View source for Holme Moss transmitting station

{{short description|Radio and TV transmitter in Yorkshire, England}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2019}}
{{Use British English|date=July 2019}}
{{Infobox UK transmitter
|name                = Holme Moss
|image               = [[File:Holme Moss Transmission Tower.JPG|250px]]
|caption = Holme Moss radio mast
|map_name = West Yorkshire
|coordinates = {{coord|53.533221|-1.858187|type:landmark_region:GB|display=inline,title}}
|location            = [[Holme Valley]], [[Kirklees]], [[West Yorkshire]]
|height              = {{convert|228|m|ft|0}}
|gridref             = SE095040
|built               = 1951           
|demolished          = 
|collapsed           = 
|relay               =
|BBC                 = [[BBC North]] <small>(1951-1985)</small>
}}
The '''Holme Moss transmitting station''' is a radio transmitting station at [[Holme Moss]] in [[West Yorkshire]], England. The mast provides [[VHF]] coverage of both [[FM Broadcasting|FM]] and [[Digital Audio Broadcasting|DAB]] to a wide area around the mast including [[Derbyshire]], [[Greater Manchester]], [[South Yorkshire]] and [[West Yorkshire]].

== History ==
[[File:Holme Moss 2016 010.jpg|thumb|right|Buildings at the base of the antenna]]
Holme Moss transmitting station was built by [[British Insulated Callender's Cables]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://tx.mb21.co.uk/features/holmemoss/bicc.php|title=Construction Bulletin|date=1 September 1951|publisher=British Insulated Callender's Cables|access-date=5 July 2020}}</ref> with [[John Laing Group|John Laing & Son]] acting as sub-contractors for the foundations.<ref>Ritchie, p. 112</ref> It became the BBC's third public television transmitter, launched on 12 October 1951. Of historic and technical interest, this operated on the 405 line VHF system, with black and white transmissions originally on [[CCIR System A|British System A]], Channel 2, with vision 51.75&nbsp;MHz, 45&nbsp;kW and sound 48.25&nbsp;MHz, 12&nbsp;kW.<ref>[http://www.thevalvepage.com/tvyears/articals/hmoss/hmoss.htm TV COMES TO THE NORTH]</ref> The mast survived until the end of the Band I TV broadcasts in 1985, with a replacement mast being constructed, adjacent, in 1984.<ref>[http://www.aerialsandtv.com/holmemosstx.html Holme Moss History]</ref> In early 1986, there was concern that heavy blocks of ice could bring down the old mast: February 1986 had been one of the coldest months on record, but demolition contractors worried that a sudden burst of warm weather could loosen lumps of ice,  with the shock of the fall possibly buckling the old mast at its badly rusted centre. This in turn threatened to damage the new mast just 100 yards away and put all its FM broadcasts off air.<ref>Guardian, 13 February 1986, P1</ref> In the event, a gradual thaw alleviated the problem, and the old mast was taken apart as planned.

The site is now owned and operated by [[Arqiva]].<ref>[[Arqiva#Notable transmitter sites|Arqiva]]</ref>

VHF Radio broadcasts started on 10 December 1956, for the [[BBC Radio 4|Home]], [[BBC Radio 2|Light]], [[BBC Radio 3|Third Programme]] as they were then titled (see table). To this day, these three stations operate on exactly the same frequencies as they did in 1956.  Subsequently, BBC Local Radio services were added in the early 1970s.  With the awarding of a national commercial station, Classic FM is also broadcast. DAB transmissions also now originate from here.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://tx.mb21.co.uk/gallery/holmemoss/index.php |title=Holme Moss Transmitter |access-date=25 August 2011 |archive-date=13 January 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140113073128/http://tx.mb21.co.uk/gallery/holmemoss/index.php |url-status=dead }}</ref>

These transmissions cover North West England (mainly Greater Manchester and Cheshire) and most of Yorkshire; however, signals can be heard as far south as London and as far north as Scotland, whilst coverage can also be heard in Ireland and mainland Europe.

The base of the station is 1,719&nbsp;ft (524 m) above sea level and the mast another 750&nbsp;ft (228 m) on top of that. This gives a maximum aerial height of 2,467&nbsp;ft (752 m) which is one of the highest in the UK. The mast weighs 140 tons and is held up by 5 sets of stay levels.  At 250&nbsp;kW [[Effective radiated power|ERP]] on the national channels, it is one of the most powerful VHF sites in the country.

