Thanks for putting this on. I missed the close-down on that day, so it's good to catch up with what I missed. It also explains why I've been an hour out for the last 30- odd years.
A very interesting video from the golden era of broadcasting which brings back so many happy memories. I remember during the long hot summer of 1983, living on the far southern coast of England, that during times of anticyclonic weather, it would indeed be possible to tune in to Continental broadcasts and see French and Belgian test cards coming through quite clearly. Of course, all of that is in the past now, what with the advent of digital TV and 24-hour broadcasting. Many thanks for posting this super clip.
I live in the North East, on the coast, and can remember many summery and stormy days excitedly tuning in my telly to get testcards from Denmark, Sweden, Netherlands and West Germany in the late 80s. I could never get any sound, just the pictures and was fascinated to find out that the Danes had regional tv stations on their main networks and they showed Wheel of Fortune every weekday evening as well as some adverts that were also shown on UK tv Sadly, I didn't have a video recorder at the time so they are lost in the aether now. Unless some other DX enthusiasts were around at the same time?
@@joannegray5138 There were some DXers around that time that have managed to record TV DX from Luxembourg, East/West Germany, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Iceland and even the Soviet Union. Those recordings are also available on RU-vid in various channels like EifelDX and 625line from Germany, AceBlaggard and Peter DX Channel from the UK and radioredcat from France - all five of them are well known DX enthusiasts on RU-vid.
Colour bars will have been from the Belgian cable distribution detecting loss of carrier or sync. BBC never used that style of colour bars but some ITV stations did, with the lower third usually being solid red, often with lettering overlaid (eg. GTV for Granada).
That high pitched monotone sound used to creep me right out. My sister used to fall asleep with the tv on downstairs and I had to wake my dad to go and turn it off as it never woke her up! So creepy!
I remember late 80s early 90s when BBC closed down often got TV Norway in tropo weather it happened mostly summer when it was clear skies. Mind you my Transmitter was originally from Crystal Palace
I think the Belgian TV network received BBC via a series of microwave links to a main base somewhere in Belgium. They amplified it and relayed it back via their cable network at perfect quality. However, when the black screen of death appeared it was programmed by the tone to cut the link to the main base and therefore the signal appears how the link station receives it from the main Belgian site without amplification. Then, the amplification kicks back in as the change in station is registered from a local transmitter this time.
@@cerinolancerinolan7148 Neither. I do love visiting Belgium though. I would have been only 8 when that transmission aired but my dad was a TV/radio broadcast engineer (not for the BBC) and I've been interested in DX-TV since I was 3. There are only a few female DX- ers on here.
@@zetametallic I always wondered why the BBC colour test card 'F' needed a picture of a girl playing noughts and crosses whereas any continental TV channel colour test cards I have seen do not need a picture / photo in them. The test card that appeared on RTE was like the TV2 testcard in this video. That said, I visited the RTE HQ in 2008 and in the reception was a 'wide screen' with BBC colour Test card 'F' and the RTE channel caption on it
@@deldirk7123 The girl on test card F is named Carole and the clown that she still owns is named Bubbles (like my cat). The BBC used test card G (PM5544) in the 70's and 80's but it never seemed to catch on and was discontinued. I gave no idea why the UK had such an unusual test card. I suppose I would have been easier to identify during the days of DX TV when the airwaves still radiated a testcard. Identifying a PM5544 could be quite difficult with so many countries using it and a weak signal.
@@zetametallic Ah I see, Just the information I was looking for, thanks. Carole Hersee of BBC Testcard 'F' and 'Bubbles' the clown. Theres some youtube interviews with her. She was on BBC2 'The Late Show' in 1989. That was an arts related programme after Newsnight. I did get a book about the unusual process of the development of colour tv in the UK as a Christmas present. Book is called 'not in front of the children - hidden histories in kids' tv. Author Greg Healey'. It may provide part of the explanation for the unusual colour test card of BBC and why they needed it
This is an oddity-why would a BBC1 closedown then have the Phillips PM5544 test card from Belgian television after it I wonder? Thank you for the posting though-well done!
Bruce Danton Aidan Lunn I think the cause of this oddity has to be searched due to "special weather (thus receiving) conditions" ---- this is not my first & only recording I found with disturbance by so named "spooking channels" in it ---
DeeJay PT Then why the foregin testcard with "BBC1" on it. No, the uploader has mentioned months ago that his BBC1 clips were recorded off Belgian cable TV. I have been to Belgium and can confirm that they do have BBC1 and 2 on cable TV there, and have done so for many years now.
That wasn't the full sign-off broadcast. Just after God Save The Queen finishes playing, a palace guard is supposed to appear and sternly say "go to bed, spotty"!
Goodtimes version, the one with 1000Hz. Yes VHS testpattern can broadcast in TV too. I've never seen THAT before. It's like using PAL Test Pattern at the end of the VHS tape.
ik begrijp mij hier zelf niet zo goed aan; ik heb dat stukje er maar bij mee opgenomen omdat het idd destijds zo "uitgezonden" moet geweest zijn. Ik heb al nog vaker dergelijke speciale storingen tegengekomen - heb er eind vorig jaar ook al eens zo eentje geupload op mijn kanaal brtradio89 - en het moet gaan om storingen die plaatsvinden door "bijzondere" weersomstandigheden waardoor er plots een (eerder uitgezonden) signaal van een andere zender tussenkomt op de frequentie van een ander
