First town switches to digital TV
17 October 2007
The town of Whitehaven in Cumbria has become the first place in the UK to undergo the official switchover from analogue to digital TV.
BBC Two was the first to go digital at 0200 BST on Wednesday, with the remaining analogue channels to be switched off on 14 November.
Around 25,000 households will need Freeview, satellite, cable or broadband in order to watch television.
Analogue TV will be switched off in the rest of the UK by the end of 2012.
About 84% of British households have already installed digital equipment, according to media watchdog Ofcom.
The people of Whitehaven and the surrounding borough of Copeland have been the subject of a major campaign in recent months to make sure they are clear about what equipment they will need.
It's costly isn't it? I've spent £80 now because I've got one main television in the lounge and one in each bedroom
Joan Hartley
Whitehaven resident
On Tuesday, many local residents said they were well-prepared.
Katrina Shields, 40, said: 'We've already got Sky so we're OK, we don't need to change anything over. We're getting digi boxes for the two bedrooms. On the whole, it's a pain.'
Joan Hartley, 70, said: 'I'm in the process of buying one of these disk drives that you can record everything on.
'It's costly isn't it? I've spent £80 now because I've got one main television in the lounge and one in each bedroom.'
Peter Heslop of Arqiva - the company in charge of the technical side of the switchover - said he expected a smooth transition.
'Nothing in this life is 100% certain but I can tell you all the equipment has been fully tested. So, as certain as we can be, there will be no technical hitches tonight.'
Digital UK, which is overseeing the move to digital TV, said on Monday that 'probably nine out of 10 households' in Whitehaven were now ready.
Source www.bbc.co.uk
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