Freeview downtimes and retunes in store for viewers across Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and the North Midlands
Frequency changes to move television services out of the way of future 5G mobile networks mean that there will be an overnight loss of service followed by a retune on Wednesday 5th February 2020.
And for viewers in parts of Sheffield, there will even be changes to the channel line-up.
Viewers who use BT, Plusnet TV or TalkTalk TV are also affected by the changes. Sky, Freesat and Virgin Media users are not affected.
Lincolnshire and East Yorkshire; parts of North Nottinghamshire
For viewers who receive the Hull edition of Look North on BBC One, presented by Peter Levy.
Freeview signals will be subject to a break in service between midnight and 6am on the 5th February 2020.
After 6am, some channels, including Sky News and Pick will be broadcasting on a new frequency; viewers will need retune to restore services. Some HD channels will also change frequency.
For viewers watching via the Weaverthorpe relay, retune after 5pm to restore services.
And as a result of changes in Lincolnshire, viewers watching via the Creake relay in Norfolk should also retune after 5pm to restore channels.
A further change will affect some viewers on the 4th March 2020, meaning another retune.
Chesterfield, Dronfield
For viewers receiving BBC Look North from Leeds.
Changes at local transmitters in the area mean a loss of service overnight into the 5th February 2020. Retune after 6am to restore access to all of the main channels.
Most of West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, parts of North Yorkshire
For viewers receiving BBC Look North from Leeds.
Services from Emley Moor (pictured above) and many of its relays will be changing frequency in the last stage of the frequency change begun last year.
The changes in frequencies is the reason why there's a temporary mast on Emley Moor, next to the tower: the infrastructure used to transmit the TV signals is having to be changed - the temporary mast has ensured downtimes are kept to a minimum.
However, services will still need to be off air for a time between midnight and 6am on Wednesday 5th February.
Retune after 6am to continue watching channels including Quest, Paramount Network, QVC, Sky News, Challenge and Pick. Some HD channels will also be affected.
For viewers with reception of a smaller number of Freeview channels via a relay, services will be off air during the day, before returning in the evening. Retune then to restore any missing channels.
Viewers in Idle, Keighley and Scarborough will be affected by a frequency change taking place a week later on the 12th February 2020.
Sheffield
There's a frequency change for viewers receiving TV from the Totley Rise relay; elsewhere channels including FreeSports, Forces TV and BBC News HD will no longer be broadcast from the city's main transmitter at Crosspool / Tapton Hill.
For viewers in parts of northern Sheffield who don't use the Crosspool mast, but receive their TV service directly from Emley Moor, Sheffield's local TV channel Sheffield Live, alongside Sony Channel and Sony Movies Classic will be broadcast from a new site at Grenoside, enabling more viewers in the city to receive these Freeview channels.
Help and support
Viewers can get help and support at www.freeview.co.uk/tv-changes
There's also telephone support via a special freephone helpline: 0808 100 0288
Viewers who solely rely on Freeview for their TV service should call this number if they are unable to restore channels after retuning, as free help is available, including aerial work if required.
Retuning older Freeview boxes
For users of older Freeview boxes, including many Humax receivers, a full retune is needed, which may involve a factory reset or selection of a first time installation option, if available. If not done correctly, receivers may dump the new versions of the channels in the 800-900 channel range.
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