Transmitter Operations

Introduction

Transmitter Operations operated and maintained the transmitter network (in 1987 it became known as Transmission Operations and formed part of BBC Transmission).

Transmitter Operations was a large organisation and an overall description will be added in due course.  However a significant amount of information can already be seen by clicking on the links above.  Please note that more information and reminiscences are available in the book On Air.

A typical recruitment brochure is shown in these six PDF files: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. (Contributed by Chris Mulholland)

The chart below (which was published in On Air) shows how the number of staff dropped from about 1150 to 600 while the number of transmitters rose from about 200 to 3300 (albeit, many of them being at small relay stations).

Transmitter Operations included staff at Head Office, transmitting stations, mobile maintenance teams and the following sections:

Site Acquisition Section was, as the name implies, responsible for acquiring the land on which new transmitting stations were built.  As can be seen from the chart above, this was a major activity for many years.  It was based at Bentink House near Great Portland Street, London W1 (?) until it moved to to the new headquarters at Warwick in 1987.

Valve Section was the part of Transmitter Department responsible for procurement of valves and semiconductors needed at transmitting stations.  Many of the valves were very large, fragile, technically advanced and expensive.  The section was based at Motspur Park, Surrey until about 1987 (?), when it moved to Daventry.

New in 2016: Information about transmitter sites was held on a database called Tristar.