BBC Owl Motif Origins

[ThomasAdam]

Hello all,

I hope everyone is well.

I have searched these forums before posting, but didn't see anything related to my question., so I hope this isn't a duplicate -- should it be, please do point me to it.

Does anyone here have any information as to the origins of the BBC owl, dotted-logo, which is associated so strongly with the BBC Micro?

I know it appeared on the BBC Micro insofar that it was on the sleeve under the perspex plastic insert of the BBC. Indeed, an owl itself featured prominently on some of the BBC Micro Literacy Project programmes featuring Ian Macnaught-Davis et. al., and on some of those programmes, one can see a lovely dotted-owl poster in the background.

But how did that come to be? Presumably it was something born out of the BBC/Acorn collaboration? Rather than Acorn itself? I also wonder if so, to what extent, Acorn identified with that owl icon internally, and how extensively was it used externally, either in literature or posters, etc.

Any and all information appreciated, and thanks in advance.

Kindly.
Thomas

[BigEd]

I would say it's a BBC design, created for their "Computer Literacy Project" and appearing on books and in title sequences, and also adopted into Acorn's micros.

There's a version on the CLP history site with the owl, "BBC" above it, and "Computer Literacy Project" to the right. On the same page, the unadorned owl appears in some programme title captures, and on some books (with BBC above).

Edit: but there's no sign of the owl in the 8 page pamphlet "The BBC Microcomputer System" - not even on the perspex strip. (Pamphlet dated September 1981. No mention of Acorn, as per contract!)

[jms2]

It's definitely a BBC design, as all non-BBC-approved Acorn machines don't have it (eg, Atom, Electron, Communicator, ACW and the more expensive/later 32 bit machines).

I don't think the designer is known though.