The coordination chemistry of mono(2,2′-bipyrid-6-yl)bis(2-pyridyl)methanol (L1) and bis(2,2′-bipyrid-6-yl)mono(2-pyridyl)methanol (L2) are contrasted to tris(2,2′-bipyrid-6-yl)methanol (L3).L1andL2can produce octahedral complexes compared to the trigonal prismatic preference ofL3.