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Rowridge

The Rowridge transmitting station
Rowridge transmitting station (Isle of Wight)
Mast height	149.6 metres (491 ft)
Coordinates	50°40′35″N1°22′07″W / 50.676389°N 1.368611°W /50.676389; -1.368611
Grid reference	SZ447865
BBC region	BBC South
ITV region	Southern(1969–1981) TVS(1982–1992) ITV Meridian(1993–present)
Local TV service	That's Solent

TheRowridge transmitting station is a facility forFM radio and televisiontransmission atRowridge on theIsle of Wight in southern England.

It currently has a 172-metre (564 ft) tall guyed mast, owned and operated byArqiva (previously National Grid Wireless). There is a smaller tower on the site belonging toBritish Telecom. Prior to Digital Switchover (DSO) the station broadcast with a power of 250 kW (ERP) for FM radio, 500 kW for analogue television, and 20 kW for digital television. In July 2007,Ofcom confirmed that Rowridge would remain an A Group transmitter atDigital switchover; the digital television transmission signal was then boosted to 200 kW. From March 2018 MUXES 7 & 8 moved out of the A group to channels 55 & 56, though these are due to be turned off between 2020 and 2022.

Rowridge is one of only two main transmitters (the other is the rather smaller transmitter of Rosneath in Scotland) to broadcast its output on both horizontal and vertical polarities. Only the main 6 MUXES are transmitted in vertical polarity.The reason for this dual polarity transmission is to give a second option to those experiencing co-channel interference from transmitters on the continent.

AnalogueChannel 5 was not transmitted from Rowridge but was broadcast (at 10 kW) fromFawley Power Station, with the antenna located on the main chimney. Transmissions all fitted within the A group and were horizontally polarised. On 25 March 2009, Channel 5's analogue signal was turned off from Fawley Power Station, due to the digital switchover in the neighbouringWestcountry region.

Population coverage for the main four analogue channels was about 1.75 million.

The station was first built to provideBBC405-line television coverage for an area includingSouthampton,Portsmouth,Bournemouth,Dorchester,Chichester,Brighton,Winchester andSalisbury. Sites on the mainland and the Isle of Wight were considered, and three were tested byBBC Research Department.

A temporary 200 ft lattice mast was built with a main antenna at 175 ft and a reserve antenna lower down. These aerials were directional to enhance the signal northwards and reduce unwanted coverage to the south.^[1]

It was built by BICC, alongside Pontop Pike (also 500 ft) and North Hessary Tor in Devon (a taller mast).

The ITA wanted to build a mast nearby on Chillerton Down, but in February 1957, the local council rejected the planning proposal, and wanted a joint transmitter, not two.^[2] The ITA mast was built subsequently in 1958.

On June 17 1963 the local council gave planning permission for a joint ITA-BBC mast, 1,050 ft, for UHF 625 line television.^[3]

Test transmissions were from October 18 1954.^[4] Television reception would stretch from Somerset to Sussex. Sussex had a previous 'booster' transmitter on Truleigh Hill inUpper Beeding.^[5]

The service opened on 12 November 1954, bringing television to the area for the first time.

A programme feed was obtained via a Post Office radio link, using refurbished equipment that provided the original picture feed for theWenvoe Transmitter on theBritish Telecom Microwave Network. A site for this nearAlton, Hampshire was acquired and named after a nearby pub: Golden Pot. Here the TV signal fromAlexandra Palace was picked up and relayed via a one-hop 4 GHz microwave link to Rowridge.^[6]

The microwave link from Hampshire was brought into service on 18 October 1954. Later, the microwave link ran from theMuseum telephone exchange in London to Rowridge, using Golden Pot as an intermediate site.^[7]

A better transmitter would be fitted after a year, which was fitted in May 1956.^[8] National radio on VHF was to be added by 1957.^[9]

In 1965 the UHF antenna was added making the total height of the structure 149.6 metres (491 ft). This addition allowed Rowridge to radiate the PAL 625-line transmission that allowed broadcasts in colour and eventually stereo sound, usingNICAM.

BBC2 was planned to arrive on November 14 1965 on 625 lines,^[10] but test transmissions would start on December 18 1965, with full broadcasts from January 16 1966.^[11]

On the neighbouring ITA mast, the ITA expected colour transmissions by late 1969.^[12]

On 25 March 2009, Channel 5's analogue signal was turned off from Fawley Power Station. Later on in the day, "existing digital terrestrial TV services moved to new frequencies", due to the digital switchover happening in the region in 2012.^[13]

Arqiva applied for planning permission to replace the existing 150m (492') mast with one 187m (614') high on 22 May 2009.^[14]

The commercial multiplexes were situated on their pre-DSO frequencies until 18 April 2012, when they started transmitting at vertical polarisation.^[16]

• Chillerton Down – a transmission site approximately 2.5 miles (4.0 km) from Rowridge, broadcasting a mix of analogue and digital radio stations not available from Rowridge
• List of masts

• Entry for Rowridge transmitting station at the Transmission Gallery
• Freeview on the Rowridge transmitter
• Rowridge Transmitter at thebigtower.com

• Transmitter sites in England
• Buildings and structures on the Isle of Wight
• Towers on the Isle of Wight

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