OTD: BBC transmitter blasting 'free' television to lucky households in Kilkenny

A BBC transmitter in South Wales has been supplying ‘free’ television to hundreds of homes in the South-East.

The freak, full colour reception is beaming first rate BBC and other stations to families lucky enough to be living in direct line with the transmitted beam.

The transmitter at Presley was built to serve a region in South Wales but for some reason has radiated to this area.

In Kilkenny, the BBC craze has caught on in a big way. Over 100 special sets have been installed by two city centre electrical contractors in a short time, while teams of professional aerial erectors from Dublin have been busy for some weeks.

Some areas in the city and county get first class reception but there are also black spots where it is impossible to get any sort of picture.

The best served spots in the city are Shandon Park, Altamount and Upper John Street while in the county a line towards Carlow and the Freshford region receive a very good reception.

Unlucky districts are Thomastown, Kells and the Callan area.

Although the reception comes across the sea free of charge it costs a good sum to get into the home.

For instance a colour television set sells at £350 or a city dealer will rent you the same for between £2 and £2.30.

The special aerial to pick up the beam could cost the price of an old type television set. It is an elaborate affair which must have an amplifier on top to boost the signal.

Erecting the aerials is a specialised and rather dangerous process and so the cost is high. And it must be pointed out that the location and height of the aerial are very important.

The BBC has proved a boom for certain public houses in the city fortunate enough to have a good reception.

There are full houses for programmes such as Match of the Day, which shows top class first division soccer from England.