BBC One on Friday morning

Oooohhhh!

We got a mention of a closedown, or words to that effect. They didn't actually say it though.

As I type, the just cut the feed and I am now watching a slightly grainy picture from Crystal Palace.

IT'S ON NOW!!!!!!!!! NOW!!!!!!!!!

It was first TCW (Boo...) Then a few seconds later....TCJ!

Strange,eh?

BBC One had a notice come up at 2:59 saying that BBC one would be off air and that BBC NEWS 24 would resume at 4am.

It went onto the test card of the girl with 'BBC Widescreen' at the bottom, then not long after went to one labelled 'J', then it went black about 2 mins ago and is still flickering now. I refuse to be sad enough to watch it any longer though :

I've got the widescreen versions on digital satellite and digital from Crystal Palace with the 4:3 analogue one, and all are showing fine

You're OK you see because you're watching the source. (Crystal Palace)

Everywhere else is watching a relay of the Crystal Palace which will have been re-broadcast several times to get to you. As the people 'in the know' explained earlier.

I've checked Sandy Heath analogue also though, and that's fine too

Indeed, it probably will be!

The next transmitter South to Sandy Heath is Crystal Palace which means that the signal is degraded very little on its short journey to there.

Its the people who receive from Bressay and Keelylang Hill you would feel sorry for if this scenario ever occured.

The picture from Sutton Coldfield is actually very good.

It's grainy, but only very slightly...

Sutton Coldfield has had intemitant phases of split-second loss of transmission, but nothing exciting as yet...

kev

Would Sutton Coldfield be getting it direct from CP, or is it more likely that it's receving from a re-broadcast at Oxford or somewhere else?

Direct, and the picture now suggests that....

It has now gone very grainy with lots of distortion...

kev

Sutton Coldfield does have a good picture, as does Waltham and Belmont has a pretty good picture, but thats off a DX reception so I can't really tell but it seems no worse than normal.

Sutton Coldfield is probably receiving from Oxford or Ridge Hill now as its got worse, but you have to consider that the signal degrades through each stage and AFAIK, it may have gone through several transmitters to get to Sutton Coldfield.

(Edited by Isonstine at 3:40 am on July 27, 2001)

I'm situated about 1 1/2 miles from Sutton Mast and I have two colleagues in two other studios one 5 miles from the mast, and one right on it's doorstep, and we are all getting black diffusion bars, and quite a grainy picture off a normal house arial, and a clearer, but still with the black bars picture with our Standard Masts....

kev

PS: Ison, is ridge hill any clearer than Sutton, or is it grainy???