History

The two-hop link between Carlisle and Pontop Pike came into operation in 1958, initially as a one-way link for ITA purposes. This provided the "network" feed for Tyne Tees Television - at this stage it seems there was no return path to allow Tyne Tees to contribute live programming back to the ITV network. Subsequently the route was used by the BBC in the reverse direction, replacing interim arrangements at Slippy Stones and Hopealone. These early links operated in the 4 GHz band with contract 21820 awarded to STC in 1957 and 23568 in 1964. The combined total cost was ??.

As part of the mid-1960s network expansion a contract was awarded to GEC for further links in the lower 6 GHz band. As part of wider reorganisation the main television feeds were routed via Manchester and Carlisle with the branch route to Pontop Pike serving BBC and ITV studios in Newcastle as well as the television transmitter adjacent to the Post Office site. The 1950s link from Manchester via Leeds, providing the BBC feed to Pomtop Pike was then closed.

BT network diagrams from the 1980s show feeds for all four networks in the direction Carlisle - Pontop Pike with BBC and ITV each having a single vision circuit in the return direction. The BBC had an additional circuit from west to east carring feeds for the FM radio networks. These could have been accommodated within a single band (and single antenna) however a 1976 photo of Hopealone shows twin horns and a single dish facing in each direction - pehaps indicating greater capacity was required.

A document relating to 1970s network expansion at Newcastle states that only television links were in operation at that stage however it appears the route probably carried telephony subsequently and became part of the 1980s core digital telephony network. Dishes facing Carlisle at Hopealone had been removed by 2012 but those facing Pontop Pike remained - so it is possible the eastern "hop" was used in conjunction with cable/fibre routes.

Unusually the route formed part of the "new" Channel 4 distribution network commissioned in 1993 - most links were fibre, with limited use of digital radio systems.