Farrah Storr: From Magazine Editor to Substack Leader

Introduction

Farrah Storr MBE is a British journalist, author, editor and media executive. She became widely known through some of the UK’s biggest women’s magazines.

Her career has changed a lot since then.

She launched Women’s Health UK, later ran Cosmopolitan UK and became Editor-in-Chief of ELLE UK. She then moved away from traditional magazine publishing and joined Substack.

As of September 2026, she is Head of International at Substack.

She also writes her own newsletter, Things Worth Knowing, and has another book in development.

Quick Facts

Detail	Information
Full name	Farrah Storr MBE
Profession	Journalist, author, editor and media executive
Nationality	British
Birth month and year	November 1978
Age	47 in 2026
Raised in	Salford, Greater Manchester
University	King’s College London
Degree	French with English Literature
Current role	Head of International at Substack
Newsletter	Things Worth Knowing
Former major roles	Editor of Women’s Health UK, Cosmopolitan UK and ELLE UK
Husband	Writer Will Storr
First book	The Discomfort Zone
Honour	MBE for services to Media and Diversity

Growing Up in Greater Manchester

Farrah Storr was raised in Salford, Greater Manchester.

Magazine publishing was not an obvious career choice for her at first. She has spoken about growing up without really seeing magazine journalism as a normal job she could enter.

That changed with time.

She became interested in magazines and writing, then started looking for ways into the industry.

London gave her that chance.

Education at King’s College London

Storr studied at King’s College London.

She graduated in 2001 with a degree in French with English Literature.

University was not only about classes.

She also used her time in London to get journalism experience and start building work she could show editors.

That mattered.

Magazine jobs were competitive, and early work experience helped her get inside an industry that could be hard to enter without contacts or previous clips.

How Her Journalism Career Started

Storr began her professional magazine career in her early twenties.

One of her first documented jobs was at Woman & Home, where she worked as a features assistant.

She then built experience across several publications.

Her career included roles connected with:

• Woman & Home
• Good Housekeeping
• Eve
• Glamour
• Marie Claire Australia
• Madison
• Top Santé

She also spent time working in Australia.

In 2007, she moved to Sydney and worked at Marie Claire Australia as features director. She later became associate editor at Madison.

After returning to Britain, she worked at Top Santé.

Then came a much bigger opportunity.

Launching Women’s Health UK

Storr became the launch editor of Women’s Health UK.

This was a big career step.

Launching a magazine means much more than simply editing articles. The team has to build an identity, understand its readers and prove that people will actually buy it.

Storr has said the launch team was small.

The pressure was real.

She later recalled that the first issue needed sales of roughly 100,000 copies and reached around 104,000.

Women’s Health UK went on to become a strong magazine brand.

The role also moved Storr firmly into senior editorial leadership.

Taking Charge of Cosmopolitan UK

In July 2015, Hearst appointed Storr as editor of Cosmopolitan UK.

She worked on changing the magazine for a younger audience while keeping its established identity.

Her time there included changes across print and online publishing.

Cosmopolitan also ran editorial work around issues affecting women, representation and social inequality.

Under her editorship, the title remained one of the best-known young women’s magazines in Britain.

Storr stayed at Cosmopolitan until 2019.

Then another major role arrived.

Becoming Editor-in-Chief of ELLE UK

In 2019, Storr became Editor-in-Chief of ELLE UK.

Her responsibilities covered print, online work and events.

She remained in the position until 2021.

Her work at ELLE was not limited to fashion pages.

She also worked on access to careers in media and luxury industries.

One project connected ELLE with the Social Mobility Commission and gave young people from less wealthy backgrounds direct experience of magazine work.

It was a practical idea.

Young people could see how the industry worked rather than only hearing about it.

Work With the Social Mobility Commission

Storr joined the UK government’s Social Mobility Commission in 2018.

Her area covered culture, arts and media.

She served until 2021.

The commission looks at barriers that can make it harder for people from some economic backgrounds to get the same opportunities as others.

For Storr, that linked closely with her own work in publishing.

She had already spoken publicly about the cost of unpaid work experience and the difficulties facing people trying to enter media careers.

Moving From Magazines to Substack

Storr left ELLE and traditional magazine editing in 2021.

Her next move was different.

She joined Substack, the publishing platform used by independent writers and newsletter creators.

She first worked as Substack’s Head of Writer Partnerships in the UK.

Her responsibilities later grew.

By September 2026, publishing industry reports identified Storr as Head of International at Substack.

The move reflects a major change in her career.

