The Wrekin transmitting station is a

telecommunications Telecommunication is the transmission of information by various types of technologies over wire, radio, optical, or other electromagnetic systems. It has its origin in the desire of humans for communication over a distance greater than that fe ...

and

broadcasting Broadcasting is the distribution of audio or video content to a dispersed audience via any electronic mass communications medium, but typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum ( radio waves), in a one-to-many model. Broadcasting beg ...

facility on

The Wrekin The Wrekin is a hill in east Shropshire, England. It is located some five miles (8 km) west of Telford, on the border between the unitary authorities of Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin. Rising above the Shropshire Plain to a height of 4 ...

, a hill in the county of

Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. It includes a tall free-standing lattice tower with transmitting

antennas In radio engineering, an antenna or aerial is the interface between radio waves propagating through space and electric currents moving in metal conductors, used with a transmitter or receiver. In transmission, a radio transmitter supplies an ...

attached at various heights. The DTT transmitting arrays add about another 10m to this. It broadcasts digital television, alongside digital and FM (analogue) radio. The station was first proposed in 1966. As The Wrekin is a local beauty spot, many objections had to be overcome and alternative sites analysed before planning consent was given. The transmitter opened in 1975. The building is semi-underground and the tower stands on its roof.

Television

Like the neighbouring Granada transmitter, Winter Hill, The Wrekin serves a large part of

North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography. Etymology The word ''north ...

and Mid Wales, despite being the incorrect regional variation. The reason for this was because of the obvious carriage of Channel 5 at the same quality as channels 1-4, and also it carried the English

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...

as opposed to the Welsh equivalent, S4C. Since the

digital switchover The digital television transition, also called the digital switchover (DSO), the analogue switch/sign-off (ASO), the digital migration, or the analogue shutdown, is the process in which older analogue television broadcasting technology is conv ...

, The Wrekin carries the main six multiplexes (while local relays only carry three) though it has never carried MUXES 7 and 8. Partly because of that nothing altered at all during The Wrekin's 700 MHz clearance in March 2018.

Digital

Before switchover

Unlike analogue television, The Wrekin had a sub-transmission site, also known as The Wrekin B, designed to serve the east of the region, to fill areas in which the main transmitter didn't broadcast into. This was necessary due to co-channel interference issues with Moel-y-Parc, on channels 42, 45 and 49 (see external links). After

, the frequencies serving the east of the region were removed for compromise frequencies that has better reception in all areas of the region. † Transmitted from The Wrekin B.

Analogue

Analogue television was switched off during April 2011; BBC Two analogue was switched off on 6 April and the remaining four on 20 April.

Radio

Alongside television, the Wrekin broadcasts a number of local and national

radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmi ...

stations.

Analogue radio

Digital radio

References

External links

Entry at the Transmission GalleryInfo and pictures of The Wrekin transmitter (including co-receivable channels)
{{Television transmitters in the UK Buildings and structures in Shropshire Telford and Wrekin Transmitter sites in England