Tacolneston transmitting station

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Template:Pp Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Template:Use British English Template:Infobox transmitter The Tacolneston transmitting station is a facility for both analogue and digital VHF/FM radio and UHF television transmission near Tacolneston, Template:Convert south-west of Norwich, Norfolk, England.

It includes a Template:Convert tall guyed steel lattice mast, which was built between 2009 and 2012, and previously a Template:Convert tall guyed steel lattice mast, which was built in 1956 (completed in late September/early October that year). On top of the current mast is located the UHF television transmitting antenna, which brings the overall height of the structure to Template:Convert (the overall height of the previous mast being Template:Convert).[1]

The transmitter provides broadcast television and radio services to Norfolk and north Suffolk. However, northwestern parts of Norfolk including King's Lynn and Wells-next-the-Sea receive better TV signals from the Belmont TV transmitter situated in north Lincolnshire but the local relay transmitters in both towns are transmitted from the Tacolneston transmitter.[2][3]

History

Construction

The station's original mast, built from early 1954, was Template:Convert tall and first broadcast television transmissions, albeit temporarily, from 1 February 1955.[4][5]

VHF (FM) radio broadcasts began on a test basis from 22 December 1956, in order to allow East Anglia to receive programmes on VHF over the Christmas period.[6] The BBC Light Programme was not available during this test phase, and there were warnings that the service would occasionally be interrupted for engineering reasons.[6]

The main structure was built by J. L. Eve Construction in August 1956, for the new BBC East region. The Peterborough BBC mast was the same height and shape as Tacolneston, built in October 1959, and carried BBC television, before Sandy Heath.

In February 1958, the ITA was looking to put a Anglia transmitter, possibly at either Tacolneston, Snetterton, or Mendlesham in central Suffolk.[7]

Transmissions

The station began broadcasting regular programmes from Norwich purely for East Anglian audiences on the Midlands Home Service from Tuesday 5 February 1957,[8] and the transmitter went to full power for VHF from 6.35pm on Tuesday 30 April 1957.[9]

Regular television broadcasts began from Monday 8 October 1956. On 27 January 1957 the first regional television broadcast for East Anglia only was made, from Tacolneston itself, to publicise the VHF service.[10] On Monday 9 June 1958 the TV transmitter strength was doubled.

The transmission site is located at 52° 31' 3.9" North, 1° 8' 19.3" East[11] (National Grid Reference: TM131958[12]). In July 1989, it was reported that the transmitting station cost almost £500,000 a year to run.[13]

Arqiva (formerly National Grid Wireless) announced, on 6 August 2007,[14][15] that they plan to replace the current Template:Convert mast with a new Template:Convert[1] mast in order to ensure good digital TV reception across East Anglia after digital switchover, which took place in the area in November 2011. Arqiva also plan to replace the original transmitter hall at this site as it has now reached the end of its useful life.[16][17] Work has been completed on the new structure, and for the moment there will be three structures (two masts and a lattice tower) on the site. The old 165m mast is expected to start being dismantled in 2013.

Structure

The current mast has an average height of 221 metres above sea level.[18] It is now owned and operated by Arqiva, but was owned by the BBC before they privatised their transmission department prior to 1997.

Radio services listed by frequency

Analogue radio (FM VHF)

Frequency (MHz) kW Service
89.7 125 (V) + 125 (H) BBC Radio 2
91.9 125 (V) + 125 (H) BBC Radio 3
94.1 125 (V) + 125 (H) BBC Radio 4
99.3 125 (V) + 125 (H) BBC Radio 1
101.5 125 (V) + 125 (H) Classic FM

Digital radio (DAB)

Frequency (MHz) Block kW[19] Operator
218.640 11D 1.4 Digital One
225.648 12B 5 BBC National DAB

Television services listed by frequency

Digital television

Digital transmissions became at least ten times stronger in power after the digital switchover (DSO), and their frequencies were reorganised.[20]

Frequency (MHz) UHF kW Operator System
Template:UK DVB-T 39 100 Arqiva B DVB-T
Template:UK DVB-T 40 100 BBC A DVB-T
Template:UK DVB-T 42 100 SDN DVB-T
Template:UK DVB-T 43 100 D3+4 DVB-T
Template:UK DVB-T 45 100 Arqiva A DVB-T
Template:UK DVB-T 46 100 BBC B DVB-T2

At Tacolneston, extra HD muxes are being broadcast on UHF 55 and UHF 56, along with a local TV service (That's Norfolk) using an interleaved frequency on UHF 32 (QPSK 8K 3/4 8.0 Mbit/s).

Frequency (MHz) UHF kW Operator System
Template:UK DVB-T 32 10 LNR DVB-T
Template:UK DVB-T 55 18 Com 7 DVB-T2

Before switchover

Frequency (MHz) UHF kW[21] Operator
Template:UK DVB-T 53+ 5 SDN (Mux A)
Template:UK DVB-T 58- 5 BBC (Mux B)
Template:UK DVB-T 60 10 Digital 3&4 (Mux 2)
Template:UK DVB-T 61 5 Arqiva (Mux C)
Template:UK DVB-T 63 10 BBC (Mux 1)
Template:UK DVB-T 64 5 Arqiva (Mux D)

Analogue television

Tacolneston switched to digital-only television transmissions in November 2011;[22] analogue BBC Two transmissions ceased on 9 November, and two weeks later, on 23 November 2011,[22] the other four analogue channels ceased analogue transmissions.

Frequency (MHz) UHF kW Service
Template:UK System I 52 4 Channel 5
Template:UK System I 55 250 BBC2 East
Template:UK System I 59 250 Anglia
Template:UK System I 62 250 BBC1 East
Template:UK System I 65 250 Channel 4

See also

References

Template:Reflist Template:Refbegin

Template:Refend

External links

Template:Television transmitters in the UK Template:Tacolneston VHF 405-line Transmitter Group

  1. ↑ a b South Norfolk District Council planning application, January 2008
  2. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  3. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  4. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  5. ↑ Suffolk and Essex Free Press Wednesday 26 January 1955, page 4
  6. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  7. ↑ Peterborough Evening Telegraph Thursday 20 February 1958, page 4
  8. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  9. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  10. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  11. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  12. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  13. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  14. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  15. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  16. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  17. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  18. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  19. ↑ Radio Listeners Guide 2010
  20. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  21. ↑ Television Viewers guide 2009
  22. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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