For years, she worked inside large magazine companies.

Now she works closely with writers who can publish directly to their own audiences.

Things Worth Knowing Newsletter

Storr also became a publisher herself.

She started her Substack newsletter Things Worth Knowing in 2022.

The newsletter gives her space to write directly to readers.

Topics include books, writing, homes, travel, fashion and personal essays.

Her Substack profile had more than 65,000 subscribers during 2026.

That audience also became useful for testing new ideas.

One of those ideas later grew into a book project.

The Discomfort Zone

Storr published her first book, The Discomfort Zone: How to Get What You Want by Living Fearlessly, in September 2018.

The book looks at discomfort as something people can learn to handle instead of always trying to avoid.

Its main idea is simple.

Small uncomfortable experiences can help people become more willing to take risks, handle failure and try difficult things.

The book was later issued in paperback.

How Not to Have Children

Storr is also working on another nonfiction book titled How Not to Have Children.

The project grew partly from writing she published through her newsletter.

It looks at questions around wanting children, deciding against parenthood and building a meaningful adult life without becoming a parent.

Ebury Press acquired the book after a seven-way publishing auction.

That deal also shows how her newsletter work now connects with her book career.

She can write directly for readers first.

A larger publishing project can come later.

Awards and Industry Recognition

Storr has received several awards during her publishing career.

Her documented honours include:

• BSME New Editor of the Year in 2014
• BSME Editor of the Year in 2012, 2018 and 2020
• PPA Editor of the Year in 2018 and 2019
• King’s Alumna of the Year in 2019
• Fellow of King’s College London in 2022

These awards came across different stages of her magazine career.

They cover work at more than one major publication.

Farrah Storr’s MBE

Storr received an MBE in the 2024 King’s Birthday Honours.

The official citation recognised her services to Media and Diversity.

This honour came after years of work in journalism, magazine leadership and efforts linked with access to media careers.

Her public work had moved well beyond editing individual magazines by that point.

National Theatre Role

Storr also served on the board connected with the National Theatre.

Companies House records show that she was appointed on 1 June 2021 and left the role on 31 August 2023.

So this is a former position.

It should not be presented as one of her current jobs.

Farrah Storr and Will Storr

Farrah Storr is married to British writer Will Storr.

She has publicly referred to him as her husband.

Both work as writers, though their work covers different subjects and publishing formats.

Storr has also spoken publicly about not having children.

That subject later became part of her writing and her forthcoming book project.

More private family details are not needed to understand her public career.

What Is Farrah Storr Doing Now?

As of September 2026, Storr works as Head of International at Substack.

She is also active as a writer.

Her newsletter remains an important part of her work, and she continues to write about publishing, culture, books and everyday life.

Her current career mixes several jobs she once handled separately.

She works with writers.

She writes herself.

She understands magazine publishing.

And she now works inside a platform built around independent publishing.

Why Her Career Stands Out

Storr has worked through two very different periods of media.

Her early career came through printed magazines, features desks and traditional editorial teams.

Her current work sits much closer to independent writers and direct reader subscriptions.

That is a big shift.

Yet the basic skill remains familiar: finding stories people want to read.

She has spent more than two decades doing that in different ways.

Final Thought

Farrah Storr built her name through magazine journalism, but she did not stay in one lane.

She helped launch Women’s Health UK, ran Cosmopolitan UK, led ELLE UK and later moved into Substack.

She writes books too.

Right now, her work sits between publishing, technology and independent writing.

That makes her career useful to watch, especially as writers find new ways to reach readers without relying only on traditional magazines.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is Farrah Storr?

Farrah Storr MBE is a British journalist, author, editor and media executive. She has led Women’s Health UK, Cosmopolitan UK and ELLE UK.

What does Farrah Storr do now?

As of September 2026, she is Head of International at Substack. She also writes the Things Worth Knowing newsletter.

How old is Farrah Storr?

Storr described herself as 47 in June 2026. Public company records confirm that she was born in November 1978.

Where did Farrah Storr study?

She studied at King’s College London and graduated in 2001 with a degree in French with English Literature.

Is Farrah Storr married?

Yes. She is married to writer and author Will Storr.

Which magazines has Farrah Storr edited?

Her best-known senior roles include Women’s Health UK, Cosmopolitan UK and ELLE UK.

What books has Farrah Storr written?

Her first book is The Discomfort Zone. She is also working on How Not to Have Children.

Why did Farrah Storr receive an MBE?

She received an MBE in the 2024 King’s Birthday Honours for services to Media and Diversity.