Hannington transmitting station

Hannington

250px Transmission Mast, Cottington Hill
Mast height	151.9 metres (498 ft)
Coordinates
Built	1970
BBC region	BBC South
ITV region	ITV Meridian

Hannington transmitting station is a television and radio transmitting station located on Cottington Hill near the village of Hannington. The transmitter is actually in the parish of Kingsclere. The station provides broadcast services to Berkshire and north Hampshire, and includes a 131.4 metres (431 ft) guyed steel lattice mast. Surmounting the mast is a GRP aerial cylinder, which contains the UHF television transmitting antennas, which brings the overall height of the mast to 151.9 metres (498 ft).

Ofcom confirms that Hannington's digital broadcasts are severely attenuated to the East so as not to cause co-channel interference with Guildford transmitter, see picture.

On Saturday 26 November 1977 at around 5.10 pm, broadcasts from this transmitter were hi-jacked by unknown agents who blocked the UHF audio signal of transmissions from the then local ITV station Southern Television and broadcast their own audio message purporting to be from Vrillon, an alien from an institution calling itself the Ashtar Galactic Command. The message, transmitted over an ITN News bulletin and a subsequent Merrie Melodies cartoon, lasted six minutes.

Despite extensive investigations by Hampshire Police, the Independent Broadcasting Authority and Southern Television, those responsible have never been identified, and the potential culprits have ranged from students to university professors to disgruntled television technicians.

Services available

Analogue radio

Frequency	kW	Service
102.9 MHz	4	Heart Thames Valley
104.1 MHz	3	BBC Radio Berkshire

Digital radio

Frequency	Block	kW	Operator
222.064 MHz	11D	4.8	Digital One
225.648 MHz	12B	5	BBC National DAB
229.072 MHz	12D	1	NOW Berkshire & North Hampshire

Digital television

Frequency	UHF	kW	Operator	System
618.000 MHz	39	50	BBC B	DVB-T2
634.166 MHz	41+	25	SDN	DVB-T
642.166 MHz	42+	50	Digital 3&4	DVB-T
658.000 MHz	44	25	Arqiva A	DVB-T
666.000 MHz	45	50	BBC A	DVB-T
682.000 MHz	47	25	Arqiva B	DVB-T

Before switchover

Frequency	UHF	kW	Operator
626.166 MHz	40+	20	SDN (Mux A)
634.166 MHz	41+	10	Arqiva (Mux D)
650.166 MHz	43+	20	Digital 3&4 (Mux 2)
658.166 MHz	44+	10	Arqiva (Mux C)
674.166 MHz	46+	20	BBC (Mux B)
706.000 MHz	50	20	BBC (Mux 1)

652.00/34/200

Analogue television

Analogue television transmissions ceased from Hannington during February 2012; BBC Two analogue closed on UHF 45 on 8 February 2012 and all other analogue services closed on 22 February 2012.

Frequency	UHF	kW	Service
583.25 MHz	35	60	Channel 5
615.25 MHz	39	250	BBC One
639.25 MHz	42	250	ITV1
663.25 MHz	45	250	BBC Two
831.25 MHz	66	250	Channel 4

• Aerial group: E
• Polarisation: horizontal

See also

• Southern Television broadcast interruption hoax (1977)
• Hannington Transmitter at thebigtower.com

References