TV programme about Orfordness.

[AJSmith625]

Just noticed flicking through tonights TV programme guide. 10 pm on 5 Select, Freeview 54, Portillo's Hidden History. This episode is about the history of Orfordness. Apologise for the late posting but just noticed this myself.

Alan.

[Nymrod121]

Thank you Alan
Best wishes
Guy

['LIVEWIRE?']

I watched the last half-hour of this - didn't know it was on until I saw Alan's Post. A few interesting, even startling revelations about the uses to which the site was put for maybe 80 years or so. All I knew about Orfordness before was its location, and the fact that the BBC World Service was transmitted from there on 648kHz until a few years ago.

[AJSmith625]

Have just checked Channel5's on demand on line service My5 and this programme has just become available. It is Portillo's Hidden History of Britain, series 1, episode 2.

Alan.

[Nymrod121]

Originally Posted by 'LIVEWIRE?'

I watched the last half-hour of this - didn't know it was on until I saw Alan's Post. A few interesting, even startling revelations about the uses to which the site was put for maybe 80 years or so. All I knew about Orfordness before was its location, and the fact that the BBC World Service was transmitted from there on 648kHz until a few years ago.

648kHz was mainly 'Green' network (English) however Orfordness also carried vernacular External Services to Europe on 1296kHz. Crowborough radiated External Services on 810kHz; both of these broadcast sites were originally operated by the F&CO's Diplomatic Wireless Service - if memory serves, Crowborough ('ASP') was staffed whilst "ORF1" & "ORF 2" were remotely controlled.


In last night's programme, I thought I glimpsed the front panel of an AEG-Telefunken S4005 transmitter lurking in the background at one point. Last time I saw one of those was when the first 500kW HF sender (PDM) was being installed at Rampisham in 1983.
Russell W-B can add more to this I'm sure


Best wishes
Guy

[russell_w_b]

In last night's programme, I thought I glimpsed the front panel of an AEG-Telefunken S4005 transmitter lurking in the background at one point. Last time I saw one of those was when the first 500kW HF sender (PDM) was being installed at Rampisham in 1983.
Russell W-B can add more to this I'm sure

Well, I've been to ORF once for an STEs meeting - stayed in the Crown and Castle (appropriate name for a broadcasting company, that...) - not in the posh bit, but in the sheds through the back. Had a pint in the Jovial Sailor (with a distincly un-jovial landlord 'whaddayawant?!') but I digress...

There was indeed an AEG telefunken set there, an AEGS4006, next to the Home-Office designed Doherty sets. I didn't get my hands on them, though.

Portillo incorrectly said there were no windows in Orfordness, though being fair, the one window in the canteen was added after the Cobra Mist thing. We had our meeting in that room with curtains and fake windows. Upstairs was a vast emptiness with holes in the floor, and abandoned sentry-posts where US Marines once stood guard. I don't think he mentioned that it was built on stilts to prevent flooding, and the site was pumped continuously.

[McMurdo]

Also home to the early radar experiments with Robert Watson-Watt etc, portrayed in the radar tv film with Eddie Izzard as they moved into a desolate bunch of prefabs. It's also described in 'Building Radar', (Colin Dobinson, ISBN-10: 0413772292) in much the same way and as far back as the sound-mirror experiments. I wonder where today's 'orfordness' exists, the one we dont know about yet!?

[russell_w_b]

Originally Posted by McMurdo

'It's also described in 'Building Radar', (Colin Dobinson, ISBN-10: 0413772292)'

Good book, that. As are his other books in the series about AA Command and Decoy Sites ('Fields of Deception').

[Top Cap]

This worked for me, hope it does for you.
Wonderful place, with masts, for a lovely Top Band antenna
https://www.my5.tv/portillos-hidden-...ory-of-britain

[Radio Wrangler]

I seem to remember that the BBC bought some HP 8656 or 8657 signal generators for use as carrier sources for HF transmitters. Did anyone see where they got used?

Seeing the equipment on the trolley mount in one of Russel's photos just spurred the memory (8656 family generators were built mounted on trolleys like those)

David

[russell_w_b]

Originally Posted by Radio Wrangler

I seem to remember that the BBC bought hsome HP 8656 or 8657 signal generators for use as carrier sources for HF transmitters. Did anyone see where they got used?

We used them at Skelton and at Rampisham. Me and another lad fitted the ones at Skelton 'A', replacing the original Marconi decade-switched synths with their dodgy germanium transistors. To be fair, the old Marconi synths were readily available and we bought a few in from RAF 14 MU at Carlisle.

The HP synths (sig-gens) were disciplined from the station 1MHz rubidium standard, but could also 'free-run'. Someone made little boxes with a red and green LED so we could see if they were locked and so suitable for synchronised transmissions.

[Radio Wrangler]

Not available from the front panel, those generators had millihertz frequency steps and also very fine phase adjustments available in their synthesisers. But there wasn't a means to set the initial start phase to any reference.

however the step size was unround in decimal terms due to the use of binary format numerical integrators in the fractional-N loop. giving a 1/(2^N) factor.

David

David

[G6Tanuki]

Something over 20 years back, I visited Orfordness: not the transmitter site but the adjoining area (accessed by a small and not-always-running ferry) where in the first half of last century various experiments in direction-finding and RADAR were carried out.

https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/orf...on-orford-ness

What really fascinated me though were the various structures used in atomic weapons research: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/orf...on-orford-ness - alas these structures have been criminally neglected and so an essential part of the UK's technical heritage has largely been lost.

[Nymrod121]

Originally Posted by McMurdo

It's also described in 'Building Radar', (Colin Dobinson, ISBN-10: 0413772292) ...

Pleased to report that I've since received a copy of this book from SWMBO/SWMBO Junior as a joint birthday present
Cheers
Guy

[Nymrod121]

I've recently finished what is probably the most interesting book I've ever read

"Building Radar" (Colin Dobinson, in association with English Heritage, published by Methuen)
ISBN 978-0-413-77229-9

It's an absorbing and fascinating study of the development of radar in Britain from 1935 through the Second World War, followed by a 'synoptic summative profile' * of the period up to the early '90s - and in which English Heritage appears to have registered a 'clear and present interest' in preserving such remains as still exist.

Thoroughly researched, technically detailed and written in a clear and precise manner, this book includes numerous high-quality photographs / drawings recovered from a wide range of impeccable resources.

The reference and index sections are a 'tour de force' in their own right (no military pun intended).

At a cover price of £30.00, I can personally attest to this book as having been probably the best-value birthday present ever

Thanks to all who'd flagged it earlier, also to PaulSherwin for kindly re-opening this thread.

Best wishes
Guy

* (thass' an edjercayshunal trainin corss phrase wot I learnt in my "Certiffickitt of Teachin" evenin' clarsses at Nawf-East Wostersheer Collidge a few years back. Best fing I evva did ... iss done a lot fer me, I can tell ya)