BFBS TV 40: Home on the Box

There's a documentary being shown on Forces TV about 40 years of BFBS TV, basically it's a but if a nostalgic look back into the start of the service and some of the early struggles in getting the signals across to Germany and the likes. It's a good insight into quite a unique service. It's currently on Forces TV right now, it's not scheduled to be repeated, but it's probably worth keeping an eye out.

EDIT: the whole documentary is on YouTube

Interesting, and demonstrates how important BFBS television is to the moral of our forces and their families abroad even today.

Work irks me, is that once again SSVC/BFBS fail to acknowledge that out of that 40 years the first 10 were technically provided by LWT, it's all completely glossed over. Even the map showing the live microwave link is somewhat fudged as it shows some vague position of SSVC somewhere in NW London, when in fact the first microwave dish was first on top of LWT's premises in Stonebridge Park and the SSVC didn't even exist. There's plenty of material showing the LWT operation in London, but it doesn't suit their narrative to show it, all you get to see is vague archive footage of the operation in Germany.

The television service was the brainchild of Ian Wolff who was the first director of BFBS Television. A very, very charismatic man who personally moved mountains to get the service up and running in 1975. The documentary makes it seem the whole service just appeared from nowhere! - but it was Ian Wolff's hard work that got it off the ground. Here's his obit if anyone is interested:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/2440812/Ian-Woolf.html

The annual cost was once estimated to be the equivalent to one Chieftain tank, the senior service people I spoke to at the time said BFBS was better value.

As you say it's easily forgotten now how much the channel relied upon LWT during its infancy, the 1983 documentary about BFBS which is on YouTube is certainly worth a watch and it also provided a good look into the set up and the struggle in getting live British TV to West Germany.

Wembley is mentioned once during the new documentary.

This one incase some people cant find it.

Not exactly unique in world terms, as USA, Canada and the IDF also run overseas and domestic services.

Yeah BFBS still going strong on 10e they improved their channel lineup not too long ago, the American equilivant is on 9e