  Llanddona transmitting station (Anglesey) | |
| Mast height | 106.7 metres (350 ft) |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 53°18′25″N4°07′42″W / 53.306944°N 4.128333°W /53.306944; -4.128333 |
| Grid reference | SH583810 |
| Built | 1958 |
| BBC region | BBC Wales |
| ITV region | ITV Cymru Wales |
TheLlanddona transmitting station ((/lænˈdɒnæ/;Welsh:[ɬanˈðɔna]);Welsh pronunciationⓘ) is abroadcasting andtelecommunications facility, situated atLlanddona, nearBeaumaris, on the isle ofAnglesey, Wales (grid referenceSH583810). It comprises a 106.7 metres (350 ft)guyed mast withantennas attached at various heights. It is owned and operated byArqiva.
The station was built by theBBC in 1958 to provide a405-lineBand I (VHF) TV service and (later) a VHF (FM) radio services for north west Wales, including theLleyn peninsula, Anglesey and the north Wales coast.ITV's service was provided from theArfon transmitting station, approximately 20 miles to the south on the mainland.
In 1967 the site became the area's main station for 625 line colourUHF TV, starting with justBBC Two in June of that year. By this time, it was policy to co-site all UHF TV services at the same site, and by 1973 Llanddona was broadcastingBBC One, BBC Two and ITV on UHF.S4C was added later in 1982 in time for its launch.
Though 405-line TV was discontinued in the UK in 1985, it seems that Llanddona shut down its VHF TV a year early.
In the late 1990s, digital TV transmitters were added, carrying all six national multiplexes.
In 2006, digital radio transmitters were added for the BBC's national multiplex and alsoDigital One.
On Wednesday 21 October 2009, the Llanddona group of transmitters underwent the first stage of theDigital Switchover and on Wednesday 18 November 2009, analogue television was finally turned off from Llanddona and its group of transmitters as it underwent the second stage of the Digital Switchover. Whilst the old analogue channels were in theUK UHF C/D aerial group, the new DVB channels are now spread over into the E group (presumably to avoid co-channel interference withWinter Hill transmitter), meaning that some customers may need to replace their aerial to get optimum reception.
Freeview HD started transmitting using the BBC B multiplex on channel 53 in July 2010.[1]
Llanddona was the site of the first TV, VHF radio, digital TV and digital radio broadcasts for the area.
The coverage area consists of the majority of Anglesey, and a wide range of other parts of the North West Wales coast. As with the service areas of other transmitters in North Wales, such as theMoel-y-Parc transmitting station,signal overspill from transmitters inNorth West England andGreater Manchester means that strong radio and television signals from that region (BBC North West and ITV Granada) can be received in North Wales, and strong Welsh signals can be received in North West England also. In the days of analogue TV, some people who received signals from the Llanddona transmitter, but who had no interest in S4C (a Welsh speaking channel) were known to erect a second aerial and receive Channel 4 fromWinter Hill instead.
The transmitter signals were also received across the Irish sea in many parts of the east and south east coast of the Republic of Ireland, mainly in counties Dublin and Wicklow. From 1958 onward, many households in these counties would point their outdoor aerials towards the Irish sea and could receive transmission from this transmitter. When cable television launched in the early 1970s, the Welsh BBC and ITV stations were provided on the cable platform as these channels were mainly received in the Dublin and Wicklow counties.
it is unclear when transmissions began. "The Big Tower" claim[2] that 405-line television from Llanddona started in January 1958, and the entrance plaque to the transmitter building[3] certainly agrees that the mast and its building were built in 1958. Oddly, BBC research report 1963-50[4] does not mention a start date though it does point out that co-channel interference (presumably fromDivis in Northern Ireland, about 180 km to the northwest across theIrish Sea) was "severe". This caused the transmitter's useful service area to be smaller than planned, and forced the building of theHolyhead relay.
"405 Alive" counter-claim[5] a very precise date of 15 May 1962 for the start of 405-line television.
| Frequency | VHF | kW | Service |
|---|---|---|---|
| 45.00 MHz | 1V | 6 | BBC Television Service(until 1960) BBC TV(1960-1964) BBC Cymru Wales(from 1964) |
The first UHF transmitter at the site entered service.[6]
| Frequency | VHF | UHF | kW | Service |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 45.00 MHz | 1V | — | 6 | BBC Cymru Wales |
| 807.25 MHz | — | 63 | 100 | BBC2 Wales |
HTV's transmissions certainly started on 6 September,[7] but is likely that the BBC1 Wales UHF service had already commenced before then.
| Frequency | VHF | UHF | kW | Service |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 45.00 MHz | 1V | — | 6 | BBC Wales(BBC Cymru Wales until 1981) |
| 759.25 MHz | — | 57 | 100 | BBC Wales(BBC Cymru Wales until 1981) |
| 783.25 MHz | — | 60 | 100 | HTV Wales |
| 807.25 MHz | — | 63 | 100 | BBC2 Wales |
Channel 4 launched across the UK. Being in Wales, Llanddona transmitted the S4C variant.
| Frequency | VHF | UHF | kW | Service |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 45.00 MHz | 1V | — | 6 | BBC Wales |
| 727.25 MHz | — | 53 | 100 | S4C |
| 759.25 MHz | — | 57 | 100 | BBC Wales |
| 783.25 MHz | — | 60 | 100 | HTV Wales |
| 807.25 MHz | — | 63 | 100 | BBC2 Wales |
The 405-line VHF TV transmission was discontinued after 22 years of service.
