Some households with a Freeview TV or box in the Ilfracombe area may find that they are experiencing interference, or receiving Welsh TV services after re-tuning, since the switchover of the Carmel transmitter in south Wales. This is due to the same frequencies being used at the Ilfracombe relay as at the Carmel main transmitter, and also because TV signals from Wales may be reflected off surrounding hills.

Firstly, we advise viewers experiencing these issues to check their postcode on this website, or call our helpline, to check if Ilfracombe is their preferred transmitter.

Then viewers should check their Freeview TV or box to see if the English services appear in the 800s, further down the Electronic Programme Guide. You may be able to re-order your channels so that the English services appear at the top. Look for a function called ‘edit channels’.

It is also possible that a manual re-tune may locate the English TV services depending on the make of your Freeview TV or box. For information on how to complete a manual re-tune please visit the re-tuning section of our website:

The frequencies used by the Ilfracombe transmitter are UHF channels 54, 61 and 58.

Alternatively, viewers may wish to seek the advice of a local aerial installer who might be able to reposition or realign your aerial to receive English services. This may not be possible, and viewers may prefer to look at satellite options such as Freesat, Freesat from Sky, or Sky.

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