magazine, digital editions, podcast, and Club LWLies membership targeting cinephiles and film enthusiasts globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Print Magazine Sales: Sale of bi-monthly print magazine featuring film reviews, features, interviews, and illustration-driven journalism on cinema.
2. Digital Subscriptions: Digital editions available via Zinio, Readly, Pocketmags, and Apple News+ platforms.
3. Club LWLies Membership: Membership program offering exclusive content, member benefits, and support for independent journalism.
4. Newsletter/Sponsorship: Weekly newsletter (LWLies Weekly) delivered free on Fridays, potentially includes sponsored content and advertisements.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Little White Lies is an independent film criticism publication that publishes a bi-monthly print magazine combining design, illustration, and journalism on cinema, complemented by digital editions, a podcast, and a paid membership program (Club LWLies) that offers exclusive essays, prints, and member benefits. Its editorial output spans film reviews with a unique tripartite ranking system, filmmaker interviews, festival coverage, and in-depth feature articles.

Product overview

Little White Lies operates as a magazine publishing company offering both print and digital products. The core offering is its bi-monthly print magazine combining design, illustration, and film journalism. Digital distribution occurs through Zinio, Readly, Pocketmags, and Apple News+. Additional offerings include the Club LWLies membership program providing exclusive content, a podcast for audio discussions, film reviews with a unique tripartite scoring system, and feature articles including interviews and festival coverage. Deep Cuts provides member-exclusive in-depth cinema analysis.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Print Magazine A bi-monthly print magazine established in 2005, committed to championing great movies and the talented people who make them, combining cutting-edge design, illustration and journalism. Sold globally via stockists and direct subscriptions.
• Digital Editions Digital format versions of the magazine available via Zinio, Readly, Pocketmags, and Apple News+ platforms for on-the-go reading by individual subscribers.
• Club LWLies Membership A paid membership program offering member-exclusive essays, prints, monthly film recommendations, Deep Cuts cinema analysis content, and access to support independent film journalism.
• LWLies Podcast An audio podcast covering film discussions, interviews, festival coverage, and cinema culture, available to film enthusiasts.

Quantifiable outcome

• Described as 'at the vanguard of the independent publishing movement'

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and supporting.

• TCO London / The Church of London LtdcoreOthersParent company and publishing entity that operates Little White Lies alongside other brands including Huck and 71a. The Church of London Ltd (company number 05813483) is the registered entity behind the publication.
• Queer East Film FestivalminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with Queer East Film Festival for Emerging Critics project, producing festival coverage and critical responses to the film programme.
• Queer East Film Festival - Emerging CriticsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLittle White Lies Emerging Critics cohort produced written responses to the Queer East Film Festival programme, bringing together six writers for a mentorship programme.
• Digital Distribution Partners (Zinio, Readly, Pocketmags, Apple News+)supportingChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThird-party platforms distributing digital editions of Little White Lies magazine.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Huck Magazine: Sister publication under The Church of London Ltd; independent culture magazine covering film, music, and activism. Direct comparable in independent publishing model, design-led approach, and parent-group structure.
• Empire Magazine: Major UK-based film magazine with print, digital, podcast, and review offerings. Closest large-scale direct competitor to LWL in the English-language film magazine space.
• Sight & Sound: Long-running BFI-published monthly film magazine offering criticism, interviews, and festival coverage. Direct comparable to LWL in audience, editorial scope, and print+digital publishing model.
• IndieWire: US-based digital publication covering independent film, festivals, awards, and criticism. Direct peer in target audience (cinephiles and industry) and editorial product.
• Vulture: New York Magazine's culture vertical with dedicated film criticism, reviews, and feature coverage. Direct peer in editorial depth and cinephile audience.
• Cahiers du Cinéma: Iconic French film criticism magazine founded in 1951, focused on auteur cinema and serious critical analysis. Direct peer to LWL in editorial positioning toward cinephile audiences.

Broad incumbents

• The Ringer: Large digital media company with significant film and TV criticism, podcast, and newsletter operations. Broader incumbent competitor with overlapping cinephile and pop-culture audiences.

Emerging players

• MUBI: Curated film streaming service with editorial content, daily film picks, and cinephile community features. Emerging player with comparable audience and overlapping editorial-discovery product.
• Letterboxd: Film-focused social network and review platform serving the cinephile community globally. Emerging player capturing the same niche audience with user-generated reviews and lists.
• Criterion Collection: Film curation, distribution, and streaming company with rich editorial content (essays, behind-the-scenes features) for cinephile audiences. Emerging player with overlapping editorial and discovery products.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/lwlies
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/lwlies
• Facebookfacebook.com/littlewhiteliesmagazine
• Instagraminstagram.com/lwlies
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/lwlies

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Little White Lies