BBC ONE English Regions on DSAT

Basically - DTT and Sky work differently when it comes to switching between 4:3 and 16:9 broadcasts. If the Sky boxes work the same way on the BBC One regional feeds as they do on the current 101 feeds then they aren't be fed identically to DTT. However the service may not be fully set-up yet so it is not possible to accurately tell for sure in all cases.

Yes, got (sort of) most of that. I suspect you're right that they'll DOG the channels (at least during the news) for the first few days. At least then it'll give a good signpost for people who were expecting to press red for the regional programmes (or TV and 1!!)

I know in the PW gallery we've got a set of lights to show we're opted on the various transmitters, and also DTT - I wonder if they'll stick another in?

Oh, by the way ... we recorded a "behind-the-scenes" show from the gallery a few weeks ago - not to dissimilar to the style of the Sky News gallery camera. Hopefully we'll stick it up on the PW site in the next few weeks (when we get chance!!) ... and we can all have an anorak at that!!

Hmmfpphh!!

I was never even allowed to take photos of the BBC Wales channel transmission suites.

Yep and that those who did it got paid more



The Nottingham system is diffrent though - the server and the edit suites aren't properly connected. Material is stored on an Omnibus server and then dubbed over into the Avid Newscutters. when the package is finished it is then dubbed onto the Omnibus server for transmission. The new system and that which TW and London have the edit suites, transmission and acquisition are on the same server meaning it doesn't have to be copied.




According to something I read elsewhere, it's next week. Radio Norfolk moved a few weeks ago.



No, Quantel has been bought for all regions in one go, starting with Norwich, then Birmingham, Hull, Manchester etc until in many years time it replaces Nottingham, London and Tunbridge Wells.

Only Fools and Horses is on BBC One at the moment. It is 4:3 full-frame on 101 and 4:3 full-frame on the regional services as well. This implies that they are being fed from different MPEG encoders (or Sky now support AFDs, or DTT services no longer use them - neither likely IMHO)

However - I suspect that the DSat and DTT MPEG encoders are BOTH fed from the output of the DTT opt-switch (all DTT opt-switches are permanently in circuit in English regions, the switch is part of the transmission path - it sits between the MPEG2 decoder that decodes the network feed from London and the MPEG2 encoder(s) for DTT (and now DSat I assume).

The opt-switch switches away from this decoded network feed to the local studio output - delayed by a number of frames - under control of the analogue opt switch, with the switching signal delayed to match the difference between analogue and digital decoded network feeds) so the same set of opt lights will suit both. (The same switch is used after all!)

Also the opt-out switches control the subtitle replacement - subtitles have their own space in the TV signal - and I think that when the opt-out takes place the London/Network subtitles are replaced with local subtitles.

So this explains why only certain regions had the correct EPG info then (Brum, Mancs, Leeds, Hull, SE etc).

I had great fun trying to work out which was EMT. I got NE & Cumbria on my first try, 'cos it said East Midlands Today on the EPG, then when I found EMT eventually, it said Look East on the EPG !

Couldn't they have DOGGED the tests too?

Question for everyone - Do all regions broadcast trails for local radio & Inside Out/Politics Show at 6.57?

In particular for East Midlands viewers, do you always get the same radio trails for Radio Nottingham, or do they spread them between the stations? Is Alex Trellinski's Late Show ever promoted in the 6.57 slot, because they never do/did in the West Midlands?

and do bbc one east midlands re-brand the politics show midlands trailers as "bbc one east midlands" or leave the traditional "bbc one midlands" box on?

thats assuming they still take the pebble mill version - ive never really bothered watching since it became an opt within a poor london show.

Not sure - but I think that The Politics Show (like Inside Out) is now fully split in the East/West Midlands, and also in the South/South East regions.

I may be wrong - and it may just be Inside Out - but I thought that the same decision was made for both, formerly merged, sets of current affairs regions.

Well as well as looking at Look North Hull I also had a look at South East Today which was interesting, the first version of the corporate look was better than today's in my opinion.

I also had a brief look at Midlands Today late bulletin yesterday

According to what I've seen over the past week, or so. Inside Out is split in the Midlands(Ashley Blake doing West, Anne Davies, according to Friday's trail after EMT, doing East).

How come Ashley's no longer doing Watchdog, 'cos I was hoping one of Ally McGowan's pals would have took him off by now, or isn't Ashley worth impersonating!


Politics Show is joint using Ade Goldberg(now also doing WM 95.6 Brekky) in the studio, & alternating Pat Burns, from West & John ???? from East.

inside out is definitely split - and if you say john hess is still appearing with pat and adrian - then bbc midlands and east midlands mustn't have split for the politics show, (with john being bbc east midlands political editor).