This issue marks the centenary of the British Broadcasting Corporation, founded in October 1922 under a Royal Charter driven largely by Postmaster General Frederick Norris's desire to prevent the American free-market broadcasting model from taking hold in Britain. The BBC began as a private company before converting to its chartered public form in 1927.
The pairing of Elizabeth II and Edward VII on a single coin is an artifact of the centenary framing — Edward VII was on the throne when the BBC's founding conditions were being laid down commercially, though he died a full twelve years before the Corporation existed.
This issue marks the centenary of the British Broadcasting Corporation, founded in October 1922 under a Royal Charter driven largely by Postmaster General Frederick Norris's desire to prevent the American free-market broadcasting model from taking hold in Britain. The BBC began as a private company before converting to its chartered public form in 1927.
The pairing of Elizabeth II and Edward VII on a single coin is an artifact of the centenary framing — Edward VII was on the throne when the BBC's founding conditions were being laid down commercially, though he died a full twelve years before the Corporation existed.