Final Wales switchover underway
3rd March 2010 – all Freeview viewers in Newport, Cardiff and south east Wales will need to retune their Freeview TVs and boxes today, as the final digital switchover in Wales gets underway.
Forty-six years after BBC Two was launched, the channel’s last remaining analogue signal in Wales was turned off permanently at the Wenvoe transmitter, and engineers started switching on digital signals at 75 relay transmitters serving more than 280,000 homes. These households will be able to receive Freeview for the first time today.
The changes will also affect existing Freeview viewers who will probably find their BBC TV channels are missing. These services have moved to new frequencies and can easily be restored by retuning Freeview TVs and boxes. Viewers in areas where more than one regional service is available can get advice on choosing their preferred channels from Digital UK.
The second and final stage of switchover at the Wenvoe transmitter group takes place on 31 March, when the remaining analogue channels will be switched off permanently. On this date, further
Freeview channels from ITV, S4C, Channel 4 and Five will also become available from relay transmitters for the first time. At this point, Wales will have completed the digital switchover process
to become the UK’s first digital nation, making Cardiff the first digital capital.