==Services available==

===Analogue radio (FM VHF)===
{| class="wikitable sortable"
!Frequency
!kW
!Service
!Entered service
!class=unsortable|Notes
|-
|style="text-align:right;"|89.3&nbsp;MHz
|250
|[[BBC Radio 2]]
|10 December 1956
|Originally the Light Programme
|-
|style="text-align:right;"|91.5&nbsp;MHz
|250
|[[BBC Radio 3]]
|10 December 1956
|Originally the Third Programme
|-
|style="text-align:right;"|92.4&nbsp;MHz
|5.6
|[[BBC Radio Leeds]]
|1975
|Radiating northwards towards West Yorkshire
|-
|style="text-align:right;"|93.7&nbsp;MHz
|250
|[[BBC Radio 4]]
|10 December 1956
|Originally the North Regional Home Service
|-
|style="text-align:right;"|95.1&nbsp;MHz
|5.6
|[[BBC Radio Manchester]]
|10 September 1970
|Radiating westwards towards Manchester, north-east Cheshire and parts of the High Peak in Derbyshire
|-
|style="text-align:right;"|98.9&nbsp;MHz
|250
|[[BBC Radio 1]]
|1 September 1988
|At launch, the output was 60 kW. This was increased to 250 kW on 19 December 1989.
|-
|style="text-align:right;"|101.1&nbsp;MHz
|250
|[[Classic FM (UK)|Classic FM]]
|7 September 1992
|-
|style="text-align:right;"|104.1&nbsp;MHz
|4.4
|[[BBC Radio Sheffield]]
|1975
|Radiating south and eastwards towards South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw in northern Nottinghamshire
|}

===Digital radio (DAB)===
{| class="wikitable sortable"
!Frequency
!Block
!kW
!Operator
|-
|222.064&nbsp;MHz
|11D
|4.7
|[[Digital One]]
|-
|225.648&nbsp;MHz
|12B
|5
|[[BBC National DAB]]
|}

===Analogue television===
TV transmissions ceased from this site with the demise of the original VHF service in 1985.
{| class="wikitable sortable"
!{{no2}}Frequency
!{{no2}}VHF
!{{no2}}kW
!{{no2}}Service
|-
|{{UK System A|ch=2}}
|2
|100
|[[BBC One|BBC1 North]]
|}

==Relay services==
Being the main radio site in the North West and Yorkshire region, there are also a number of smaller relay transmitters used to fill in areas which receive poor coverage from Holme Moss. This is particularly evident around the Pennines, where there are many hills which result in poor reception from Holme Moss (especially indoors).

===Analogue radio===
{| class="wikitable sortable"
!Transmitter
!kW
!<abbr title="BBC Radio 1">BBC R1</abbr>
!<abbr title="BBC Radio 2">BBC R2</abbr>
!<abbr title="BBC Radio 3">BBC R3</abbr>
!<abbr title="BBC Radio 4">BBC R4</abbr>
!<abbr title="Classic FM">Classic FM</abbr>
!<abbr title="BBC Local Radio">BBC Local</abbr>
!class=unsortable|Notes
|-
|Barnoldswick
|0.02
|{{yes|align=left|99.3&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|89.7&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|91.9&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|94.1&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{N/A}}
|{{N/A}}
|Serves area of Barnoldswick
|-
|Beecroft Hill
|0.2
|{{yes|align=left|99.4&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|89.8&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|92.0&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|94.2&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|101.6&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|103.9&nbsp;MHz}}
|Relays BBC Radio Leeds. Serves western areas of Leeds 
|-
|Buxton
|0.1
|{{yes|align=left|99.6&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|90.0&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|92.2&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|94.4&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{N/A|}}
|{{yes|align=left|96.0&nbsp;MHz}}
|Relays BBC Radio Derby. Serves the Buxton area
|-
|Chesterfield
|0.4
|{{yes|align=left|98.6&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|89.0&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|91.2&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|93.4&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{N/A|}}
|{{yes|align=left|94.7&nbsp;MHz}}
|Relays BBC Radio Sheffield. BBC national FM services are relayed from Sutton Coldfield
|-
|Cornholme
|0.02
|{{yes|align=left|99.3&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|89.7&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|91.9&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|94.1&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{N/A}}
|{{N/A}}
|Serves villages of Cornholme and Lydgate, west of Todmorden.
|-
|Haslingden
|0.083
|{{yes|align=left|99.5&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|89.9&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|92.1&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|94.3&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{N/A}}
|{{N/A}}
|Serves Haslingden area.
|-
|Hebden Bridge
|0.025
|{{yes|align=left|98.0&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|88.4&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|90.6&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|92.8&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{N/A}}
|{{N/A}}
|Serves Hebden Bridge area.
|-
|Idle
|0.025
|{{yes|align=left|98.1&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|88.5&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|90.7&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|92.9&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|100.3&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{N/A}}
|Serves Bradford area.
|-
|Keighley
|1
|{{yes|align=left|98.5&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|88.9&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|91.1&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|93.3&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{N/A}}
|{{yes|align=left|102.7&nbsp;MHz}}
|Relays BBC Radio Leeds. Serves Keighley area.
|-
|Kendal
|0.1
|{{yes|align=left|98.6&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|89.0&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|91.2&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|93.4&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{N/A}}
|{{N/A}}
|Serves Kendal area.
|-
|Luddenden
|0.084
|{{yes|align=left|98.3&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|88.7&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|90.9&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|93.1&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{N/A}}
|{{yes|align=left|95.3&nbsp;MHz}}
|Relays BBC Radio Leeds. Serves areas west of Halifax and the Ryburn Valley. 
|-
|Morecambe Bay 
|10
|{{yes|align=left|99.6&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|90.0&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|92.2&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|94.4&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|101.8&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{N/A}}
|Serves large areas of Southern Cumbria.
|-
|Olivers Mount
|0.25
|{{yes|align=left|99.5&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|89.9&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|92.1&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|94.3&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{N/A}}
|{{N/A}}
|Serves Scarborough and surrounding areas.
|-
|Pendle Forest
|0.1
|{{yes|align=left|97.8&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|90.2&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|92.6&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|94.6&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{N/A}}
|{{N/A}}
|Serves Burnley and Colne areas.
|-
|Saddleworth
|0.095
|{{yes|align=left|99.3&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|89.8&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|91.9&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|94.1&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{N/A}}
|{{yes|align=left|104.6&nbsp;MHz}}
|Relays BBC Radio Manchester. Serves Saddleworth and Tameside in the Upper Tame Valley 
|-
|Sheffield 
|0.32
|{{yes|align=left|99.5&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|89.9&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|92.1&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|94.3&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|101.7&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|88.6&nbsp;MHz}}
|Relays BBC Radio Sheffield. Serves parts of Sheffield
|-
|Stanton Moor
|1.2
|{{yes|align=left|99.4&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|89.8&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|92.0&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|94.2&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{N/A}}
|{{N/A}}
|Serves areas of the southern Peak District including Matlock, Bakewell and Cromford areas.
|-
|Todmorden
|0.1
|{{yes|align=left|98.5&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|88.9&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|91.1&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|93.3&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{N/A}}
|{{N/A}}
|Serves Todmorden area (relayed via Cornholme).
|-
|Walsden South
|0.01
|{{yes|align=left|98.0&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|88.4&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|90.6&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|92.8&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{N/A}}
|{{N/A}}
|Serves Walsden area and Littleborough, just south of Todmorden.
|-
|Wensleydale
|0.054
|{{yes|align=left|97.9&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|88.3&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|90.5&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|92.7&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{N/A}}
|{{N/A}}
|Serves Wensleydale area.
|-
|Whalley
|0.01
|{{yes|align=left|99.2&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|89.6&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|91.8&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|94.0&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{N/A}}
|{{N/A}}
|Serves Whalley and Clitheroe areas.
|-
|Wharfedale
|0.04
|{{yes|align=left|98.0&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|88.4&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|90.6&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|92.8&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{N/A}}
|{{yes|align=left|95.3&nbsp;MHz}}
|Relays BBC Radio Leeds. Serves Wharfedale north of Leeds
|-
|Windermere
|0.064
|{{yes|align=left|97.9&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|88.3&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|90.5&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{yes|align=left|92.7&nbsp;MHz}}
|{{N/A}}
|{{N/A}}
|Serves Windermere (relayed via Morecambe Bay).
|}

