Caldbeck transmitting station
Encyclopedia
The Caldbeck transmitting station is a broadcasting
and telecommunications facility, situated close to the village of Caldbeck
, in Cumbria
, England
(Grid Reference: NY299425). It is owned and operated by Arqiva
.
It includes a 337 metres (1,105.6 ft) high guyed steel lattice mast, which is the third highest structure in the United Kingdom
. The transmission antennas surmounting the structure are contained within a fibreglass cylinder.
to bring ITV signals (provided by Border Television
) to Northern Cumbria and South West Scotland, including Carlisle
and Dumfries
on 405-line
VHF, using Channel 11 (Band III
). Constructed in 1961, it originally included a 306.6 metres (1,005.9 ft) tall guyed steel lattice mast that came into service on 1 September of that year. The BBC's VHF television and radio services were carried by the nearby Sandale transmitting station. 405 line television was discontinued in the UK in 1985.
When UHF television started in the UK in 1969, Caldbeck was selected to carry all the UHF services for the area. The original three channel line-up came into service in September 1971. Channel 4
began from Caldbeck from its launch in November 1982.
In 1993, CFM Radio
launched from Caldbeck on 96.4 MHz FM, and later in 2001 the national digital multiplex
Digital One
entered service.
took place between June & July 2009. At this time, the analogue signal was permanently switched off. Extra multiplexes for BBC Scotland
and ITV Border (Scotland)
were added to the transmitter at the time.
Caldbeck underwent major engineering work to accommodate the new transmitters and aerials. The work entailed complete replacement of the existing mast with a brand new 337 metre mast, work on which began on 26 April 2007. Construction of the new mast structure was completed at the beginning of March 2008. Once installation of the transmitting aerials on the new mast was complete, the old one was dismantled.
Other masts that required engineering work included Black Hill
, (Lanarkshire
) which also needed a replacement mast, and Wenvoe
(Glamorgan
), Sandy Heath
, (Bedfordshire
) and Divis
(Northern Ireland
), all of which required mechanical strengthening.
Analogue radio (FM
Digital radio (DAB
Broadcasting
Broadcasting is the distribution of audio and video content to a dispersed audience via any audio visual medium. Receiving parties may include the general public or a relatively large subset of thereof...
and telecommunications facility, situated close to the village of Caldbeck
Caldbeck
Caldbeck is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Allerdale, Cumbria, England. Historically within Cumberland, the village had 714 inhabitants according to the census of 2001. It lies on the northern edge of the Lake District. The nearest town is Wigton, 6 miles north east of the village...
, in Cumbria
Cumbria
Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
(Grid Reference: NY299425). It is owned and operated by Arqiva
Arqiva
Arqiva is a telecommunications company which provides infrastructure and broadcast transmission facilities in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. The present company, with headquarters located at Crawley Court in the village of Crawley, Hampshire, was formed by National Grid Wireless...
.
It includes a 337 metres (1,105.6 ft) high guyed steel lattice mast, which is the third highest structure in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. The transmission antennas surmounting the structure are contained within a fibreglass cylinder.
History
The station was originally commissioned by the Independent Television AuthorityIndependent Television Authority
The Independent Television Authority was an agency created by the Television Act 1954 to supervise the creation of "Independent Television" , the first commercial television network in the United Kingdom...
to bring ITV signals (provided by Border Television
Border Television
Border Television is the ITV franchise holder for the Border region, spanning the England/Scotland border and covering Dumfries & Galloway region, a small part of the south-west area of Ayrshire, the Scottish Borders, parts of north and west Northumberland and the majority of Cumbria...
) to Northern Cumbria and South West Scotland, including Carlisle
City of Carlisle
The City of Carlisle is a local government district of Cumbria, England, with the status of a city and non-metropolitan district. It is named after its largest settlement, Carlisle, but covers a far larger area which includes the towns of Brampton and Longtown, as well as outlying villages...
and Dumfries
Dumfries
Dumfries is a market town and former royal burgh within the Dumfries and Galloway council area of Scotland. It is near the mouth of the River Nith into the Solway Firth. Dumfries was the county town of the former county of Dumfriesshire. Dumfries is nicknamed Queen of the South...
on 405-line
405-line
The 405-line monochrome analogue television broadcasting system was the first fully electronic television system to be used in regular broadcasting....
