Hannington Transmitting Station
Hannington's digital broadcasts were severely attenuated to the east before the digital switchover (DSO) so as not to cause co-channel interference with Guildford transmitter. Those restrictions were removed soon after DSO in 2012.
The transmitter has 8 local relays: Alton, Aldbourne, Chisbury, Hemdean, Hurstbourne Tarrant, Lambourn, The Bournes and Tidworth.
Broadcast interruptions
1977 Ashtar Galactic Command message
On Saturday 26 November 1977 at around 5:10 pm, the Southern ITV broadcast from this transmitter had its UHF sound transmission hi-jacked by unknown agents. At that time Hannington re-broadcast off-air UHF transmissions from Rowridge on the Isle of Wight. The UHF audio signal from Rowridge was swamped by a signal presumably from a location much closer to the Hannington transmitter, overriding the sound of the local ITV station Southern Television and broadcast their own audio message purporting to be from Vrillon, an alien from an institution calling itself the Ashtar Galactic Command. The message, transmitted over an ITN News bulletin and a subsequent Merrie Melodies cartoon, lasted six minutes.
Despite extensive investigations by Hampshire Police, the Independent Broadcasting Authority and Southern Television, those responsible have never been identified, and the potential culprits have ranged from students to university professors to disgruntled television technicians.
1994 World Cup Final blackout
On 17 July 1994 vandals sabotaged the mast's power supply during the 1994 FIFA World Cup Final, meaning that hundreds of thousands of viewers missed about an hour of the match.
Services available
Analogue radio
Frequency | kW | Service |
---|---|---|
102.9 MHz | 4 | Heart South |
104.1 MHz | 3 | BBC Radio Berkshire |
Digital radio
Frequency | Block | kW | Operator |
---|---|---|---|
222.064 MHz | 11D | 4.8 | Digital One |
225.648 MHz | 12B | 5 | BBC National DAB |
229.072 MHz | 12D | 1 | NOW Berkshire & North Hampshire |
Digital television
Frequency | UHF | kW | Operator | System |
---|---|---|---|---|
618.000 MHz | 39 | 50 | BBC B | DVB-T2 |
626.000 MHz | 40 | 25 | SDN | DVB-T |
642.000 MHz | 42 | 50 | Digital 3&4 | DVB-T |
650.000 MHz | 43 | 25 | Arqiva A | DVB-T |
666.000 MHz | 45 | 50 | BBC A | DVB-T |
674.000 MHz | 46 | 25 | Arqiva B | DVB-T |
746.000 MHz | 55 | 36.7 | COM7 | DVB-T2 |
Before switchover
Frequency | UHF | kW | Operator |
---|---|---|---|
626.166 MHz | 40+ | 20 | SDN (Mux A) |
634.166 MHz | 41+ | 10 | Arqiva (Mux D) |
650.166 MHz | 43+ | 20 | Digital 3&4 (Mux 2) |
658.166 MHz | 44+ | 10 | Arqiva (Mux C) |
674.166 MHz | 46+ | 20 | BBC (Mux B) |
706.000 MHz | 50 | 20 | BBC (Mux 1) |
Analogue television
Analogue television transmissions ceased from Hannington during February 2012; BBC2 analogue closed on UHF 45 on 8 February 2012 and all other analogue services closed on 22 February 2012.
Frequency | UHF | kW | Service |
---|---|---|---|
583.25 MHz | 35 | 60 | Channel 5 |
615.25 MHz | 39 | 250 | BBC1 South |
639.25 MHz | 42 | 250 | Meridian |
663.25 MHz | 45 | 250 | BBC2 South |
831.25 MHz | 66 | 250 | Channel 4 |
- Aerial group: E
- Polarisation: horizontal
External links
- Hannington Transmitter at MB21
- Info and pictures of Hannington transmitter including historical power/frequency changes and present co-receivable transmitters
- Hannington Transmitter at thebigtower.com
References
- ^ "Hannington (including relays)". UK Free TV. 1 May 2004. Retrieved 26 September 2024.
- ^ Graham Moorby (18 July 1994). "Vandals black out World Cup". The Independent. Archived from the original on 9 May 2022. Retrieved 25 April 2019.
- ^ Radio Listeners Guide 2010