The Great Digital Switchover

[23 Daves]

Now, I know you lot.  You're prepared.  You're probably all on cable or something.  But me... no.  I threw a strop with the cable company and cancelled my contract long ago, and upon doing so realised that I lived on the side of a whopping great hill and couldn't get a digital signal on my television at all, leaving me dependent on the standard analogue signal.

That was until the switchover in London yesterday, of course, when all of a sudden all the BBC channels appeared on the box but absolutely no others - so ITV and Channel 4 are still coming through on analogue, Channel 5 is nowhere to be seen, and it's BBC Heaven over on Freeview.  Now, the question I'd like to ask other members of this forum is what happens next?  I was under the impression that once the sub-transmitters were turned on, all the channels would appear.  Does this mean that when the analogue signals for all the stations go off in two weeks, I'll be without ITV and Channel 4, or will these miraculously appear on Freeview then?

Not a very interesting thread, I realise, but it's something I need to get my head around.  This two stage switchover is a bit of a pain.

[Uncle TechTip]

I think this is why they left London til (almost) last, so when all the rich, old, influential people had to go out and buy new equipment, they wouldn't be able to do their usual 'complain to old acquaintance who happens to be father of Culture Secretary' trick as the rest of the country has already switched.

In answer to your question, yeah all channels will probably appear in two weeks' time. Loads of info at the DS Freeview forum: http://forums.digitalspy.co.uk/forumdisplay.php?f=13

[23 Daves]

Great, thanks!  I was able to work out from that forum that part of my problems are probably also caused by the fact that I'm so damn close to the relay transmitter - I can almost wave to the residents of the high rise it's perched on top of from my house - which would explain why my aerial functions better with digital if it's dropped really low and partially obscured rather than high up, something which made no sense to me at all yesterday.