Explore more than 100 years of the BBC’s history – click on our interactive timeline or investigate a topical anniversary, unpack the story of fascinating objects from our varied collections, or go in-depth via one of our long-form articles.
And tell us your memories of what the BBC means to you.
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Anniversaries
July 2001 saw the launch of one of the BBC's biggest television comedy hits. Read how The Office began, on our anniversaries page. -
Comedy - a BBC tradition
The BBC has a long history of radio and television comedy programmes, many of which broke new ground - and rattled the establishment of the day. Professor Jamie Medhurst Professor of Media and Communication, Aberystwyth University, investigates. -
Variety and Music - the women pioneers
Dr Emma Sandon Senior Lecturer in Film and Television, Birkbeck College, looks at the work of influential women producers and directors of the BBC's Light Entertainment and Music departments -its a fascinating story. -
Faces of the BBC
Our Face of the BBC this week must be one of the biggest stars of BBC music programmes of the 1960s. Click here to find out more about Cilla Black. -
Objects of the BBC
This is the fascinating diary of a BBC reporter. Peter Watson took meticulous notes during his on the spot reporting of JF Kennedy's Assassination - one of the biggest news stories of the 1960s. Read more about this object here. -
When programmes meets tech - the BBC R&D story
Getting BBC content into people's homes, be it news, music or light entertainment, needs reliable technology, and BBC R&D - in various forms - has been supporting programmes for more than 100 years. Find out more here. -
Voices of the BBC
From life in the BBC as a telephone operator, to the pioneers of colour television and the BBC in the digital age, the BBC Oral History Collection has been recording the world of the corporation since 1972. Start your journey here through our themed collections. -
Share your Memories - D-Day and World War Two broadcasts
Tell us your recollections of wartime broadcasting, and how radio informed or entertained you or a relative during those years. -
BBC Exhibitions
Look out for events and exhibitions showcasing BBC entertainment, science, and war programming, international broadcasting, and vintage radio and TV equipment. -
Plaques
The BBC Heritage Trail brings together newly commissioned blue plaques and existing plaque schemes to celebrate the buildings used for broadcasting over the decades. Also featured are plaques installed as part of David Olusoga’s landmark series Black and British - A Forgotten History, and the BBC Music Day plaques created for BBC Local Radio.
Links
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BBC Archive
Hand-picked and popular selections from the BBC archives. -
The Researchers
Features by academics from across the world looking at a wide range of BBC related subjects. -
BBC Programme Index
Explore the BBC’s historical listings information from 1922 to the present day. -
Connected Histories of the BBC
A University of Sussex-AHRC research project -
British Entertainment History Project
The UK's largest oral history collection of interviews with professionals from across the film, television, radio and theatre industries. -
BBC Memory Bank
Giving longstanding and retired staff the opportunity to write their part of the unofficial history of the BBC. -
BBC iPlayer from the Archive
The destination to discover the most distinctive content from the BBC's rich archive. -
Archive on Four
Brilliant stories told using archive from the BBC and beyond.