| Frequency | UHF | kW | Service |
|---|---|---|---|
| 727.25 MHz | 53 | 100 | S4C |
| 759.25 MHz | 57 | 100 | BBC1 Wales(BBC Wales until 1985) |
| 783.25 MHz | 60 | 100 | HTV Wales |
| 807.25 MHz | 63 | 100 | BBC2 Wales |
| Frequency | UHF | kW | Service | System |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 674.000 MHz | 46 | 1 | Arqiva (Mux D) | DVB-T |
| 706.000 MHz | 50 | 1 | BBC (Mux 1) | DVB-T |
| 727.25 MHz | 53 | 100 | S4C | PAL System I |
| 738.166 MHz | 54+ | 1 | Digital 3&4 (Mux 2) | DVB-T |
| 759.25 MHz | 57 | 100 | BBC1 Wales | PAL System I |
| 770.166 MHz | 58+ | 1 | SDN (Mux A) | DVB-T |
| 783.25 MHz | 60 | 100 | HTV Wales | PAL System I |
| 794.166 MHz | 61+ | 1 | BBC (Mux B) | DVB-T |
| 807.25 MHz | 63 | 100 | BBC2 Wales | PAL System I |
| 818.166 MHz | 64+ | 1 | Arqiva (Mux C) | DVB-T |
The BBC2 analogue signal was switched off after 32 years of service, and BBC1 analogue was moved to channel 63. Multiplex 1 on channel 50 was also discontinued. The new "BBC A" multiplex took over on channel 57 which had just been vacated by BBC1 analogue with its full post-DSOERP of 20 kW. BBC A is an expanded version of the BBC's multiplexes 1 and B (with several channels, such as BBC Four and radio stations temporarily available on both BBC multiplexes).
| Frequency | UHF | kW | Service | System |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 674.000 MHz | 46 | 1 | Arqiva (Mux D) | DVB-T |
| 727.25 MHz | 53 | 100 | S4C | PAL System I |
| 738.166 MHz | 54+ | 1 | Digital 3&4 (Mux 2) | DVB-T |
| 762.000 MHz | 57 | 20 | BBC A | DVB-T |
| 770.166 MHz | 58+ | 1 | SDN (Mux A) | DVB-T |
| 783.25 MHz | 60 | 100 | HTV Wales | PAL System I |
| 794.166 MHz | 61+ | 1 | BBC (Mux B) | DVB-T |
| 807.25 MHz | 63 | 100 | BBC1 Wales | PAL System I |
| 818.166 MHz | 64+ | 1 | Arqiva (Mux C) | DVB-T |
All the remaining analogue TV was discontinued, and the new post-DSO multiplexes took over their frequencies plus a couple of new ones. Frequencies above 800 MHz were not re-used as these will be reassigned to4G mobile phone services.
| Frequency | UHF | kW | Operator |
|---|---|---|---|
| 650.000 MHz | 43 | 10 | SDN |
| 674.000 MHz | 46 | 10 | Arqiva A |
| 706.000 MHz | 50 | 10 | Arqiva B |
| 730.000 MHz | 53 | 20 | BBC B |
| 762.000 MHz | 57 | 20 | BBC A |
| 786.000 MHz | 60 | 20 | Digital 3&4 |
As a side-effect of frequency-changes elsewhere in the region to do with clearance of the 800 MHz band for4G mobile phone use,[8] Llanddona's "Arqiva B" multiplex was moved from channel 50 to channel 40, and "D3&4" on channel 60 gained a negative frequency offset.[9]
| Frequency | UHF | kW | Operator |
|---|---|---|---|
| 626.000 MHz | 40 | 10 | Arqiva B |
| 650.000 MHz | 43 | 10 | SDN |
| 674.000 MHz | 46 | 10 | Arqiva A |
| 730.000 MHz | 53 | 20 | BBC B |
| 762.000 MHz | 57 | 20 | BBC A |
| 785.833 MHz | 60- | 20 | Digital 3&4 |
VHF FM radio was in service by October 1960 as evidenced by a BBC research report.[10]
| Frequency | kW | Service |
|---|---|---|
| 89.6 MHz | 12 | BBC Light Programme |
| 91.8 MHz | 12 | BBC Third Programme |
| 94.0 MHz | 12 | BBC Welsh Home Service |
Radio 1 got its own frequency and National Radio 4 was added to the set. Additionally, the frequencies for the original three services were increased by 200 kHz each.
| Frequency | kW | Service |
|---|---|---|
| 89.8 MHz | 21 | BBC Radio 2 |
| 92.0 MHz | 21 | BBC Radio 3 |
| 94.2 MHz | 21 | BBC Radio Cymru |
| 94.8 MHz | 10 | BBC Radio Wales |
| 99.4 MHz | 21 | BBC Radio 1 |
| 103.6 MHz | 21 | BBC Radio 4 |
| Frequency | Block | kW[11] | Operator |
|---|---|---|---|
| 222.064 MHz | 11D | 1 | Digital One |
| 225.648 MHz | 12B | 5 | BBC National DAB |
Transmitter sites inWales | |
|---|---|
| Transmitter stations | |
| Transmitter sites |
|
|---|---|
