The problem with Ariel
There was a problem with the statue of Ariel, on the façade of the building above the main entrance.

Ariel is the spirit of the air from Shakespeare's play The Tempest, who sings beautiful, luring songs which entrance all visitors to stay on Prospero's magical island. He was thought to be an appropriate representation of the spirit of broadcasting.

However, Eric Gill's depiction of him caused the BBC some problems… "Maidens are said to blush and youths to pass disparaging remarks regarding the statues of Prospero and Ariel" (Daily Herald, 1933).

GG Mitchelson, MP for St Pancras, declared that the figures were "objectionable to public morals and decency".

All this, because the statue of the boy Ariel was thought to be sexually too well endowed. Rumour had it that John Reith, the first BBC's Director-General, ordered Gill to amend the statue to make it less offensive to the general public.