A long-running fan favourite, the Radiohead bear logo never appeared on any official album artwork but showed up in various incarnations via supplemental promotional videos, art and graphics on the Radiohead.com website throughout the early 2000s. The bear imagery was even evoked through the title of the instrumental track “Hunting Bears” on Kid A’s follow-up album, Amnesiac (2001). Though the Radiohead bear comes in many forms and variations, it always features the same carnivorous grin, perched ears, and large unblinking eyes.
Radiohead’s bear head logo has been known by several names over the years: “Modified Bear,” “Despot Bear,” “Hunting Bear,” and “Blinky Bear,” amongst others. While the term “Modified Bear” seems to originate from a cartoon strip about genetically modified bears published on Radiohead.com around the time of the Kid A release, the Radiohead bear may have also been “modified” and adapted from the work of another artist.
01 - Modified Bear logo.
02 - Radiohead merchandising patch.
03 - 05 - Drawings by Thom Yorke and Stanley Donwood appeared on the band’s website for Kid A’s release.
