Whitehawk Hill transmitting station
 | |
  Whitehawk Hill Location in East Sussex | |
| Mast height | 45 m (148 ft) |
|---|---|
| Tower height | 55 m (182 ft) |
| Coordinates | 50°50′N0°07′W/ 50.83°N 0.11°W |
| Grid reference | TQ32960452 |
| Built | 1959 |
| BBC region | BBC South East |
| ITV region | ITV Meridian |
| Local TV service | Latest TV |
TheWhitehawk Hill transmitting station(also known as theWhitehawk transmitting station) is a broadcasting and telecommunications facility located atWhitehawk,an eastern suburb ofBrightonin theEnglishcity ofBrighton and Hove.It is the city's main transmission facility for television and radio signals.[1]It broadcastsdigital television,FMandDABradio to the coastal city of Brighton and Hove and to surrounding areas along the Sussex coast includingShoreham-By-Sea,Worthingand as far asSeaford.It stopped broadcastinganalogue televisionwhen thedigital switchoveroccurred locally in March 2012.
Services broadcast includeBBC One(South East),BBC Two,ITV1(Meridian),Channel 4,BBC national radio stations,BBC SussexandHeart South.
History[edit]
A radar station was opened on the high ground ofWhitehawk Hill,to the east of central Brighton, duringWorld War II.Meanwhile, television broadcasts first reached the town in 1953 when arelay transmitterwas erected onTruleigh Hill,several miles to the west on theSouth Downs.[1]On 5 April 1959, after the wartime facility was demolished, a 148-foot (45 m) transmitter was opened at Whitehawk. It took a feed from theCrystal Palace transmitting stationuntil 14 April 1962; after that, signals were relayed from theRowridge transmitting station.The originalVHFsignal was accompanied by colourUHF transmissionsfrom 21 September 1970 (BBC1 and BBC2 only) until the VHF 405-line TV transmissions from this site ceased in 1983. UHF signals for ITV and Channel 4 followed from 28 April 1972 and 17 May 1983 respectively.[1]Radio broadcasts started on 13 March 1967, inmonoonly;stereotransmissions commenced on 4 November 1972. From the beginning, signals were relayed from theWrotham transmitting station;[1]this arrangement continues as of 2024.[2]
The original mast was replaced in 1983 by the present structure, which stood alongside it for a short time until the earlier mast was demolished. The present mast is also 148 feet (45 m) tall; it reaches a height of 182 feet (55 m) when the UHF aerial is taken into account.Whitehawk Hillitself is 396 feet (121 m) above sea level. In 1990, the transmitting station was reported to serve 400,000 people and was supported by relay transmitters at several locations around Brighton:Patcham,OvingdeanandSaltdean(all installed in 1982–83), andColdeanand theNorth Lainearea of central Brighton (both planned for 1990 but delayed).[1]
Services available[edit]
Analogue radio[edit]
| Frequency | kW | Service |
|---|---|---|
| 99.7 MHz | 0.25 | BBC Radio 1(FM) |
| 90.1 MHz | 0.25 | BBC Radio 2(FM) |
| 92.3 MHz | 0.25 | BBC Radio 3(FM) |
| 94.5 MHz | 0.25 | BBC Radio 4(FM) |
| 95.3 MHz | 0.5 | BBC Radio Sussex(FM) |
| 101.9 MHz | 0.2 | Classic FM |
| 103.5 MHz | 0.45 | Heart South |
| 107.2 MHz | 0.2 | Capital South |
The coverage area of BBC Radio Sussex extends toWorthingandShoreham-By-Sea.Other stations have smaller coverage areas from this transmitting station.[3]
Digital radio[edit]
| Frequency | Block | kW | Operator |
|---|---|---|---|
| 218.640 MHz | 10B | 1 | Sussex |
| 216.928 MHz | 11A | 0.6 | Sound Digital |
| 222.064 MHz | 11D | 0.5 | Digital One |
| 225.648 MHz | 12B | 2 | BBC National DAB |
The Sussex CoastDAB ensembleincludesBBC Radio Sussex,Capital,Gold Sussex andHeart South.[2][4]
Digital television[edit]
The transmitting station provides Freeview television to 96,000 households. Since 28 August 2014, a local television station called Latest TV has been broadcast from LTVmux.[5]
| Frequency | UHF | kW | Operator | System |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 562.000MHz | 32 | 4 | SDN | DVB-T |
| 570.000MHz | 33 | 4 | ArqivaB | DVB-T |
| 578.000MHz | 34 | 4 | Arqiva A | DVB-T |
| 586.000MHz | 35 | 4 | Digital 3&4 | DVB-T |
| 594.000MHz | 36 | 4 | BBC B | DVB-T2 |
| 626.000MHz | 40 | 0.4 | LTVMux | DVB-T |
| 690.000MHz | 48 | 4 | BBC A | DVB-T |
Whitehawk Hill completed the 700MHz Clearance Programme in November 2019 and ceased transmitting on UHF 51, UHF 53, UHF 54, UHF 57 and UHF 60.
Analogue television[edit]
Analogue television transmissions were turned off in two stages—on 7 March 2012 and 21 March 2012.[5]At this time, the local BBC service broadcast from the transmitter was changed fromBBC SouthtoBBC South East.[6]
| Frequency | UHF | kW | Service |
|---|---|---|---|
| 583.25MHz | 35 | 5 | Channel 5 |
| 727.25MHz | 53 | 10 | Channel 4 |
| 759.25MHz | 57 | 10 | BBC1 South East |
| 783.25MHz | 60 | 10 | Meridian |
| 807.25MHz | 63 | 10 | BBC2 South East |
References[edit]
- ^abcdeCarder 1990,§24.
- ^ab"Brighton (Whitehawk Hill)".Mike Brown. 2013.Archivedfrom the original on 29 October 2013.Retrieved26 October2013.
- ^"Whitehawk Hill (Brighton and Hove, England) analogue radio transmitter".UK Free TV. 2013.Archivedfrom the original on 29 October 2013.Retrieved26 October2013.
- ^"Whitehawk Hill (Brighton and Hove, England) DAB transmitter".UK Free TV. 2013.Archivedfrom the original on 29 October 2013.Retrieved26 October2013.
- ^ab"Full Freeview on the Whitehawk Hill (Brighton and Hove, England) transmitter".UK Free TV. 2013.Archivedfrom the original on 29 October 2013.Retrieved26 October2013.
- ^"Your guide to switchover for all TV viewers: Meridian TV region"(PDF).Digital UK.2011. p. 16.Archived(PDF)from the original on 2 August 2012.Retrieved26 October2013.
Bibliography[edit]
- Carder, Timothy (1990).The Encyclopaedia of Brighton.Lewes: East Sussex County Libraries.ISBN0-861-47315-9.
