BBC PHOTO ARCHIVE | Rediscover, Reimagine
Welcome to the BBC’s Photo Sales website where you can explore BBC copyright images that are available to licence for editorial use in print and digital media globally.
New Collections now available
PIERRE BOULEZ - 100 YEARS
March 2025 marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of conductor and composer Pierre Boulez. The BBC will celebrate the legendary French composer with a day of special programming on Radio 3 on 30th March. Boulez worked with the BBC for nearly 60 years, giving his first concerts with the BBC Symphony Orchestra in 1964 and becoming its Chief Conductor from 1971 until 1974
The ‘Boulez at the BBC’ collection contains newly digitised photos from the 1999 series Masterworks as well as never before seen photos taken during rehearsals at BBC Maida Vale Studios in 1984
The Good Life at 50
This new collection celebrates 50 years of The Good Life, which first aired on the BBC on 4th April 1975, with images showcasing behind-the-scenes moments, set design, and key characters. The classic sitcom followed Tom and Barbara Good, a suburban couple who leave the rat race to live self-sufficiently. It navigates the many, hilarious disasters faced by the couple as they convert their house and garden in Surbiton – as they introduce vegetable patches, a pigsty and start producing their own peapod wine – often to the alarm of the Leadbetters, their well-to-do neighbours. Although it only ran for four series, The Good Life has become one of the biggest television comedy hits of the 1970s.
The Collection | Discover a vast and unrivalled collection of images spanning the life of the corporation. Icons, British programmes, technology and broadcasting milestones throughout the decades at your fingertips.
The Archive | More than 6 million images are held in the Photo Archive on formats ranging from glass plates, negatives, transparencies, and prints to digital files. We ensure that high resolution scanning of photographic material takes place to both protect the material and make it accessible.
The Team | Photographic material is curated by our experienced team of Archivists who are here to help with research or collaborate with you to find rich and surprising photos.
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