==Gallery==
<gallery>
Image:HolmeMossMast.jpg|Holme Moss mast and transmitter buildings
File:Aa holme moss 142.jpg|Holme Moss, near summit from west side
File:Aa holmemoss 145.jpg|Holme Moss, eastward view from top
File:Aa holmemoss 144.JPG|Holme Moss, transmitter mast and buildings
File:Holme moss transmitting tower panorama.jpg|A panorama generated from 17 images
</gallery>

==See also==
{{commonscat|Holme Moss Transmitting Station}}
* [[Holme Moss]]
* [[List of masts]]
* [[List of tallest structures in the United Kingdom]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}


==Sources==
* {{cite book|first=Berry|last=Ritchie|title=The Good Builder: The John Laing Story|publisher=James & James|year=1997}}

==External links==
* [http://tx.mb21.co.uk/gallery/holmemoss/bbc-north-booklet.pdf Holme Moss brings programmes on BBC Television and VHF Sound] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121012073904/http://tx.mb21.co.uk/gallery/holmemoss/bbc-north-booklet.pdf |date=12 October 2012 }}
* [http://tx.mb21.co.uk/gallery/holmemoss/index.php Entry for Holme Moss at The Transmission Gallery] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140113073128/http://tx.mb21.co.uk/gallery/holmemoss/index.php |date=13 January 2014 }}
* [https://www.aerialsandtv.com/knowledge/transmitters/holme-moss-radio-transmitter Info and pictures of Holme Moss]
* [http://www.thevalvepage.com/tvyears/articals/hmoss/hmoss.htm Opening of the mast in 1951]
* [http://www.thebigtower.com/live/HolmeMoss/Index.htm Holme Moss Transmitter at thebigtower.com]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wdFef5L2-DY&ab_channel=BBCArchive 1951 BBC Newsreel: Building the Holme Moss Transmitter]

{{Television transmitters in the UK}}
{{Supertall}}
{{Holme_Moss_VHF_405-line_Transmitter_Group}}

[[Category:Buildings and structures in Kirklees]]
[[Category:Mass media in Yorkshire]]
[[Category:Transmitter sites in England]]