St Hilary transmitting station

The plan by the Independent Television Authority (ITA) to build a mast at the site was controversial (prompting a House of Lords debate in May 1957{{cite web|url=https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/lords/1957/may/02/television-mast-near-rhoose-airport |title=TELEVISION MAST NEAR RHOOSE AIRPORT (Hansard, 2 May 1957) |work=Parliamentary Debates (Hansard) |date=2 May 1957 |access-date=2013-05-28}}). This was due to its proximity to Rhoose Airport (now Cardiff International Airport), and ITA's initial plan for a {{convert|1000|ft|m|0|disp=flip|abbr=on}} mast on a site that itself is {{convert|125|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} above sea level.

Objections were noted, the mast height was eventually limited to {{convert|750|ft|m|0|disp=flip|abbr=on}} and it was built by BICCTimes Tuesday 27 October 1959, page 6 in Summer 1957 to provide 405-line VHF television to south Wales and the West of England.

Test transmissions commenced on 2 September 1957 on Band III channel 10 (199.75 MHz) from antennas at 340 m above sea level and the station entered television broadcast service on that frequency in January 1958. The programming was initially provided by TWW.

In 1965, Band III channel 7 (184.75 MHz) was added to the mast, transmitting from an antenna array sited about 20 m below the existing channel 10 array. This was to carry the programmes of the bilingual Teledu Cymru service that were already being provided by TWW in the rest of Wales, which in 1968 was replaced by Harlech Television (HTV Wales). From that point onwards, the channel 10 transmissions carried the English-language "General Service" (again, initially provided by TWW, and from 1968 by HTV). Channel 10's power output was decreased to 55 kW and the Wales-facing antennas were removed, though the power output towards the West of England remained about the same as it had been previously.

In 1985, when 405-line TV closed, the site was re-engineered to remove the VHF television antennas. St. Hilary became just a telecommunications mast and remained so until October 2000 when Real Radio commenced FM Radio broadcasting from the site. In late 2000, DAB Digital Radio was added to the radio broadcasting repertoire initially transmitting the Cardiff & Newport multiplex on channel 11C, but with Swansea SW Wales on channel 12A commencing in February 2004.{{cite web|url=http://forums.digitalspy.co.uk/showthread.php?t=96866&page=6 |title=Swansea dab - Page 6 - Radio - Digital Spy Forums |publisher=Forums.digitalspy.co.uk |access-date=2013-05-28}}

In 2006 Ofcom received a proposal{{Cite web |url=http://licensing.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/radio/applications/davefm.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=27 October 2011 |archive-date=17 January 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120117154004/http://licensing.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/radio/applications/davefm.pdf |url-status=dead }} for a new Rock-Orientated FM station to transmit from the site, but the licence was awarded to Xfm South Wales, now Nation Radio. Nation's studios are located at the foot of the St Hilary mast, but the station's Cardiff transmitter is a few miles away at Wenvoe.

• Radio masts and towers
• List of tallest buildings and structures in Great Britain

{{Reflist}}

• [http://tx.mb21.co.uk/info/405/itv/wales_west.shtml MB21's page on 405 TV to Wales and the West]
• [http://www.bvws.org.uk/405alive/info/tx_list.html "405 Alive's list of transmitters"]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20120414222659/http://www.pembers.freeserve.co.uk/405-Lines/tx-list.html#ITA More details on 405-line ITV transmitters]

{{Transmitter sites in Wales}}

{{FM radio transmitter sites in Wales}}

{{Television transmitters in the UK}}

{{St Hilary VHF 405-line Transmitter Group}}

{{Vale of Glamorgan}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Hilary Transmitting Station}}

Category:Transmitter sites in Wales

Category:1957 establishments in Wales

Category:Buildings and structures in the Vale of Glamorgan