The famed British science fiction magazine New Worlds had a long, though erratic publication history. It began life in 1936 as the fanzine Novae Terrae, and in 1939 the editorship passed to John Carnell, who renamed the publication New Worlds. He wanted to transform the magazine into a professional publication, but World War II and Carnell's Army service intervened. In 1946, he began publishing the revitalized magazine with the help of Pendulum Publications. However, after only 3 issues the company went bankrupt, leaving New Worlds without a publisher.

London-based fans of the magazine took up the cause and created a new company, Nova Publications, that would relaunch the journal. Carnell was one of the company's board members, and it was chaired by author John Wyndham. In June 1949, Nova produced the first issue. New Worlds went on to enjoy a good deal of success through the 1950s, publishing works by such authors as J.G. Ballard, John Brunner, Arthur C. Clarke, and Brian Aldiss, as well as Wyndham himself. However, declining circulation in the early 1960s nearly caused Nova to close down the magazine; instead, it was bought by publisher Roberts & Vinter.

The publisher hired author, Michael Moorcock, starting with the May/June 1964 issue, as New Worlds' new editor, a post he held until 1969. In 1967, Moorcock rescued the magazine from cancellation (due to R&V's bankruptcy) by obtaining grant funds from the British Arts Council to continue publishing. Moorcock himself contributed many stories to the magazine, his work causing New Worlds to become known as one of the mainstays of the so-called experimental "New Wave" in British science fiction. In addition to his own stories, Moorcock published stories from a number of authors both famous and up-and-coming, including Clarke, John Sladek, Thomas M. Disch, Vernor Vinge, and Terry Pratchett.

Unfortunately, funding issues forced Moorcock to cease publication of New Worlds in April 1970. He did convince Sphere Books (and later Corgi Books) to continue it as a quarterly paperback anthology series, but it ended in 1976 after the tenth issue. From 1978-1979 New Worlds was revived again by Moorcock in a fanzine format, and it ran for four issues. Between 1991-1994, it again began publication as a paperback anthology series by Victor Gollancz, Ltd.