VHF, using Channel 11 (Band III
Band III
Band III is the name of a radio frequency range within the very high frequency part of the electromagnetic spectrum.Band III ranges from 174 to 230 MHz, and it is primarily used for radio and television broadcasting...
). Constructed in 1961, it originally included a 306.6 metres (1,005.9 ft) tall guyed steel lattice mast that came into service on 1 September of that year. The BBC's VHF television and radio services were carried by the nearby Sandale transmitting station. 405 line television was discontinued in the UK in 1985.
When UHF television started in the UK in 1969, Caldbeck was selected to carry all the UHF services for the area. The original three channel line-up came into service in September 1971. Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
began from Caldbeck from its launch in November 1982.
In 1993, CFM Radio
CFM Radio
CFM Radio is an Independent Local Radio station broadcasting to Northern & Central Cumbria and the southern tip of Scotland, with transmitters in Carlisle, Penrith and West Cumbria. Its musical output is popular hits of all genres, with mostly today's hits being featured...
launched from Caldbeck on 96.4 MHz FM, and later in 2001 the national digital multiplex
Multiplexing
The multiplexed signal is transmitted over a communication channel, which may be a physical transmission medium. The multiplexing divides the capacity of the low-level communication channel into several higher-level logical channels, one for each message signal or data stream to be transferred...
Digital One
Digital One
Digital One is a national commercial digital radio multiplex in the United Kingdom, owned by Arqiva. , the multiplex covers more than 90% of the populationfrom a total of 137 transmitters...
entered service.
Digital switchover
Caldbeck was one of the first transmitters in the UK to be upgraded to high power digital only TV broadcasting. The Digital SwitchoverDigital switchover in the United Kingdom
Digital switchover is the name given to the process by which UK analogue broadcast television in an area is converted to digital television. It is sometimes referred to as "analogue switch off". For full details see UK Digital switchover....
took place between June & July 2009. At this time, the analogue signal was permanently switched off. Extra multiplexes for BBC Scotland
BBC Scotland
BBC Scotland is a constituent part of the British Broadcasting Corporation, the publicly-funded broadcaster of the United Kingdom. It is, in effect, the national broadcaster for Scotland, having a considerable amount of autonomy from the BBC's London headquarters, and is run by the BBC Trust, who...
and ITV Border (Scotland)
ITV Tyne Tees & Border
ITV Tyne Tees & Border is a non-franchise ITV regional news service covering the North of England/Southern Scotland and incorporating the former ITV Tyne Tees and ITV Border regions...
were added to the transmitter at the time.
Caldbeck underwent major engineering work to accommodate the new transmitters and aerials. The work entailed complete replacement of the existing mast with a brand new 337 metre mast, work on which began on 26 April 2007. Construction of the new mast structure was completed at the beginning of March 2008. Once installation of the transmitting aerials on the new mast was complete, the old one was dismantled.
Other masts that required engineering work included Black Hill
Black Hill Transmitter
The Black Hill transmitting station is a facility for FM and TV broadcasting at Black Hill , on Duntilland Road, Salsburgh, North Lanarkshire, Scotland which is near the town of Airdrie. It has a guyed mast 306.6 metres tall, bringing the antennas to a height of 540 metres above sea level...
, (Lanarkshire
Lanarkshire
Lanarkshire or the County of Lanark ) is a Lieutenancy area, registration county and former local government county in the central Lowlands of Scotland...
) which also needed a replacement mast, and Wenvoe
Wenvoe Transmitter
The Wenvoe transmitting station is a facility for broadcasting and telecommunications situated close to the village of Wenvoe in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, in the UK. It comprises a guyed mast with antennas attached at various heights. The mast plus the Main UHF antenna on top now gives a...
(Glamorgan
Glamorgan
Glamorgan or Glamorganshire is one of the thirteen historic counties and a former administrative county of Wales. It was originally an early medieval kingdom of varying boundaries known as Glywysing until taken over by the Normans as a lordship. Glamorgan is latterly represented by the three...
), Sandy Heath
Sandy Heath transmitting station
Sandy Heath transmitter is a television broadcast station located between Sandy, Bedfordshire and Potton near the B1042. It is owned by Arqiva, formerly NTL Broadcast. It was built in 1966, originally broadcasting Anglia Television on VHF 405-lines, UHF with 625-line services of BBC2, BBC1 and...
