It has been hailed as a supreme example of information design it has been implemented in transit mapping around the globe (with varying levels of success) it has been venerated, analysed and parodied and it has been transformed into countless artefacts, souvenirs and merchandise – from mugs to face masks. Today, the ‘Tube map’ needs hardly any introduction. The map was eventually issued as a pocket edition in January 1933 its first print run of 750,000 copies reflecting the board’s new-found confidence in its design and an enthusiastic reception by the public secured a further printing of 100,000 copies in February and a poster edition in March (Dobbin, 2012). Beck submitted a presentation copy ( Figure 2) of his map to the board of the Publicity Office of the UERL that same year, and, although his solution was initially rejected as being too revolutionary (Garland, 1994), Beck re-submitted his design in 1932 and it was accepted. Beck’s radical approach favoured topology over topography – connectivity over geographical fidelity – which he achieved primarily by straightening out the lines and limiting changes in their direction to 45° and 90°. Beck, a technical draughtsman who had been laid off by the Underground Electric Railways of London (UERL), devised a new diagrammatic map 1 of the network ( Figure 1) in his spare time. The year 1931 saw the inception of what has become arguably the world’s most successful cartographic design.
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