Melinda Shaw, editor-in-chief of heat magazine, says that she and her team are proud of what the title has accomplished in South Africa. “What a milestone! 400 issues - that is over 33 years in monthly magazines! When we launched heat locally, our vision was to create a strong celebrity culture in the country. Looking back at how the landscape had changed and how celebrity news has become an important part of even the ‘serious’ news media, it's clear that that dream came true, which I am very proud of.”

Shaw adds that it is fascinating to see Andy Warhol's famous quote about 15 minutes of fame at work. “Just take Paris Hilton - she was the queen of skandaal for a good few years; she was in the headlines getting up to no good and making drama almost daily. But her star eventually faded and she was supplanted by Kim Kardashian - these days we hardly ever hear anything about Paris. And ironically, Kim is also slowly losing her appeal." Remember Wentworth Miller? The Prison Break star was once so popular that he came out tops in the heat Hot 100, but faded into obscurity when his show came to an end.

On the other side of the spectrum, there is Charlize Theron, the cover star for the first issue of heat back in March 2004, just as she won her Oscar for the film Monster. She made her next cover 396 issues later, last month, with reports that she had bowed to Hollywood pressures to have surgery. heat’s most popular (and controversial) cover girl is Angelina Jolie, who has featured on 47 covers, followed by Jennifer Aniston with 33 covers. Brad Pitt made it onto 37 covers, leading with David Beckham in second place, having only had six covers.

“Readers will be able to take a trip down memory lane when we look back at when we busted Brangelina who insisted they were ‘just friends’ after filming Mr & Mrs Smith; Britney Spears' meltdown when she shaved her head in 2007; the story that changed the South African celebrity landscape forever, Joostgate; the death of Amy Winehouse and other classics,” Shaw says.

Also featured in the spread are the shocking affairs nobody can forget, stars who made a comeback, and much more. Prizes up for grabs in the latest issue of heat are worth more than R60 000, including trendy watches, hi-tech cameras, cosmetics hampers, sunglasses, shoes and accessories.

For more information, get the latest issue of heat magazine, on sale now. Also check out heat.co.za, 'like' heat on Facebook (heatSouthAfrica) and follow the magazine on Twitter (@heatSouthAfrica).