The Thames Television region
Thames Television broadcast to the Greater London region, and parts of the south-east, from August 1968 until December 1992.
Due to changing technology and transmitter patterns, this region did change over time.
VHF 405-line coverage, 1968 to 1985
The Independent Television Authority's London service area from a map published in an 'ITA London' booklet from March 1967, a year and a quarter before Thames went on-air.
The reach of the main transmitter at Croydon, broadcasting on Channel Nine, ranges almost from Swindon in the west to Clacton in the east, and Northampton in the north to Worthing in the south, covering a quarter of the UK's population.
VHF 405-line transmissions ceased on 3 January 1985 and, in reality, most Thames viewers by the mid to late 1970s would be viewing 625-line pictures from the transmitters below. (Click for a higher resolution version).
UHF 625-line coverage, 1969 to 1992
The Thames/LWT service area from an Independent Broadcasting Authority map published in 1979. The main Crystal Palace service area is in pale blue, and the main Bluebell Hill transmission area is in grey.
The dark blue area represents the secondary service area of both transmitters and the hatching denotes areas served by the larger relay stations.
From 1 January 1982, Bluebell Hill was switched to provide signals for TVS and then Meridian Broadcasting, leaving LWT and Thames with the Crystal Palace main station and associated relay transmitters.
The Crystal Palace analogue UHF signal is due to be switched off in 2011.
