BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation, and its visual identity has evolved through several distinct eras since the channel’s launch. The current BBC One logo, introduced in October 2021, pairs the corporation’s updated BBC blocks with the channel name “ONE” in a red presentation.
Design and History
The BBC blocks logo was first introduced in 1958 and has gone through various updates over the years, the most recent prior to 2021 being in 1997, when the blocks were straightened and the various logos and brand styles used across the Corporation were replaced by a single brand based on the new logo and the Gill Sans typeface.[1][2]
In October 2021, the BBC revealed a new logo as part of a modernisation push. The three blocks incorporating the letters BBC were set slightly wider apart and began featuring the corporation’s own Reith font, replacing the previous Gill Sans lettering.[1][3] The redesign was driven in part by internal research indicating that audiences thought some of the broadcaster’s services looked old-fashioned and out of date.[4][5]
For BBC One specifically, the updated channel logo places the BBC blocks with the word “ONE” on a red background. The text is smaller than previously and is placed in blocks with slightly bigger gaps between them.[6] Viewers saw the new BBC One, Two and Four designs in the segments between programmes from Wednesday 20 October 2021.[1]
Earlier BBC One identities were built around globe imagery, reflecting the channel’s history. BBC tv became BBC1 in the 1960s, and a new ident used from 1966 to 1968 had the globe spinning within a “watch-strap”. BBC1 went to colour in November 1969, and a new ident (“Symbol C”) was introduced.[7] In 1997, a new style BBC ONE ident and logo was dominated by the red and yellow globe balloon, filmed flying over British locations.[8]
Typography and Design
The 2021 BBC logo uses the BBC-owned font Reith, named after the BBC’s founder John Reith.[3] The BBC had commissioned the custom bespoke font in 2017, and it began appearing on air in the organisation’s various broadcasts, including news graphics and promos, before being adopted in the logo itself.[4] At the same time, the scale of the letters was adjusted down slightly, making them fit better within the squares.[4]
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