The first stage of the BBC HD satellite upgrade starts on Tuesday 24th January when the first regions migrate on Sky and Freesat.
Viewers in the south of England, including the former Oxford TV region, will become the first in England to see their regional BBC One switch to HD on channel 101.
At the same time, Northern Ireland becomes the first UK nation to move to all-HD broadcasting of BBC One and BBC Two on satellite.
Meanwhile, viewers with older standard definition satellite receivers will be switched to BBC One Nightlight. This is a special version of BBC One without local news programmes. During regional programmes, viewers will see a message advising them of the change.
All regions will now be upgraded by the end of February, faster than originally announced by the BBC.
The BBC confirmed its plans to upgrade services to HD in an announcement made at the end of November. The broadcaster will shortly announce details of a help scheme to assist vulnerable users. Freesat users can check to see if their device is compatible with the change by visiting channel 799.
▶ Overview: BBC HD upgrade
Receivers in the affected areas will be updated
South of England (Sky and Freesat)
- BBC One South SD on channel 101 is replaced by BBC One South HD.
- Users of older SD-only Sky and Freesat receivers will migrate to BBC One Nightlight and lose access to regional programmes.
Northern Ireland (Sky and Freesat)
- BBC One NI SD and BBC Two NI SD close. But Sky+HD, Sky Q and Freesat HD/4K box users already have HD versions of these channels on 101 and 102.
- Users of older SD-only Sky and Freesat receivers will migrate to BBC One Nightlight and BBC Two Network. You’ll lose access to BBC Northern Ireland’s programmes.
Republic of Ireland (Sky)
- No change for Sky Q, Sky+HD users.
- Users of older SD-only Sky and Freesat receivers will migrate to BBC One Nightlight and BBC Two Network. You’ll lose access to BBC Northern Ireland’s programmes.
Across the UK (Sky and Freesat)
- BBC One South HD will appear on Sky channel 964 and Freesat channel 961.
- BBC One NI SD will be removed from Sky channel 953 and Freesat 957. BBC One NI HD will remain on Sky channel 979. Freesat hasn’t yet confirmed if BBC One NI HD will move from channel 978. BBC Two NI SD will also be removed from Sky channel 972 and Freesat channel 974 for viewers outside of Northern Ireland.
When exactly do the changes take place? Sky and Freesat update their channel lists during working hours – so don’t expect a midnight changeover. Freesat receivers will change first the afternoon before. Sky receivers will update during the course of the day.
More to come…
Since publishing this article, the BBC has now confirmed an accelerated timescale that will see all regions updated to HD by the end of February, not March as the BBC.
You can find more details here…
by Iain Hatton
Updated by Sonali Khan 23/01/23