, (Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire is a ceremonial county of historic origin in England that forms part of the East of England region.It borders Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Northamptonshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the west and Hertfordshire to the south-east....
) and Divis
Divis
Divis is a large mountain and area of sprawling moorland to the north-west of Belfast in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The mountain is 478 m tall, making it the highest of the Belfast Hills...
(Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
), all of which required mechanical strengthening.
Analogue radio (FMFrequency modulationIn telecommunications and signal processing, frequency modulation conveys information over a carrier wave by varying its instantaneous frequency. This contrasts with amplitude modulation, in which the amplitude of the carrier is varied while its frequency remains constant...
VHF)
| Frequency | kW | Service |
|---|---|---|
| 96.4 MHz | 3 | CFM Radio CFM Radio CFM Radio is an Independent Local Radio station broadcasting to Northern & Central Cumbria and the southern tip of Scotland, with transmitters in Carlisle, Penrith and West Cumbria. Its musical output is popular hits of all genres, with mostly today's hits being featured... |
Digital radio (DABDigital audio broadcastingDigital Audio Broadcasting is a digital radio technology for broadcasting radio stations, used in several countries, particularly in Europe. As of 2006, approximately 1,000 stations worldwide broadcast in the DAB format....
)
| Frequency | Block | kW | Operator |
|---|---|---|---|
| 222.06 MHz | 11D | 2.8 | Digital One Digital One Digital One is a national commercial digital radio multiplex in the United Kingdom, owned by Arqiva. , the multiplex covers more than 90% of the populationfrom a total of 137 transmitters... |
Digital television
| Frequency | UHF | kW | Operator | BBC region | ITV region |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 481.8 MHz | 22- | 100 | BBC BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff... A |
Scotland BBC Scotland BBC Scotland is a constituent part of the British Broadcasting Corporation, the publicly-funded broadcaster of the United Kingdom. It is, in effect, the national broadcaster for Scotland, having a considerable amount of autonomy from the BBC's London headquarters, and is run by the BBC Trust, who... |
— |
| 489.8 MHz | 23- | 15 | SDN S4C Digital Networks SDN is a company that operates Multiplex A, one of the six groups of channels on digital terrestrial television in the United Kingdom... |
— | — |
| 497.8 MHz | 24- | 50 | Digital 3&4 Digital 3&4 Digital 3&4 is a consortium consisting of regional Channel 3 companies and Channel 4 Television Corporation, which operates a multiplex broadcasting from a number of transmitter sites in the UK, carrying television and radio channels from both ITV and Channel 4; however three per-cent of the... |
— | Border ITV Tyne Tees & Border ITV Tyne Tees & Border is a non-franchise ITV regional news service covering the North of England/Southern Scotland and incorporating the former ITV Tyne Tees and ITV Border regions... (Scotland) |
| 505.8 MHz | 25- | 100 | BBC A | NE & Cumbria BBC North East and Cumbria BBC North East and Cumbria is the BBC English Region covering Northumberland, Tyne and Wear, County Durham, North Yorkshire, Teesside and all but the southern part of Cumbria... |
— |
| 513.8 MHz | 26- | 15 | Arqiva Arqiva Arqiva is a telecommunications company which provides infrastructure and broadcast transmission facilities in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. The present company, with headquarters located at Crawley Court in the village of Crawley, Hampshire, was formed by National Grid Wireless... A |
— | — |
| 521.8 MHz | 27- | 50 | BBC B | Scotland | Border (Scotland) |
| 529.8 MHz | 28- | 100 | Digital 3&4 | — | Border (England) |
| 537.8 MHz | 29- | 15 | Arqiva B | — | — |
| 545.8 MHz | 30- | 100 | BBC B | NE & Cumbria | Border (England) |
See also
- List of masts
- List of tallest structures in the United Kingdom
- List of radio stations in the United Kingdom
External links
- Help, tips and advice as Cumbria leads the way to digital television
- The Transmission Gallery: Caldbeck Transmitter photographs and information
- The Transmission Gallery: TV Coverage Map
- http://skyscraperpage.com/diagrams/?b61323
- http://skyscraperpage.com/diagrams/?b61324
- Arqiva Caldbeck Mast Build Mini-site
- Caldbeck Transmitter at thebigtower.com